Shuttle Planet

What Shuttle Planet does

Shuttle Planet operates a two-sided online marketplace that connects passengers with licensed bus, shuttle, train, and private transfer operators across 160+ countries. The platform aggregates multiple ground transport modes — scheduled bus and rail routes, airport transfers (46+ countries), and an on-demand "shuttle-pooling" feature that lets travelers crowdsource new shared rides on underserved routes. Adjacent revenue lines layer on top through aggregation partnerships: car rental comparison (800+ suppliers, 175,000 vehicles across 20,000 locations, 2 million users), flight search (1,050 airlines via flights.shuttleplanet.com), ferry booking (Direct Ferries), and accommodation (Stay22).

The technology stack centers on a self-serve booking engine with a transporter-side extranet for inventory, pricing, and route management. Stripe is the core payment and payout processor, with optional Stripe Connected Accounts enabling immediate transporter payouts on daily, weekly, or monthly schedules. Revenue mechanics are commission-based: 12% on bookings for Stripe-connected transporters and 15% for manual bank payout accounts, with no passenger booking fees and no markup on displayed prices. Ancillary revenue is generated through affiliate referral fees on cars, hotels, and flights. Customer segments span individual travelers (primary), licensed transport carriers (primary), and secondary segments covering events/festivals, hotels/accommodations, rural Demand Responsive Transport (DRT), enterprise clients, and travel agents.

The company is privately held under CEO Denis Cucek, with disclosed funding limited to a $50,000 seed round from Sente Ventures in January 2018 and participation in the EU Horizon 2020 innovation programme in February 2019. Headcount is reported at 1–10 employees. Legal entities are anchored in the UK (Shuttle Planet Ltd., Company No. 10293350, Wokingham) and the US (Shuttle Planet Inc., Delaware), with an additional EU data-processing office in Dublin. Cumulative platform usage is cited at 130,000+ conveyed trips since inception.

Name

Shuttle Planet

Legal name

Shuttle Planet Ltd.

Website

https://shuttleplanet.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Shuttle Planet is a two-sided online marketplace connecting passengers with licensed bus, shuttle, train, and private transfer operators across 160+ countries, augmented by car rental, flight, ferry, and hotel aggregation partnerships.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Online Travel Marketplace (Ground Transportation)

NAICS

Interurban and Rural Bus Transportation (48521), Taxi and Ridesharing Services (485310), Travel Agencies (561510)

SIC

Local & Suburban Transit & Interurban Hwy Passenger Trans (4100), Transportation Services (4700), Services-Auto Rental & Leasing (No Drivers) (7510)

akta.pro primary industry

Airport Shuttle (Shared-Ride) Operators (THAIAFAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Premium/On-Demand Private Hire Shuttles (Non-Shared DRT) (THAIAHAJ), Event & Venue Shuttle Services (Sports/Concerts/Conventions) (TLAFAJAJ), Transfer & Transportation Services (Port-to-City/Airport) (THAEAFAG)

Keywords

• Ground transportation marketplace
• Shared shuttle booking
• Bus and train tickets
• Airport transfer booking
• Travel aggregator platform

Headquarters

HQ city

Chicago

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Commission from Transport Providers: Shuttle Planet charges transport providers a commission on each booking. Standard commission is 12% for providers with Stripe Connected accounts and 15% for manual bank payout accounts. The commission covers payment processing fees.
2. Car Rental Affiliate Referrals: Partnership with 800+ car rental providers worldwide. Shuttle Planet earns referral fees when customers book car rentals through the platform (175,000 cars in 20,000 locations).
3. Hotel and Experience Bookings: Integration with Stay22 for hotel and experience bookings, generating affiliate revenue when customers book accommodation through the platform.
4. Flight Search Referrals: Provides flight search functionality with access to 1050 airlines, generating referral fees from airline and travel booking partners.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Shuttle Planet operates a two-sided online marketplace that connects individual travelers with licensed bus, shuttle, train, and private transfer providers across 160+ countries, enabling scheduled ticket booking, on-demand shuttle-pooling (where users can crowdsource or join shared rides to split costs), and affiliate-based aggregation of car rentals, flights, ferries, and hotels. The carrier-facing Transporter Extranet allows transport providers to list and manage routes, pricing, and availability, while passengers access a unified search experience with no markup pricing.

