Can’t get a direct train ticket? This app will help you discover alternative options

The algorithm looks for vacant seats on other trains on the same route and suggests booking options on two trains, or a combination of train and bus, to reach the destination

You are looking for a train ticket from Bengaluru to Chennai. But you are in waiting list, and chances of confirmation are slim.

But probably there are confirmed tickets if one were to break the journey in the middle, or take a different route. It might involve changing a couple of trains at odd hours but you have an assured berth.

Keying in different permutations and combinations of intervening stations though could take up a lot of time and effort.

ConfirmTkt.com, a Bengaluru-based company which has an app that predicts chances of getting a confirmed ticket, has now come out with a new product, ‘ConfirmTkt Alternates’, that unlocks hidden travel options.

If no direct tickets are available, then ConfirmTkt Alternates explores unused quota of seats on the same train from other stations. When that option has been exhausted, the algorithm looks for vacant seats on other trains on the same route and suggests booking options on two trains, or a combination of train and bus, to reach the destination. The software takes into consideration the delay in arrivals and departures while offering alternatives.

For example, when one searches for reservation for Bengaluru-Pune trip, the app gives you options of breaking journey at Manthrayalam, Gulbarga, Raichur etc.

Similarly, for direct Bengaluru-Chennai train ticket, the app gives options of breaking journey at Katpadi, Arakkonam, Jolarpettai etc.

The company says it has seen over 8 lakh app downloads and serves close to 50,000 daily active users. The app is available for Android, iOS and Windows.

The Bengaluru-based company, ConfirmTkt.com, was founded by Dinesh Kumar and Sripad Vaidya in 2014. It has received funding in two rounds: Angel investment in July 2015 led by Pravin Agarwala, ex-VP and Global Head with SAP Labs India.

In the second round of funding in January this year, the company raised $250,000 from Venture Catalysts and a clutch of investors including Anirudh Damani, Urrshila Kerkar, Anand Ladsariya, Apoorv Ranjan Sharma and Sanjay Mehta.