“Simply put, Cork needs more taxis.”

Taxi app Bolt launches its ride-hailing services in Cork City and surrounding areas today and the business’s Irish operations manager believes it couldn’t come at a better time.

“The total registered SPSV Taxi fleet in Cork is just 1,216, as of February 28th, 2022, down 30 vehicles from 2020. So although the customer demand has come back, there has actually been a reduction of registered SPSV taxi vehicles,” said James Bowpitt, Operations Manager for Ireland.

From today, Tuesday, March 29th, Cork passengers will be able to download the Bolt app and order taxis to their location.

To mark the occasion, Bolt will be offering passengers 50% off their first 10 trips too – not a bad incentive, especially if you’re one of over 15% of Munster drivers that the company claims will likely give up their private car in the next five years.

“After a hugely successful year in the Dublin market, we’re excited to launch our ride-hailing service in a second Irish city, Cork,” said Bowpitt.

“The appetite for socialising is back across the country but we are aware of the concerns some might have around the availability of taxis, especially at night. Bolt has been trialing incentives and commission-free trips for drivers during busy periods to get more taxis on the road.”

Bolt is planning to build Ireland’s first multi-modal transport platform, where the public can choose between a car, e-scooter or even an e-bike for short journeys.

Having launched in Dublin in December 2020, the company says it already has thousands of drivers on its platform and seeks to increase this number as it launches on Leeside.

Cork-based drivers interested in signing up to the Bolt platform can find more information here.