Berlin Tech Startup Aims To Simplify Bus Travel

Booking intercity travel by bus isn’t as easy as it is by plane when booking through a company. But shouldn’t it be?

That’s where Distribusion rolls in — the Berlin tech and travel startup that wants to redefine intercity bus travel by bringing a more seamless experience to the bus ticketing process for travel companies and customers.

“You can easily book a flight at any travel agency or website around the world. This is not possible for intercity bus tickets,” Distribusion CEO Julian Hauck and co-founder wrote in a company news release. ”We want to change that and make distribution of bus products as simple and cost-efficient as possible. …Up until now, travel agencies and OTAs have had to connect to various providers and maintain multiple reservation systems. We are offering a one-stop solution with all intercity bus products from a single source with the highest data quality.”

The goal of Distribusion is to offer travel companies the chance to sell intercity bus tickets in the same manner they would sell flights. It’s like the Expedia of bus travel. Hauck said the company has collaborated with more than 30 bus operators and “provides standardized bus content for dozens of travel websites.” By using what Distribusion describes a “one-stop solution” it allows travel companies to use a variety of intercity bus providers under one site. The solution they are trying to provide is to allow travel agencies to offer bus tickets from multiple companies — and often at a reduced cost.

“The rapid growth of the market boosts our own growth strategy,”Hauck said. “The German market grew by 140 percent since last year and in the U.S. intercity buses are the fastest-growing means of long distance transport. Our experience with retailing bus products has shown that the industry requires a specialized solution for its international distribution.”