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Transportation startup Grab announced today it’s beta testing GrabShare, a shared ride-hailing service in Singapore. If you’re thinking, “but isn’t that what GrabHitch is?” well, not exactly.
GrabShare is basically Grab’s version of UberPool: a passenger can book a GrabCar economy ride and then the driver can pick up another passenger on the way. The two passengers are matched together by an algorithm that looks at available drivers, route overlap, travel time, and other factors.
A maximum of two bookings per GrabCar ride are allowed.
Like regular GrabCar rides, pricing is determined up front. Grab says passengers can look forward to up to 30 percent cheaper rides with GrabShare. At the same time, it claims that GrabShare rides can result in higher profits for drivers.
“Commuters in Singapore indicated that they would be open to carpooling if they didn’t have to make long detours with numerous passengers in one trip. Drivers had the same feedback and wanted the option of taking short breaks between trips,” says Grab Singapore head Lim Kell Jay in a statement.
GrabShare vs GrabHitch
Since having to choose between GrabShare and GrabHitch could confuse users, here’s what’s different: GrabHitch is just a carpooling service. Drivers do not drive for profit, they’re simply car owners driving to their destination and making their car seats available to other people. The fare is calculated based on distance traveled and meant to cover fuel and car operation only.
GrabHitch is just a carpooling service – drivers do not drive for profit.
Grab says that GrabHitch is meant to reduce traffic on the road and help users “make new friends.” The company encourages GrabHitch passengers to “take the front seat and engage the drivers in conversation,” highlighting the social and non-professional nature of the service.
GrabHitch drivers can take up to two bookings per day, making it suited to the daily commute. There’s no such limit for GrabCar drivers taking GrabShare rides.
GrabHitch has been in beta in Singapore since November 2015. Grab doesn’t share specific numbers on drivers or rides, saying only that the total number of GrabHitch drivers has increased 75 percent over the last three months.
Last week, it was announced that the service will incorporate drivers from defunct Singaporean carpooling app Swiftback.
Grab will face competition from UberPool, a way for users to share Uber rides, which launched in Singapore in June.
This post https://www.techinasia.com/grab-launches-grabshare-carpooling appeared first on Tech in Asia.
from Tech in Asia https://www.techinasia.com/grab-launches-grabshare-carpooling
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