Taxi mode of transport in Africa has gradually become a business hot spot not only for drivers and car owners but in a technological aspect which in this case software developers have largely come out to make the industry more viable.

In Kenya Easy Taxi an application that connects taxi drivers and passengers for a safe, convenient, and reliable ride is widely known for easy access of the transport mode by use of the app available for Android, iOS, Blackberry, and Windows Phone devices, as well as for B2B clients through EasyTaxi Pro and Easy Taxi Corporate solutions. The pioneer in online taxi services in Kenya was followed by Uber taxi an almost similar taxi service providing a platform of Taxi drivers to connect with the public.

Uber which is more of an employment structure for taxi drivers who operate under its system differs Easy Taxi whose strategy is to convene taxi drivers under its umbrella to provide easy access of taxi for passengers through the application. Taxi enabling software services have rolled out to provide convenience for both parties. However, driver expertise and efficiency has been neglected by the companies signing up any persons already on the road as taxi drivers which could be a risky assumption.

Africa incubated SafeMotos is however doing it differently; Using Safe motos application, a user drops a pin where they want to be picked up from, they drop a pin to where they want to be dropped off at, then they indicate what star rating of driver they want. These star ratings come from a mixture of crowd sourcing and data driven indicators, users will be able to pay more to get a driver that they know is safer.

Even better, the Rwanda based startup is also working with motorcycles to ensure safety as well as convenience for users. Founded by Kigali residents Barrett Nash and Peter Kariuki, the two gentlemen were inspired by first hand experiences of risks associated with taxi motor rides. In an interview with Rwanda’s New times, the biggest danger to passengers at the moment is that they have no idea about the quality of the riders whose services they hire. Whether the moto rider is on his first day on the job cannot be known to a customer.

SafeMoto signs up for irish startup accelerator

The startup recently absorbed in an Irish Startup accelerator, Carma AXLR8R where they will be collaborating with a talented product development team, benefiting from a global mentorship network and gaining access to additional investment opportunities.

SafeMoto also stands a chance to win $1 million price for making use of the Carma technology, and also has its app being used for 10,000 rides per day within a single city. Rwanda being among top states named as most suitable for idea development, the team is looking to grow the idea beyond Rwanda in the next few quarters.