Grab Taxi - a rival to Uber

I am no fan of the ride sharing app Uber, so when I came across the mobile app for hailing a taxi on a trip to the Philippines, I was immediately interested. Grab Taxi is app allowing smartphones in taxis to be utilised to dispatch drivers utilising an app that directly messages drivers in the field. The business model revolves around Grab Taxi receiving a booking fee of 40 peso for every accepted fare, the consumer and not the taxi driver accepts the fee. That is a fair fee to ensure you get to your destination.

The drivers then decide if they wish to accept the fare booking, now this in itself isn't too different from the general taxi dispatch model where the centralised managing model handles bookings for a fee. The difference is, the taxi industry is dominated by an owner driver model who is effectively working for themselves in a micro-business, the taxi dispatch board is acting more like an employer instead of the actual role they play - they work for the drivers.

The idea came from Harvard educated Anthony Tan who was inspired by a friend in Malaysia unsuccessfully attempting to hail a cab one evening. His international experiences in a region building business disruptive models with technology no doubt shaped his thinking to build such an app.

So how well does it work? My Philippines trip taught me that hailing a cab in peak periods is difficult, the ability to set your pick-up point and destination is critical to picking up a ride. Manila taxi drivers are notorious for attempting to scam passengers during high demand periods by turning meters off, attempting to extort outrageous fare prices and driving around in circles or taking the long route - especially for foreigners. 

Then there is the infamous Manila traffic to contend with, during such periods, drivers refuse your fares, turn the meter off, skip taxi ranks and engage in practices bringing the industry into disrepute - this app may break the monopoly of the current taxi model. After you reach your destination, Grab Taxi sends you an email with a record of the transaction, you are invited to report any impropriety so the driver now is on notice - no more shady dealings and everyone wins.