Flixbus wants to expand to Brazil

The green buses will soon also be running in South America. This is made possible by the opening of the mobility market in Brazil.

The Munich-based bus company Flixbus has announced its intention to expand to Brazil. To this end, the German start-up is working with regional bus partners to establish the location. At first, the start-up wants to connect major cities like Rio and Sao Paulo, and later build a nationwide network. Brazilians love long-distance bus travel. 60 percent of the 211 million strong population use long-distance bus travel, Flixbus determined in its own survey. That makes the South American country one of the largest markets in the world.

"We expect the opening of the Brazilian mobility market to lead to a significant change and many opportunities for innovative players," says André Schwämmlein, co-founder and CEO of FlixMobility. "A competitive market offers more choices for travelers and promotes sustainable mobility alternatives and affordable travel." Schwämmlein hopes for further liberalization in the long-distance bus travel market. In Europe, Spain, Greece and Romania are still missing, where Flixbus cannot be active.

Currently, Flixbus offers 270 German destinations, or three-quarters of its entire network. The company only restarted its bus operations in March. In November, Flixbus had stopped the trips due to the pandemic. With the Flixtrain, the company currently serves 40 German cities.