HopSkipDrive operates a vetted-driver transportation service that books third-party drivers to move children for parents and school districts. After launching in 2014, the company pivoted from serving only parents to contracting with schools to transport students who don’t fit traditional bus routes, including those in foster care or experiencing homelessness. That pivot opened a new revenue stream and positioned HopSkipDrive to capture part of the large school-transportation market. The company now works with more than 16,000 schools across seven states, including California, Colorado and Pennsylvania, and has facilitated over 1 million rides. Its consumer business remains active and is growing organically alongside district contracts, and HopSkipDrive also acquired the assets of shuttered competitor Shuddle in 2016 to merge platforms and strengthen its offering. HopSkipDrive operates a student-focused rideshare service using CareDrivers—drivers with caregiving experience who are predominantly women—to serve trips that don’t fit traditional school-bus routes. The company has contracts with more than 300 districts across nine states and Washington, D.C., signed roughly 150 new contracts during the pandemic, and has renewed 100% of existing contracts this year, many with price increases. HopSkipDrive plans to expand into 30 new markets over the next 18 months and is investing in route-optimization software to improve efficiency and reduce fleet size. The startup is also directing capital toward electrification initiatives and partnerships with OEMs to help CareDrivers transition to electric vehicles; 19% of its CareDriver network vehicles are currently hybrid or electric. The company previously raised $22M (noted in the article) and had to let go much of its staff amid school lockdowns last year, though demand is expected to increase as schools reopen. It maintains COVID SafeRide standards including sanitization, mask policies, and anonymous exposure tracing via its app. HopSkipDrive pairs vetted caregiver-drivers with families and school districts to provide on-demand and contracted transportation for children, including those in foster care and experiencing homelessness. The six-year-old, L.A.-based company requires contractors to have at least five years of childcare experience and reports a driver network of more than 7,000 contractors. It operates in 13 markets across eight states and has a staff of over 100 people. Seventy percent of its revenue comes from school-district contracts, which management says gives the company predictable, contracted revenue and a path to profitability. The service emphasizes safety with dual authentication, real-time tracking and ride-monitoring technology designed for passengers who may not have phones. HopSkipDrive also partners with large public systems such as L.A. County and targets inefficiencies in the $25 billion U.S. school transportation market by offering alternatives to traditional buses. HopSkipDrive is a ridesharing service that hires drivers with childcare experience to transport children, offering both single-passenger rides and discounted carpools. It enforces a 15-point certification process including background checks and requires drivers to have at least five years of childcare experience; drivers are reported as 99% female and above age 23. The company has operated in Los Angeles for three years and also serves Orange County and the San Francisco Bay Area. HopSkipDrive is expanding into school-transportation alternatives through a partnership with Student Transportation Inc. and is working with the Los Angeles Office of Education to provide rides for foster children. To fuel growth it has announced additional funding, supplementing prior capital raised. HopSkipDrive operates a pre-scheduled ridesharing platform focused on transporting children between school and activities using thoroughly vetted drivers. The company’s vetting process includes extensive background checks, vehicle inspection, fingerprinting, ongoing DMV checks, and an in-person meeting with drivers. HopSkipDrive reports thousands of families in Los Angeles use the service, with the majority using it several times a week and the top 25 percent using it several times a day, indicating strong retention. The startup has hired Eyal Gutentag as COO, who was previously general manager of Uber’s Los Angeles operations. Financially, the company had previously raised $3.9M in seed funding and is using new capital to fund geographic expansion and to strengthen its product development team. While it has discussed potential future use cases such as seniors or people with special needs, the company is currently hyper-focused on expanding its child-transportation model beyond LA.

Total raised

$106M

Funding rounds

6

Latest round

Series D

Latest activity

Sep 2022