BusRight, an app that tracks school bus passengers, current location, and calculates optimal travel routes, recently won $40,000 at E-Fest, a national undergraduate business pitch competition led by the founder of Best Buy. The app's co-founders Keith Corso, DMSB'21, and Evan Eddleston, DMSB'22, hope to revolutionize the school bus industry.
The app was created to accomplish three goals: curb carbon emissions, reduce transportation costs for bus companies, and improve quality of life for passengers, parents, and bus drivers.
BusRight's proprietary software keeps track of passengers' destinations and then uses this data to calculate the most efficient route to their stop. It also alerts parents of passengers about the location of their children's bus and the expected time of arrival.
“Bus drivers are home earlier, students are home earlier, and parents know where their kids are. It's a much more efficient system than the one in place today,” said Eddleston.
Corso, Eddleston, and their business partner at the University of Pennsylvania plan to beta-test BusRight in September. Many school administrators and bus company officials have expressed interest in using the app.
Corso and Eddleston delved into Northeastern's entrepreneurial ecosystem to take BusRight to the next level, working with the Community Business Clinic to form an LLC and connecting with IP Co-LAB to file a trademark application. In addition, representatives from IDEA, Northeastern University's Student-Led Venture Accelerator, helped create their revenue model.
Kimberly Eddleston, Evan's mother and Northeastern University's Schulze Distinguished Professor of Entrepreneurship guided the students during their E-fest pitch and subsequent win.
Corso and Eddleston plan to conduct surveys and conduct focus groups, as well as use the funding they won at E-fest to create a data analytic platform for clients.
Corso is scheduled to participate in Northeastern's Semester in Silicon Valley program.
“We have one opportunity to knock this out of the park,” he said, “so we want to roll it out to the best of our ability.”