Grab, one of Southeast Asia’s largest ride-hailing firms, announced on Friday that it would be increasing its platform fee for each ride from S$0.30 to S$0.70, effective from May 5.
The adjustment is in line with the platform fees charged by other ride-hailing services in Singapore. Grab will apply the increased fee to all its transport service types, according to the company’s email to its customers.
“This will support the development of continuous app improvements such as safety features, increased reliability and driver-related benefits,” said Grab.
The company had initially introduced its platform fee of S$0.30 in 2020, and is now raising it by S$0.40 this year.
Gojek also charges a S$0.70 platform fee for every trip made, while TADA charges S$0.55 before GST for fares below S$18 and S$0.75 before GST for fares above S$18. Ryde’s platform fee is S$0.30, while ComfortDelGro’s Zig does not charge customers any platform fee.
According to Grab, the ride-hailing industry is currently facing a driver shortage, with more people booking rides than available drivers. The shortage has resulted in longer wait times, fluctuating fares, and an overall inconvenience for passengers.
To tackle the issue, Grab has launched GrabShare, where two passengers travelling in the same direction can share a ride at a discounted fare. Additionally, the company is recruiting more drivers through its new schemes and introducing new features that will help drivers work more productively to serve more passengers.
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