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ShubbleProductTransport

Family transport, all connected.

Families book, pay and follow every ride in one app, and the office runs it all from one portal.

  • Where it standsLive on the App Store and Google Play
  • Year2026
  • What we builtFamily app, driver app, operations portal and booking website

Shubble runs pre-booked family rides across the Western Cape with its own fleet, and it ran on phone calls and WhatsApp. Now families book, pay and follow every ride in one app, drivers get their day on their phones and the office runs it all from one portal.

Visit shubble.co.zaHow it works

[01] The business before

A real fleet, run on WhatsApp.

Shubble runs pre-booked family rides across the Western Cape with its own fleet, and it ran on phone calls and WhatsApp.

  1. Started for their own

    The owners started Shubble in 2023 to get their own children where they needed to be.

  2. Five branded cars

    Today it runs five branded cars, carrying children, teens, students and adults to school, campus, work and appointments.

  3. Not a taxi

    It is not an on-demand taxi. Every ride is booked ahead and confirmed, and parents need to know who is driving and when.

  4. Where it was stuck

    Until this year, that ran through the office phone, WhatsApp and PDF rosters. An earlier app attempt had stalled before launch.

How it ranBefore

  • PhoneParents called the office to book a ride or change one.
  • WhatsAppMonthly driver rosters went out as PDFs in a chat.
  • WordPressA template website that could not take a booking.
  • An earlier appBuilt elsewhere, it never made it onto the App Store.

What was breaking

  1. 01

    Every booking and every change needed someone in the office.

  2. 02

    When one driver ran late, the next pickup ran late too, and a child could be left waiting.

  3. 03

    Driver rosters lived in PDFs, apart from the bookings they had to match.

[02] What we built

Everyone gets their own screen.

We built four connected pieces on one backend, so families, drivers and the office each get their own screen.

  1. Apps in Flutter

    A family app and a driver app in Flutter, on iOS and Android.

  2. Portal and website

    An operations portal for the office and a public website that takes a first booking end to end.

01 / 04

Family app

For parents and ridersiOS and Android

Families across the Western Cape sign up, add their children and book rides for school, campus, work or appointments. They see the price before they pay, then follow each ride from booking to drop-off.

  • Quote and availability before booking
  • Parent approval for a child's request
  • Card, saved card or wallet credit
  • Trip updates, messages and notifications
Real screenConfirm and pay

4 real screens · tap to enlarge

  • Book a ride

    The family app opens on the next action, with active trips and recent places close at hand.

  • Choose the journey

    Pickup and destination choices stay focused, familiar and easy to confirm on a phone.

  • Choose who is travelling

    The booking keeps the selected rider and trip details together before availability is checked.

  • Confirm and pay

    The final details and payment step stay clear before the family commits.

Screen 01 / 04

02 / 04

Driver app

For driversiOS and Android

Drivers open the app to their day: the roster, each trip, who they are fetching and where they are going, with navigation and messaging built in.

  • The day's roster and trips
  • Start and end each trip
  • Navigation and messaging
  • Documents and safety details

Today4 trips

  • 07:10 pickup, 2 passengers
  • 08:05 campus drop-off
  • 14:30 school pickup

03 / 04

Operations portal

For the officeWeb

The office runs bookings, drivers, rosters, service areas and money from one portal, and steps in when a booking needs a person.

  • Rosters and automatic driver assignment
  • Change requests, cancellations and refunds
  • Clients, drivers and service areas
  • Daily, weekly and monthly owner reports
Real screenToday's command centre

3 real screens · tap to enlarge

  • Today's command centre

    The supporting operations portal brings active trips, bookings and anything needing attention together.

  • Live dispatch

    Trips, drivers and exceptions remain visible while the day is in motion.

  • Planning

    The team can prepare routes and capacity before they become live operational pressure.

Screen 01 / 03

04 / 04

Booking website

For new familiesshubble.co.za

The public website takes a first booking end to end: it checks the area, shows a live price, holds the ride and takes payment, so a new family never has to phone to get started.

  • Coverage check and live price
  • Ride held while the family pays
  • Fleet, drivers and answers to common questions
Real screenshubble.co.za

5 real screens · tap to enlarge

  • shubble.co.za

    The home page opens on the booking form: pickup, drop-off, date and time, beside the app downloads.

  • The fleet

    Branded cars, each one easy to recognise at pickup.

  • Answers before booking

    Common questions answered on the page, starting with how pre-booking works.

  • On a phone

    The same home page on a phone.

  • Booking on a phone

    The first booking starts here. Continue checks the area and shows the price.

Screen 01 / 05

Four connected pieces, one backend

A family app and a driver app in Flutter, an operations portal for the office and a public booking website.

  1. 01

    Family app

    iOS and Android

  2. 02

    Driver app

    iOS and Android

  3. 03

    Operations portal

    Web

  4. 04

    Booking website

    shubble.co.za

Shubble, screen: Today's command centre
Today's command centre. The supporting operations portal brings active trips, bookings and anything needing attention together.

