[Update: 16 August, 10.30am]
Following the announcement of Ryde’s new on-demand courier service yesterday, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) has stepped up to say that private-hire drivers in Singapore are not allowed to do such delivery jobs.
According to the law, taxis and private-hire cars are only meant to carry passengers and drivers who accept such jobs will risk getting their vocational licenses revoked.
LTA also said that Ryde did not consult them prior to rolling out this new service.
National Private Hire Vehicle Association’s executive advisor, who is also executive advisor for the National Taxi Association, told The Straits Times that he has requested LTA to review the current regulations last year.
He reasoned that there is excess capacity during off-peak hours, and both taxi and private-hire drivers could earn extra income by taking up such delivery jobs.
We have since reached out to Ryde out for a statement on this, and will update the article accordingly.
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With the onset of Go-Jek’s arrival in Singapore next month, many local ride-hailing firms seem to be stepping up its game to match up to Indonesia’s superapp.
Ryde announced today that it is expanding into the delivery arena to offer door-to-door courier services with a new RydeSEND feature, that will be rolled out on September 3.
With this new service, users can book a Ryde driver to help deliver small items like documents, parcels, flowers, or even meals within 60 minutes.
Items must be under 20kg with a dimension within 70cm (L) x 50cm (W) x 50cm (H).
Ryde assures that this delivery will be safe and secure, as it imposes a $100 insurance coverage against loss or damage to items during delivery.
Furthermore, both the sender and receiver can track the delivery transit in real-time.
The pricing will be calculated based on distance and timing, and fares will be inclusive of tolls, ERP and parking costs incurred for the journey.
Users will be charged an additional fee of $6 for door-to-door delivery.
Currently, users can only pay for this service using Ryde’s own digital payment feature, RydePay.
To Expand Delivery Fleet With Motorcyclists
According to Ryde, it has a pool of over 60,000 drivers now, but it intends to onboard motorcyclists as well to better meet the demand for courier services.
By the fourth quarter of this year, it is targeting to recruit 20,000 motorcyclists as part of its RydeSEND fleet.
The motorcycle courier service is expected to be launch by the end of September.
Ryde hopes that this new addition will help improve the service by increasing availability and reducing waiting times.
“We are excited to innovate and expand our services beyond transport to courier services and more. The Ryde platform now offers consumers the most comprehensive range of services available in a ride-hailing app,” said Terence Zou, founder and CEO of Ryde.
“Peer-to-peer delivery solves the first and last mile problem of a traditional service hub by providing an alternative that is direct, faster and cheaper. RydeSEND provides consumers an easy way to send small items quickly and easily at any time with a few taps on the Ryde app.”
Featured Image Credit: Ryde