Wheelchair-accessible vans with trained drivers, booked by the trip or the day
TL;DR Easeboard runs a small fleet of ramp-equipped vans with drivers trained to secure a wheelchair, booked by the trip or the day. Wheelchair users and their families pay for hospital visits, weddings and holidays. It replaces the routine of being refused by cab drivers.
India's 2011 census counted 26.8 million people with disabilities, and 20.3% of them had a movement disability[1], roughly 54 lakh people before counting frail seniors. For them, getting into an ordinary car is the daily headache. In a 2026 study of 100 wheelchair users at an Indian tertiary hospital, 63% of those who owned a wheelchair but did not use it blamed road and transport barriers, and interviewees said many cab drivers refuse the ride because the chair has to go inside[2]. The national Accessible India Campaign set transport targets in 2015, then missed them[3].
What it does, in regulatory terms: a passenger transport service on commercially registered, permitted vehicles. It provides no medical care and is not an ambulance.
Easeboard owns or leases a few vans converted with a rear ramp, floor tracks and four-point wheelchair tie-downs, and runs them with drivers trained in safe loading. Families book by app or phone for a single trip, a return hospital run, or a full day for a wedding or an outing. The booking asks for chair type, weight and whether a companion travels, so the right van arrives.
I reframed the seed. It proposed peer-to-peer rental of specialised vehicles, but renting a private car commercially is illegal in India[4], and few private owners have accessible vans to share anyway. So Easeboard keeps the goal of hiring a rare vehicle only when you need it, on legal commercial permits. Rear-entry conversions are the simpler, cheaper design[5], which suits a first fleet. Later, other operators' converted vans can join the booking platform.
The rider is a wheelchair user or a senior who cannot step into a car. The payer is usually family. Hospitals, dialysis centres and senior homes are a second buyer who book regular runs for patients or residents. I found no Indian price benchmark. In the US, Wheelchair Getaways rents accessible vans from about US$50 a day[6] (about ₹4,800), self-drive.
Ride-hailing has taught families to book cars by app and to expect a fixed fare, yet ordinary cabs still cannot carry a seated wheelchair user. India's 60-plus population is growing fast, and many of them will need step-free vehicles for the same hospital trips that make up most of the demand. No dated policy change is driving this - the push is plain demographics.
There is no public figure for accessible-vehicle hire in India. The narrowest firm number is the census count of about 54 lakh people with movement disabilities (20.3% of 26.8 million)[1], of whom only a share use wheelchairs. Overseas, a single US rental network runs over 200 locations[6]. Treat that as proof that the model can stand alone, not as an Indian market size.
A few city-level accessible cab services have operated in India, and ride-hailing apps have tried assist tiers, though I couldn't confirm current fleets online for this page. Wheelchair Getaways in the US shows a stand-alone rental model at scale[6]. Ambulance operators carry patients, but on stretchers and at ambulance prices. The gap is a booked, non-medical, seated ride at close to cab fares.
| Difficulty | Moderate (48/100) |
| Starting capital | ₹1.5–2.8 Cr |
| Time to launch | 8–12 months |
The hardest parts are getting converted vans approved and registered for commercial use, and keeping them busy. Demand bunches up around hospital hours and weekends, so a van that sits idle mid-week quietly eats your margin. And driver training and safe tie-downs have to be the same on every single trip, no shortcuts.
Yes. You're carrying passengers for money, so every van needs commercial registration and permits.
Building this outside India? The categories above usually have a local equivalent, so check with your own regulator.
Don't let AI judge whether a rider is medically fit to travel. Easeboard is transport, not an ambulance.
Want to work out the AI layer for Easeboard? Talk to Yash →
Here's what can go south -
I think this is a worthwhile, slow-growth service business for a founder with fleet experience and patience for RTOs. If you want a quick marketplace play then look elsewhere. Prove first that one van can reach six paid trips a day through hospital and dialysis-centre partners in a single city.
Plan for roughly ₹1.5–2.8 Cr, most of it for buying or leasing and converting vans, plus drivers and training.
Yes. Every van needs commercial passenger registration and a state permit, and any ramp conversion needs the RTO's approval.
Yes. Services like Wheelchair Getaways already run in the US. Check local rules on commercial passenger vehicles and van conversions.
The free Easeboard validation kit has the line-by-line capital breakdown, the effort scoring, the vehicle and permit checklist, a 14-day validation sprint with pass/fail targets, a 90-day launch plan, 10 interview questions for families and hospitals, and 5 assumptions to test. Download the kit →
Thinking about building Easeboard or something close to it? The make-or-break work is getting converted vans legally on the road and keeping each one busy all day, which is exactly the kind of thing I help founders plan. If you need a hand, you know where to find me. Talk to Yash →
For illustration only. Names are fictional and ideas hypothetical; sourced facts are real but may be out of date. Nothing here is legal, financial or professional advice, and Yash Khatri is not personally liable for any use of it. Read the full disclaimer.