Uber App Adds Intercity Bus Booking with AbhiBus’s 6 Lakh+ Routes

From Left to Right: Rohit Sharma, COO, AbhiBus; Lenin Koduru, CEO, AbhiBus; Praveen Neppalli Naga, Chief Technology Officer, Uber; Manikandan Thangarathnam, Senior Director (Mobility & Platforms), Uber India

AbhiBus (ixigo’s bus business), one of India’s leading online bus ticketing platforms, has partnered with Uber to power intercity bus ticket bookings within the Uber app.

Uber users across India can now book intercity bus tickets directly within the app, leveraging AbhiBus’s robust inventory and booking technology. Through this partnership, users gain access to AbhiBus’s extensive network of over 6 lakh routes operated by over 6,200 bus operators nationwide.

To book, users can navigate to the Home or Services section on the Uber app and select the “Intercity” option. After entering their origin, destination and travel date, they can browse available bus services, choose preferred seats and complete their booking smoothly within the app using integrated payment options.

Powered by AbhiBus’s end-to-end booking technology and deep operator integrations, Uber users can discover and compare bus options, check real-time seat availability and select preferred seats directly within the app. They can also filter by bus types such as AC, Sleeper, Seater, Volvo and Scania, view 360° bus photos on select routes, track live bus status, opt for Abhi Assured with defined compensation benefits in case of service disruptions, and access 24×7 customer support. The partnership expands Uber’s mobility ecosystem beyond intra-city rides by integrating bus travel into a single app, enabling users to plan both short-distance and intercity journeys seamlessly.

Speaking on this, Rohit Sharma, COO, AbhiBus, said, "This partnership with Uber represents a significant milestone for intercity travel in India. By integrating AbhiBus's deep operator network and booking technology into the Uber app, we are bringing over 6 lakh routes directly to millions of users - making bus travel discovery as seamless as booking a cab. With Uber's reach and AbhiBus's deep expertise in powering seamless bus travel experiences, we are setting a new benchmark for how India books its intercity journeys."

Praveen Neppalli Naga, Chief Technology Officer, Uber, added, “We are excited to partner with AbhiBus and bring intercity bus travel into the Uber app. At Uber, our mission is to make movement seamless for everyone and integrating AbhiBus's extensive bus network directly into our platform is a natural extension of that vision. AbhiBus brings unmatched depth in bus inventory and operator integrations, and together we are unlocking a new dimension of mobility for millions of Indians.”

With this partnership, AbhiBus further strengthens its footprint in powering intercity bus travel across diverse platforms, making seamless and reliable bus booking more accessible to millions of travellers.

About AbhiBus

AbhiBus is a leading online bus-ticketing platform that aggregates ticket inventory from over 6,200 bus operators - including major State Road Transport Corporations (SRTCs), covering more than 6.5 lakh (650,000+) routes across India. The AbhiBus website and apps allow users to check amenities provided by bus operators, compare booking fares, check bus timings in the searched route, live tracking of the bus before arrival, cancellation protection options and other facilities. It is the official ticketing partner for several state road transport corporation bus tickets and IRCTC bus bookings.

AbhiBus is owned and operated by ixigo (Le Travenues Technology Limited), India’s leading OTA for the Next Billion Users. With over 54 crore Annual Active Users in FY25, ixigo offers AI-powered train, flight, bus, and hotel bookings through its platforms - ixigo, ConfirmTkt, and AbhiBus.

ixigo Acquires Bus Ticketing Platform AbhiBus

New Delhi, 5th August 2021: Le Travenues Technology Limited, the company that operates the AI based travel app “ixigo” has purchased the business and operations of Hyderabad based bus ticketing and aggregation platform AbhiBus as a going concern on a slump sale basis vide a business transfer agreement, for a mix of cash and ixigo stock as consideration. The Abhibus team led by its founder Sudhakar Reddy Chirra have joined the ixigo team, and all intellectual property, brands, technology and operations are being transferred to ixigo.

