For many women, moving from one point to another goes beyond simply reaching the destination. A late-night taxi ride might require sharing location tracking with someone, double-checking driver details, monitoring the route via phone, or constantly being ready with an emergency call button.
Even a short trip on a bike-taxi involves calculations about how safe it will be to be near a stranger. This issue has become more apparent recently as women take to the streets in various cities, demanding higher levels of safety and accountability.
On October 6, the National Commission for Women also issued recommendations for taxi, car, and bike-taxi applications, calling for enhanced driver vetting, route monitoring, emergency support, and protection measures at unsafe drop-off points.
The issue is increasingly moving beyond the personal precautions that women can take. Is it possible to make the systems they rely on for daily mobility inherently safer?
This gap is what the company Fery Rides, based in Gurgaon, has decided to fill.
Integrating Safety into the Journey Process
The idea arose after a disturbing incident witnessed by co-founder Ajay Kumar while he was studying engineering in Chandigarh. One of his friends arrived at the educational center shaken after a bike-taxi ride. According to Kumar, the driver caused her discomfort through unwanted physical contact and sudden braking. She ended up getting off halfway and walking alone down a dark stretch.
This experience left a deep mark on him. Later, during his MBA studies in 2021, Kumar discussed this problem with his classmate Vindhya Mehrotra. Instead of immediately creating an application, they spent six months engaging with potential users, including about 6,000 students and over 200 women at metro stations.
The response was striking: 98% of surveyed women stated they would feel more comfortable with a female driver. In 2023, Kumar, Mehrotra, and Himanshu Chaubey founded Fery Rides on the simple premise: to create a mobility service where women could travel with female drivers.
Creating a Different Mobility Network
Today, Fery operates in Gurgaon, utilizing women to drive both electric bike-taxis and cars. Users can book rides on demand, schedule them in advance, or rent vehicles for a specific period. The startup currently operates within a 10-kilometer radius of its central hub at the Millennium City Centre Gurugram metro station.
The model also attempts to solve some practical uncertainties that can cause stress when using ride-hailing apps. Fery uses GPS-enabled electric vehicles, does not employ dynamic pricing, and follows a system of dedicated trips where assigned partners cannot cancel or refuse a ride. Scheduled bookings are intended for people who need more predictable daily commutes.
However, the second half of the model may be more significant: it is women behind the wheel.
Women Behind the Wheel
Fery hires women as so-called 'sister partners,' including those just starting their professional driving careers. Women who already know how to drive undergo supervised training and route familiarization. Those new to driving can complete formal training, including road safety instruction, before starting work. The company also assists suitable women in obtaining a driver's license during the onboarding process.
For some partners, flexibility is a crucial aspect. Fery states that mothers can structure their shifts around picking up and dropping off children from school, while salaried partners receive a base salary plus bonuses tied to rides and performance. Health insurance is also provided.
This means that the discussion about safer mobility concerns not only the passenger but also those involved in building this transportation network.
Is This Model Scalable?
Since its launch in 2023, Fery has completed over 80,000 rides in Gurgaon. The company currently has about 30 partners and plans to expand its network while testing operations in Delhi and Noida.
The startup has also attracted funding, including 50 lakh rupees through the Startup India Seed Fund and a seed funding round of 2.075 crore rupees led by Indian Angel Network in 2025.
But perhaps the bigger story is not how quickly Fery can scale, but why services built around women's safety are necessary in the first place. A woman should not have to plan every trip based on the possibility of harassment, an unreliable driver, or an unsafe stretch of road. And while one startup cannot solve the broader issue of women's safety, Fery Rides is trying to change one everyday equation: making mobility accessible to women without having to trade convenience for a little more confidence.