Whoosh introduced a temporary SMS option for starting and ending scooter rentals in cities experiencing mobile-internet disruption, Interfax reported on 31 July 2025. The test was restricted to customers already registered with the service.
How the launch version operated
The operator's 30 July announcement describes commands sent from the phone number attached to the customer's account. Each message identifies the scooter by its unique number. A start command makes that vehicle available; a stop command ends the rental after parking. The scooter confirms the action through its lighting and an audible signal.
Whoosh says its vehicles contain an internet-of-things module that connects them to the operating system. In the test, the customer's command reaches that system through SMS instead of the application.
Locations named at launch
- Voronezh, Rostov-on-Don and Krasnodar.
- Omsk, Krasnoyarsk and Lipetsk.
- Novorossiysk, Sochi and Adler.
- Volgograd, Stavropol and Izhevsk.
- Tolyatti, Sterlitamak and Tyumen.
Interfax also reported approximately 30.5 million registered accounts and 56.5 million trips by the end of June. These figures concern the overall service before the July test.
The operating problem preceding the test
In its 27 June preliminary operating update, Whoosh reported 53.1 million trips from 1 January through 25 June, against 59.2 million in the equivalent previous-year period. Its connected fleet increased from 199,700 to 237,800 vehicles. The company attributed weaker trip activity to weather, connectivity and geolocation disruptions, and slower consumer demand.
Subtracting the two trip totals gives a decline of 6.1 million trips over those matched periods. The fleet increased by 38,100 vehicles. Those opposite movements identify the operational setting in which the company introduced another way to access rentals. The June figures do not measure the outcome of the SMS test, which began later.
