Bolt Invests 2.5M euro to Boost Women Drivers

Global mobility platform Bolt is continuing its work to increase gender diversity in the ride-hailing sector and will spend €2.5 million promoting its initiative, “Women at the Wheel”, to make it easier for more women to become driver partners and participate in flexible earning options on its platform. The program aims to address the longstanding lack of women in the ride-hailing industry and to make driving a safer and more accessible job.

The investment will help fund various programs to help lower barriers to women participating on the platform. These are among Bolt's awareness campaigns, driver training, vehicle access with fleet partners, incentives on vehicle registration in certain markets, referral incentives and improved in-app safety features, Bolt said. The measures were conceived following intensive discussions with women all over Europe and Africa to gain insight into their concerns regarding ride-hailing services when they are thinking about earning a source of income.

The need for such an effort is highlighted by Bolt's own research. Although many women actively look for extra income opportunities, a survey done by the company revealed that merely 7.2% had considered becoming ride-hailing drivers. Results indicate that the perception of the male domain of driving, safety concerns, as well as lack of access to vehicles, is barriers to female participation that are still relevant.

One of the most prominent features of the program is Bolt's "Women for Women" ride category, which limits the rides to those picked up by women. One of the biggest features of the program is Bolt's "Women for Women" ride category, which restricts rides to those taken by women. The feature debuted in Prague in February 2025 and will be rolled out to Brussels in March 2026. The service was created in response to feedback from women who wanted more comfort and reassurance when using ride-hailing services, both as passengers, and as drivers, the company says.

Key Highlights:

• €2.5M Investment: Bolt is investing €2.5 million to attract more women drivers
• Women for Women: Female drivers can accept rides exclusively from female passengers
• Inclusive Mobility: The initiative aims to improve safety, accessibility, and female participation in ride-hailing

The Women for Women service is first available as a pre-booking service to facilitate successful matching of female passengers and female drivers, who are still in comparatively small numbers in most cities. To stop the misuse, Bolt has created identity verification procedures which involve taking a selfie along with the user's government ID to verify that there is an eligible user for the category. Female drivers also have the option to refuse rides which are not considered to comply with the program without any penalty.

The new feature is part of Bolt's complete safety toolkit that consists of emergency assistance, trip sharing, driver management features, private phone number protection, and the possibility for drivers to prevent further encounters with inappropriate riders. The business feels these attributes could be used to help improve safety in the workplace, as well as get women more interested in driving as a flexible earning opportunity.

Initial feedback from new markets where the Women for Women category has been launched is encouraging, says Bolt. The feature saw a huge rise in the number of women drivers in France, as well as demand for the service from female passengers. As more women in the markets in which the company operates become drivers, the initiative will continue to be expanded.

The Women at the Wheel initiative is part of Bolt's mission to create a more inclusive mobility ecosystem, with the aim of expanding the number of women driving vehicles, and providing them with safer, flexible income opportunities via its platform, says the company.