[03] How it works

From first tap to drop-off.

Every ride follows the same path, whether it starts in the app, on the website or with the office.

  1. Paid, then confirmed

    A ride is only confirmed once its payment is verified.

  2. Judgement goes to people

    Anything that needs judgement goes to a person.

  1. Family

    Choose the pickup, drop-off, time and who is travelling, once or on repeat.

  2. ShubbleTakes over here

    The system checks the service area and real driver capacity, prices the ride and holds the slot.

  3. Family

    Card, saved card or wallet credit. The ride is only confirmed once the payment is verified.

  4. Shubble

    A rostered driver is assigned using real drive times. The office can override, and the family sees who is coming.

  5. Driver

    The trip is in the driver's day. They navigate, start and end it, and the family gets each update.

  6. Office

    Changes, cancellations and refunds land in the portal for a person to decide.

Real screenChoose the journey

The booking website at work

Recorded on shubble.co.za

  • Booking form first

    The home page opens on the booking form: pickup, drop-off, date and time, beside the app downloads.

  • The fleet

    Branded cars, each one easy to recognise at pickup.

  • Answers before booking

    Common questions answered on the page, starting with how pre-booking works: Shubble is not an on-demand taxi.

  • On a phone

    The same home page on a phone, where the first booking starts.

[04] What we changed

One place where families book for themselves.

The people who need a ride should be able to book it, pay for it and follow it without calling anyone.

  1. No call needed

    Families book, pay and follow a ride without calling anyone.

  2. One system underneath

    The booking, the money, the roster and the trip live in one system. The office only steps in when a person is needed.

Before: Phone, WhatsApp, WordPress, An earlier app. Now: Live on the App Store and Google Play.Drag, or use the arrow keys

  1. 01

    Before: Phone the office to book a ride.

    Now: Book a one-way, return or recurring ride in the app.

    Shubble, phone screen: Book a ride

  2. 02

    Before: Explain the pickup and drop-off on the phone.

    Now: Choose the places; the app checks the area and shows the price.

    Shubble, phone screen: Choose the journey

  3. 03

    Before: Arrange each child's rides by hand.

    Now: Add the children once. A child can ask for a ride and a parent approves it.

    Shubble, phone screen: Choose who is travelling

  4. 04

    Before: A booking that lives in a call or a chat.

    Now: Pay by card or wallet credit. The ride is confirmed once the payment clears.

    Shubble, phone screen: Confirm and pay

  5. 05

    Before: Rosters sent as PDFs on WhatsApp.

    Now: The office plans rosters and the system assigns drivers by real drive times.

    Shubble, screen: Planning

[05] What changed

Bookings, without the phone call.

Shubble now runs on its own platform, and routine bookings no longer depend on a phone call.

Shubble, phone screen: Book a ride
Book a ride. The family app opens on the next action, with active trips and recent places close at hand.
Four connected pieces, one backend
4
From first tap to drop-off.
6steps

Where it stands

Live on the App Store and Google Play

Liveshubble.co.za

Jan 2026Sep 2026

Dates from our project records and release history.

  1. Start

    Requirements agreed and the rebuild starts.

    then, +1 month
  2. Update

    Operations portal running; family and driver apps in testing.

    Shubble, screen: Today's command centre
    then, +3 months
  3. Update

    Drivers test the app and rosters move into the portal.

    Shubble, screen: Planning
    then, +2 months
  4. Live

    Family app live on the App Store; driver app on Google Play.

    shubble.co.za

    Shubble, phone screen: Book a ride
    then, +1 month
  5. Live

    Both apps on both stores. Booking website live at shubble.co.za.

    Shubble, screen: shubble.co.za
    then, +1 month
  6. Update

    Family app 1.0.19 on both stores. Updates keep shipping.

Dates from our project records and release history.

  • Families book, pay and follow their rides in the Shubble app, on iOS and Android.

  • A cancelled ride goes straight back to the family's wallet as credit.

  • Drivers get their day in the driver app instead of a PDF on WhatsApp.

  • The office runs rosters, driver assignment and change approvals in one portal.

  • The owners get daily, weekly and monthly reports by email.

  1. Its own platform

    Shubble now runs on its own platform. Families book in the app, drivers get their day on their phones and the office manages the service from one place.

  2. A person still answers

    Families can still reach a person on WhatsApp or the phone, and the office can book on someone's behalf. The difference is that routine bookings no longer depend on it.

  3. Tested on real phones

    New features go live only once they have passed testing on real phones.

Built with

The tools behind it.

See the full toolbench
  • Flutter
  • Next.js
  • React
  • Convex
  • Firebase
  • Google Maps
  • Paystack
  • Postmark
  • Twilio
  • Vercel

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