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Case Study | Yellow Checker Star Trans
Transforming Las Vegas' Largest Taxi Fleet into a Digital Powerhouse
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Yellow Checker Star Transportation Co. (YCS) is the largest and most iconic taxi service provider in Las Vegas, Nevada with a fleet that has served millions of customers annually for decades. With a rich history spanning decades, YCS operates a fleet of thousands of vehicles across the city, serving millions of residents and tourists each year.
As the backbone of public transport for both residents and 40M+ annual tourists, YCS plays a vital role in keeping the city moving. Facing pressure from ride-sharing disruptors and the changing demands of tech-savvy travelers, YCS needed a bold transformation to stay relevant and lead the future of mobility in Nevada.
However, in the face of rising competition from ride-sharing apps and evolving customer expectations, YCS recognized the urgent need to digitally transform its entire taxi operations and customer experience.
The Challenge
YCS operated with legacy dispatch systems and fragmented workflows across their driver, customer, and admin functions. Their biggest hurdles included:
- Outdated booking methods—primarily call-ins or curb pickups
- No mobile presence for tourists or locals to easily engage
- Manual, inefficient driver dispatching
- Fragmented payments and billing, inconvenient for tourists
- Inability to offer dynamic ride options like passes or QR access
- Poor visibility into fleet performance, customer safety, and operations
- Training and onboarding delays for a large driver base
The Solution
We engineered a holistic enterprise-grade digital platform across mobile and tablet interfaces that addressed every stakeholder’s need—customers, drivers, admins, and sub-admins—while redefining what a modern taxi service could offer.
Key Features & Functional Modules
1. Customer App (iOS & Android Native)
- Ride Pass: Flexible non-subscription ride packs for tourists to scan and ride without repeat payments
- QR Code Ride Access: Scan at kiosks or directly with drivers to instantly start rides—no need for booking forms
- Real-time Taxi Tracking: Live ETA, route visibility, and traffic-adjusted arrival times
- Secure Multi-Payment Gateway: Credit, wallet, Apple Pay, Google Pay—optimized for tourists
- SOS/Panic Button: Discreet emergency alerts linked to dispatch and nearby patrols
- Multilingual Support: Critical for Las Vegas’ global visitor base
- Inclusive UI/UX: Designed for ease of use across all age groups, accessibility-ready
2. Driver App (iOS & Android Native)
- Dynamic Shift Scheduling & Availability Management
- QR-Based Ride Start Scans
- Instant Ride Notifications and Navigation
- Earnings Dashboard with Shift Logs
- Driver Rating, Compliance Tracking & Feedback Loops
- In-App Emergency Protocols and Communication Tools
3. iPad App (Dispatch & Admin Console)
- Centralized Command & Control Dashboard
- Fleet Health, Location & Fuel Monitoring
- Automated Ride Allocation via Geo-Fencing
- Real-Time Performance Analytics
- Incident Reporting, Role-Based Access, and Alerts
- Live Compliance & Operational Heatmaps
4. Admin + Sub-Admin Access
- Role-specific dashboards for zones, regions, and fleets
- Ride analytics, financial summaries, and driver onboarding tools
- Policy enforcement, shift approvals, and behavioral trends
5. Onboarding & Training Enablement
- Full deployment training for >2,000 drivers
- Digital + In-person sessions
- SOP documents + multimedia knowledge base
- Live support line for driver issues and admin escalations
Technology Stack
Mobile & Tablet Apps
- Native iOS (Swift), Native Android (Kotlin), iPadOS
Backend
- Node.js, Express.js, MongoDB (NoSQL)
Payments
- Stripe, Apple Pay, Google Pay, PCI-DSS compliant custom wallet
Security
- JWT auth, SSL encryption, GDPR & CCPA aligned data policies
Hosting & DevOps
- AWS with auto-scaling, CI/CD pipelines, crash analytics
Key KPIs & Metrics
Business Metric
Avg Booking Time
Driver Utilization Rate
Customer Retention Rate
App Ratings
SOS Response Time
Tourist Conversion (Non-local Riders)
Driver Onboarding Time
Dispatch Accuracy
Training Hours Saved (Yearly)
Before
4–5 mins (manual)
~62%
28%
Not applicable
Manual reporting (~20 min avg)
~25%
7–10 days
~70% manual
N/A
After
< 45 sec (QR / App)
88%
61%
4.8★ (iOS), 4.7★ (Android)
< 3 mins (automated alerts)
67% (via PaaS)
2–3 days
>95% automated allocation
15,000+ hrs via digitized onboarding
Adoption & Industry Impact
- 60,000+ active users in the first 4 months
- 4,000+ PaaS Ride Passes activated monthly by tourists
- 2000+ drivers onboarded with zero disruption
- Lauded by Las Vegas City Council for innovation in public transport
- Helped YCS reclaim market leadership against ride-hailing apps
- Positioned YCS as a model for taxi transformation nationally
Client Testimonial
COO
-
Yellow Checker Star Transportation Co.
Zazz helped us go from a legacy fleet to a tech-first transportation network in record time. What they delivered wasn’t just an app—it was a competitive advantage. Our entire operation is now digital, transparent, and passenger-first.
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