Residents and visitors will be able to spot the black and blue electric scooters placed in various designated areas throughout Stellenbosch. Here, the scooters stand outside Java Bistro on Church Street. PHOTO: Tyler Setzer
Stellenbosch locals and visitors will be able to commute around town with a new electric scooter rental service that was recently launched in Stellenbosch.
The app-driven service, GONOW on Demand, officially launched on 15 October, with a fleet of 200 rentable electric scooters placed “neatly across Stellenbosch”, said Bradley Levitan, founder of GONOW on Demand.
Some areas where the scooters can be found include Dorp Street, Church Street, and areas near Eikestad Mall.
According to the company’s website, riders can unlock and rent the scooters by downloading the GONOW on Demand app. Users can then choose the payment option that works best for them, it is stated on the website.
Riders can decide between the basic R1.73 per minute billing or the VIP package, which involves paying R300 for 3 000 minutes. This is valid for 30 days, according to the website.
“If a scooter leaves our service areas and keeps going, we dispatch a local private security company who are notified automatically,” said Levitan.
To ride the scooters, all one has to do is download the GONOW on Demand app and choose the most fitting payment option. PHOTO: Tyler Setzer
Where it all began
According to Levitan, it was after visiting a friend overseas that he was inspired to start a business that rents electric scooters out to the public.
Levitan’s friend had his own electric scooter that he used for commuting, he said.
One night, the friends went out for a “remarkably fun” ride around the town on the electric scooter. It was at this point that Levitan decided he needed to offer something similar.
“Here we are years later through trials and tribulations, and this is the result of a most awesome time I had years back,” said Levitan.
Helping the community
The scooter business is also offering opportunities such as internships and project development courses for locals, said Letivan.
GONOW has already teamed up with local non-profit organisation (NPO), Stellenbosch Crafts Alive, as well as a Kayamandi-based small business owner and community leader, Paul Roviss Khambule, to help the company with the recruitment of job-seeking locals.
“We are assisting them with identifying community members to be empowered with skills [through] their project,” said Anna Kruger, founder and director at Stellenbosch Craft’s Alive.
According to Khambule, he has helped recruit 12 young people, who had lost their jobs due to Covid-19, from Kayamandi and other central Stellenbosch areas to join GONOW operations.
“We hope to add more people as the project stabilizes,” said Khambule.
“It has become so much more than I could have ever imagined, and I cannot wait to share the opportunity, the vision, the fun, the necessity, and the positive change that will emerge from this venture,” said GONOW on Demand founder, Bradley Levitan. PHOTO: Tyler Setzer