Ride hailing platform, Grab, is now expanding its GrabCar service to four other major cities, Ipoh (Perak), Kuantan (Pahang), Kuching (Sarawak) and Seremban (Negeri Sembilan), including the districts of Nilai and Port Dickson. Effective March 15, commuters in these cities can consider the private hire car hailing service as an alternative mode of transportation.
The company said the expansion is in line with Grab’s key mission to make transportation more accessible to everyone, especially in its home-country, and continue to play a part in solving local transportation issues by offering fixed fare rides that are safe, convenient and comfortable.
“Since the introduction of GrabCar in Klang Valley as a complementary service to taxis, the service has quickly risen to be one of the preferred alternative mode of transportation. In 2016 alone, we expanded to cities such as Penang, Johor Bahru, Malacca and Kota Kinabalu. As a Malaysian homegrown company, we understand local nuances and consumer needs, therefore we are able to work alongside the government to address the transport issues in in the country,” said Sean Goh, Country Head of Grab Malaysia.
Grab said it was recently appointed by the Pahang state government as one of the official partners for Visit Pahang 2017. “We are honoured with the appointment and the opportunity to serve the tourism industry in the state. With a strong presence in six countries regionally and 36 million downloads, we are certainly poised to be the ride of choice for locals and regional travellers,” shared Goh.
The GrabCar service in the new cities will continue to leverage on the same safety aspects, including all the following features:
- Stringent background checks: GrabCar drivers are required to go through stringent background checks and also training with a strict code of conduct to comply with.
- Customer service and emergency hotline: Both passengers and drivers can contact the 24-7 customer hotline and exclusively for drivers, and use the PDRM button that connects them to the nearest police department in case of emergencies.
- Share-My-Ride: Passengers can share their ride with their friends and family so they can keep track of their journey in real-time.
- Insurance Policy: Both passengers and drivers are covered by a Group Accident Insurance that allows claims person up to USD10K per person from the Great American Insurance Company.
- Dual Payment Option: Customers can opt to pay via cash or use GrabPay for cashless payments, therefore expanding their convenience without having to fumble for cash or wait for change.
- Fixed Fare Rides: Passengers can know their fare upfront and not worry about price fluctuation especially when travelling through traffic jams.
- GrabChat: An in-app chat feature that allows both drivers and passengers to communicate efficiently for free without having to leave the app.
- GrabRewards: Passengers can earn points and exchange it for exclusive discounts and promotions, so in essence, the more passengers ride, the more rewards they can collect.
To mark the expansion to the new cities, Grab is launching an exclusive promotion in the new cities. Beginning from March 15 to 31, 2017, passengers can book a GrabCar ride and opt to pay either via cash or credit/debit card, with the promo code HIGRAB5 to enjoy RM5 off x 10 rides.
The Grab app is available on the Android and iOS platform.
