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Faciligo: a platform that connects travelers who help each other

Information updated on 20/06/18
Need help getting around? The Faciligo collaboration-oriented web platform brings people with reduced mobility together with trusted escorts for travel and public transportation. Laureate of the Big Data Challenge, the startup assisted by Montpellier BIC is deeply involved with the Smart City. Montpellier Méditerranée Métropole promotes this innovative service for the territory to reinforce social links and urban mobility for all.
From mid-February to late March, 2017, Montpellier’s tramway line 1 cars will promote the “Mobility for All” solution invented by Montpellier startup Faciligo. The concept is clearly ingenious: using a web platform to bring together people who need assistance, with trusted people willing to offer assistance while taking the same route. The cost is a symbolic 2.50 euros for a bus or tram ride, an amount that can be donated to an association.
“It’s a win-win scenario for both parties,” explains Hind Emad, who runs Faciligo with his partners Moussa Bouasba and Anne Lesire. “9 out of every 10 elderly or handicapped people depend on close friends and family to get around. These people are directly concerned by our service, as are pregnant women or divorced parents with shared custody of their children.” Faciligo offers solutions both for urban travel (walking, bus, tramway, or car) and for longer trips by car, train, and airplane. Already more than one thousand users have signed up on the platform, with an even balance of escorts and people wanting assistance.
Laureate of the Smart City call-for-ideas and Big Data Challenge in 2015, this shining star of Montpellier’s French Tech community was also noticed by SNCF, the Sud France incubator for the European Space Agency (ESA), and the Crealia seed capital fund. Since 2015, Faciligo has been assisted by the Montpellier Méditerranée Métropole Business and Innovation Centre (BIC) and Alter’Incub, the social innovation incubator. 
“We are really very fortunate to be part of this benevolent ecosystem,” insists Hind Emad. “Our presence at Cap Oméga enables us to benefit from exchanges with other startups.” With a staff of about ten people, the young startup recently completed a four-month “acceleration” program with Sprint Montpellier. Faciligo joined the Ashoka accelerator for social entrepreneurs for six months, and intends to proceed with a round of funding in late 2017.
- Find out more:
- Faciligo
- www.facebook.com/www.faciligo.fr
- Smart City
- Join local digital networks
- Getting assistance from Montpellier Méditerranée Métropole BIC