Product overview

Shuttle Planet operates a unified passenger transport marketplace combining multiple booking services: the core Shuttle Planet platform for bus, train, and shuttle-pooling bookings; Private Transfers (via transfers.shuttleplanet.com) for dedicated door-to-door service; Car Rentals aggregating 800+ global suppliers; Flight Search for airfare comparison; and an Airport Transfers service spanning 46+ countries. The Transporter Extranet serves as the provider-side interface, enabling carriers to manage availability and pricing. Together these form a comprehensive multi-modal travel booking ecosystem.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Shuttle Pooling: On-demand shuttle-pooling service connecting travelers going the same way to share rides and costs
• Private Transfers
• Car Rentals

Products and services

• Shuttle Planet Core Marketplace Core two-sided marketplace platform where passengers search, compare, and book scheduled and on-demand bus, train, and shuttle services with licensed carriers across 160+ countries; provides instant confirmation and mobile e-tickets at prices with 0% markup.
• Shuttle Pooling On-demand shared-ride service that lets travelers going the same route crowdsource or join existing shuttles to split costs; particularly useful for rural and low-demand routes where scheduled service is unavailable.
• Bus and Train Tickets Booking service for scheduled bus routes and train tickets across multiple countries and regions, offering transparent pricing with no hidden fees and instant confirmation with mobile e-tickets.
• Airport Transfers Scheduled and on-demand airport shuttle and transfer services in 46+ countries, connecting travelers to and from airports with licensed transport providers.
• City to City Transport Intercity bus and shared cab connections linking cities and towns through flexible scheduled and on-demand routes.
• Events and Festivals Transport Transport booking and trip creation service dedicated to moving attendees of major events, festivals, concerts, and sporting events between venues and accommodation.
• Private Transfers Dedicated private transfer booking service for travelers requiring door-to-door transport, operated through transfers.shuttleplanet.com with vetted licensed providers.
• Car Rentals Global car hire aggregator comparing prices across 800+ verified providers including Europcar, Thrifty, National, Alamo, Enterprise, Sixt, Hertz, and Dollar, with 175,000 vehicles in 20,000 pickup locations.
• Flight Search Flight comparison and fare search service aggregating 1,050 airlines for airfare deals and air travel options, integrated into the broader travel planning ecosystem.
• Transporter Extranet Provider web portal enabling licensed passenger transport companies to manage availability, routes, pricing, and bookings in real time, with Stripe-connected payouts.

Quantifiable outcome

• 130,000+ trips conveyed through the platform
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• StripecoreTechnology or IntegrationPayment processing partner. Stripe handles secure checkout for all bookings. For transporters, Stripe Connected accounts enable immediate fund receipt with customizable payout options (daily, weekly, or monthly).
• Horizon 2020 EUminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEU research and innovation funding program. Shuttle Planet displays Horizon 2020 branding indicating participation in EU innovation initiatives.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• FlixBus: Leading intercity bus operator and booking platform across Europe and North America with proprietary inventory and a partner-carrier network. A scaled incumbent whose own direct booking channel competes with Shuttle Planet on shared road transport distribution.
• Trainline: Europe's largest independent rail and coach ticket retailer aggregating train, bus, and flight options. Comparable to Shuttle Planet's rail and bus ticketing functionality with materially larger scale and brand recognition.
• Booking.com: Global online travel incumbent with car rental, ground transfer, and increasingly multi-modal transport offerings. Indirect competitor in the same travel booking surface where users compare ground transport alongside hotels and flights.

Direct peers

• Rome2Rio: Door-to-door travel search engine comparing plane, train, bus, ferry, and car travel between any two points globally. Competes with Shuttle Planet's multi-modal aggregation across both shared and private transport worldwide.
• Welcome Pickups: Airport transfer and ground transportation marketplace serving travelers in 80+ cities, aggregating licensed drivers and shuttle providers with similar private transfer / airport transfer product.
• Omio (formerly GoEuro): Multi-modal European-ground-travel booking platform covering trains, buses, and flights across 35+ countries. Closest direct competitor to Shuttle Planet in aggregating shared road and rail transport options with similar GTM and traveler-facing UX.
• Wanderio: Multi-modal ground transport booking platform focused on European bus, train, and shuttle options with a marketplace aggregation model similar to Shuttle Planet's core shuttle and bus product.
• 12Go: Asia-focused transport booking marketplace covering buses, ferries, trains, and transfers across Southeast Asia. Comparable to Shuttle Planet as a multi-modal aggregator with similar operator commission economics and shuttle/transfer focus.
• Busbud: Online bus ticket marketplace covering thousands of cities worldwide with similar passenger-side booking experience and operator-supply-side commission model. Comparable to Shuttle Planet's long-distance shared bus offering.

Emerging players

• Direct Ferries: Ferry ticket comparison and booking platform already integrated into Shuttle Planet's ferry product. Comparable on ferry aggregation specifically and an upstream partner that could alternatively act as a competitive marketplace.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/shuttleplanet
• Facebookfacebook.com/shuttleplanet
• Instagraminstagram.com/shuttleplanet

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors2 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Shuttle Planet