The long-haul intercity bus market in India was valued at INR 585 Billion in FY2020. Buses are the most preferred mode of travel for the teeming masses in both urban and rural India, accounting for the largest share of 65% of all transportation used in the country. Resumption of bus services and relaxation of COVID lockdowns have led to swift recovery of bus ticketing volumes and the industry is expected to fully recover in the next 6 months. As per industry reports, AbhiBus was the second largest bus aggregator in India in FY20, selling 26,000 bus tickets per day through its platform. This deal will help the ixigo group to consolidate its presence in Tier 2/3/4 markets by offering a multi-modal transportation experience across trains, flights and buses to its combined user base of nearly 255 million users, as of May 31, 2021.

Aloke Bajpai and Rajnish Kumar, Co-Founders, ixigo said - “ixigo and AbhiBus founders share the passion and focus on the next billion traveler market. AbhiBus has built an innovative and high growth company with deep penetration on the supply side across state road transport companies (SRTCs) & private bus operators and on the demand side, as the dominant bus ticketing brand in several Indian states. By leveraging our combined user base, multi-modal transportation capabilities, tech resources and travel domain expertise we will be able to enhance the experience of millions of travellers in India every day.”

Sudhakar Reddy Chirra, Founder & CEO, AbhiBus said - “We started AbhiBus with a vision to become India’s most preferred bus booking platform. We are happy that we were able to build a motivated, tightly-knit team and we grew rapidly to become one of the leading bus ticketing players in the country. We are excited to be joining ixigo, whose team and products have created new benchmarks for the travel industry. We remain committed as a team towards our joint vision of serving the underserved market segment of the next billion travelers in the country, for whom trains and buses are the primary modes of transportation.”

AbhiBus, established in 2008 by Sudhakar Reddy Chirra, provides end-to-end software and other value-added solutions such as e-ticketing systems, fleet management solutions, vehicle tracking systems, passenger information systems, logistics management. The company also provides technology solutions to private bus partners and state transport corporations in India. It has also partnered with IRCTC to offer bus tickets to IRCTC users.

This is ixigo’s second acquisition in 2021. In February 2021, ixigo acquired train booking app Confirmtkt.

Launched in 2007, ixigo is an AI-based travel app based in Gurugram, India. Offering train, flight and bus bookings across the ixigo, Confirmtkt and AbhiBus brands, the company applies AI for deal discovery, personalized recommendations, airfare predictions & alerts, train delay information, PNR confirmation predictions and fully-automated customer service. Founded by Aloke Bajpai & Rajnish Kumar, ixigo is backed by affiliates of Sequoia Capital and Elevation Capital among other investors.

AbhiBus To Raise $10 Million From PE Funds

Hyderabad-based online ticketing platform AbhiBus.com plans to raise $10 million from private equity (PE) players. The startup has appointed Kotak Investment Banking as advisor.

As per reports by Business Standard, Sudhakar Reddy Chirra, founder and chief executive officer, said this would be part of the company's plan to raise a total of $40 million over the next two years from PE funds and strategic investors.

"The $10 million will be the first tranche and we hope to close the deal in the next three or four months," said Chirra. He refused to name the PE funds involved.

Founded in 2007 by Sudhakar Reddy Chirra, with the goal of bringing the inventories of bus operators online, Abhibus.com provides end-to-end software and other value added solutions for the Bus Transport Industry. It has offices in Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad and Mumbai. With ticket inventory from over 1500 operators and 15000 routes, the company also provides technology solutions to more than 100 large private bus operators in India, 4 state transport corporations and 2 international operators.

The proposed fund raising plan is to support the company's geographical expansion and to build a brand. The company plans to enter Gujarat, Maharashtra, Delhi, and Uttar Pradesh markets and this would support its target of becoming a Rs 500-crore company by FY16. AbhiBus clocked Rs 160 crore in FY14, and has set a target to close the financial year with a revenue of Rs 250 crore in FY15.

If this deal got finalized for Abhibus, it will join the league of other online bus tickets booking companies that managed to attract investors. Abhibus face tough competition from other home-grown online ticketing players such as RedBus,TicketGoose and TravelYaari. In 2013, redBus was sold to Naspers for $100 million and last year, Ticketgoose raised Rs 24 crore in its second round of funding.