From the end of June (2020) inhabitants of Sochi will be able to lease a Yandex car for either 3, 5, 7, or 14 days initially, and then extend the lease if desired.
The automatic Hyundai Creta cars will be located in the parking lot near Sochi Airport, and need to be returned to the same airport parking lot.
This format resembles a car rental, but only better: there are no queues, collaterals, or unnecessary piles of paperwork – everything is issued instantly and electronically, and full insurance (including hull insurance for the entire rental period), a car wash and gasoline are already included in the price.
During the lease, you can use the “steering wheel transfer” function – and transfer control to a relative or friend who is also registered in the Yandex Drive application.
Each car is equipped with Yandex.Auto – an entertainment and information system. The Auto system recognizes the driver based on login information, and makes use of shared Yandex data to autoplay playlists from the Music app, as well as provide information about the weather, traffic, and provides navigation.
To promote this new initiative, Yandex steered a barge down the Moscow river featuring the vehicles.
The message on the side of the barge reads “Drive. Sochi. Summer.”
What Is Yandex Drive?
Yandex.Drive is a car-sharing service with the largest fleet in the world. It includes more than 18 thousand cars of different brands, classes and models: from Renault and BMW to electric cars Nissan Leaf and original Mustangs of the 60s. The fleet also has cargo vans and roomy eight-seat shuttles for Volkswagen Caravelle.
