Ford is acquiring crowd-sourced shuttle company Chariot.

The business was started in 2014 and runs nearly 100 Ford Transit shuttles along 28 routes throughout San Francisco Bay Area, operating as a bridge between tax and bus services.

The shuttle service is expected to be expanded beyond San Francisco to at least five additional markets in the next 18 months, and will switch from using on-demand routing from riders to dynamic routes using data algorithms.

Ford is also collaborating with bike-sharing provider Motivate to expand its transportation solutions in city centres, and is establishing a new City Solutions team to work with cities around the world on their transportation needs.

“Cities globally are dealing with increased congestion, a growing middle class and environmental issues – all of which can be addressed by developing mobility solutions fine-tuned to the unique challenges of each location,” said Jim Hackett, chairman, Ford Smart Mobility LLC, the company’s subsidiary created to design, build, grow and invest in emerging mobility services. “At the same time, by expanding our business model to include new forms of transportation – from bikes to dynamic shuttles and more – we are introducing new customers to Ford and creating new revenue and profit opportunities for the future.”