Stretch Your Peso: grab

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Oh my goodness! In an undoubtedly surprising turn of events (seriously hoping this isn't happening), Grab and Uber, two of the biggest car-booking apps in the world, are close to signing a deal that would result in the US company withdrawing in the Southeast Asian market and sell its regional operations to their Singapore rival in return for a more than 20 per cent stake in Grab. Fellow Rizal and Metro Manila commuters, apparently the move has been reported to be under discussion for months and comes in just weeks after Japanese technology conglomerate SoftBank, Uber’s biggest investor called on the Silicon Valley company to focus on core markets. SoftBank also holds stakes in other ridesharing companies worldwide like Singapore's Grab, China's Didi, and India’s Ola.</div>
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The deal will be like the agreement that Uber struck with their fierce competitor Chinese ridesharing company Didi Chuxing back in 2016, when the former sold its China operations to Didi in exchange for a 20 percent stake in the company. </div>
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The agreement will put an end to a lengthy and onerous battle for dominion in the Southeast Asian ridesharing industry, which is undoubtedly one of the fastest-growing markets in the world (as of yet) and home to over 600 million people. For Uber, this is an opportunity to sort out their financial problems and boost profits in anticipation of its planned initial public offering (IPO) set next year. It has been reported that the company has spent over $10 billion since it was founded in 2009.</div>
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Grab  is presently valued at $6 billion, currently has operations in 178 cities all over Southeast Asia and its mobile app has been downloaded over 80 million times. When Uber goes, it will be the only ridesharing app available to us for booking cars. The Singapore-based company was founded in 2012 and has expanded aggressively across the region, operating in eight countries. Alongside car-booking, it has also launched a mobile payments platform called GrabPay which is designed for markets with under-developed banking. I'm quite fond of their delivery service called GrabExpress which I frequent for shipping and receiving fragile items on the same day. I only have good things to say about it, so far.</div>
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With Uber’s impending departure from the Southeast Asian car-booking scene, a couple of important questions arise, like, what does this mean for the ridesharing economy in our country? And how would their exit affect the livelihood of thousands of existing Uber drivers (I know a handful of them personally) in the Philippines? I hope this all ends well for all parties involved including the commuters.</div>
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The deal is expected to be finalised later this month and was first reported by Bloomberg. You can check out the article <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-03-08/grab-is-said-to-close-to-deal-for-uber-southeast-asia-business" rel="nofollow">here</a>. Will it push through? Are we really bidding farewell to Uber?</div>
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Grab refused to comment and Uber did not immediately respond to requests for comments either. We'll just have to wait and see.</div>
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<span style="color: #a64d79;"><b><i>Reference:</i></b></span></div>
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Bloomberg</div>
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*Photo credits to the owners</div>
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Oh my goodness! In an undoubtedly surprising turn of events (seriously hoping this isn't happening), Grab and Uber, two of the bigge...

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July 26 is going to hit commuters hard, Metro Manila the hardest I imagine. The matter regarding Grab and Uber has been making waves on social media, most especially after the LTFRB's casual statement that taxis, buses and jeepneys are safe. Netizens haven't been shy in voicing out their opinions on this and let's just say that it's not pretty.<br />
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(Image credits: Silent No More Facebook Page)<br />
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These ride-sharing
 apps may not be the best solutions to Metro 
Manila's current transportation problems, but they sure give us commuters a sigh of
 relief especially when faced with countless numbers of obstacles during rush 
hour. But, despite public uproar for their necessity, the Land 
Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board continues its crackdown 
on Grab and Uber. </div>
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By
 July 26, Grab and Uber vehicles that don't have the required 
Certificates of Public Convenience will be impounded, this is because 
there's still no efficient system of registration for these new players 
in the Philippine transport industry. According to <a href="https://www.change.org/p/ltfrb-land-transportation-franchising-and-regulatory-board-calling-for-urgent-action-to-finally-lift-the-tnvs-suspension" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">a petition by Bobby Coronel</a>,
 "while [Transportation Network Vehicle Service drivers] all received 
[their Transport Network Company] accreditation, their applications for 
Provisional Authority with the Land Transportation Franchising and 
Regulatory Board (LTFRB) were either not acted upon, or did not make it 
to the July 21, 2016 cut-off when they suspended all new applications.” </div>
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A report by Top Gear Philippines (which you can read <a href="http://www.topgear.com.ph/news/motoring-news/on-july-26-it-will-be-almost-impossible-to-book-an-uber-or-grab-a00012-20170716" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">here</a>) reveals that sadly around 90% of Grab and Uber drivers don’t have the necessary
 certificate because the LTFRB decided to stop issuing said documents a year ago. The agency’s reason for this? Colorum or unregistered vehicles 
aren’t safe for public use. </div>
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Grab and Uber in my opinion are way better and safer than other existing public transport vehicles. I know that when my balikbayan mom and sister were home, at different times during the year, they depended on Grab and Uber heavily and were both satisfied with their services. The drivers were ok, the cars were nice and they felt safer than when they took cabs to get around the metro. For added safety precautions, they'd share their ride either through social media or privately to us, to make sure that we knew who the driver was together with other details of the ride. When the car arrives, we don't let my mom or sister go out alone, there's always at least 2 more with her to send her off, look at the vehicle and give the driver a hard look and try to catch his eye too. It's like our way of silently telling him that if anything happens to his passenger, there are witnesses that she got on his car.<br />
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Even my husband books a ride on either Grab or Uber when he gets caught in rush hour and jeepneys and buses are packed. He got home whole and safe each and every time. My own experience with Grab and Uber on the rare occasions I do go out were all good as well. On the other hand, when it comes to our usual public transport, that's a whole different matter.</div>
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I haven't ridden in a taxi or any form of public transport (jeepney, bus) for a long time since I became a mom of 4. The last time I rode a taxi though was a horrifying experience for a female my size who was alone. I went to Farmer's Market Cubao at around 5am to buy fresh live shrimps (Suahe) as a surprise for my husband who was still peacefully sleeping at home with our daughter (only child back then) tucked in his arms. Carrying a cooler with my money just scattered in various pockets, I hailed a jeep to Cubao. It was pretty fast, but then I always enjoyed riding in a "Hataw" jeep in the morning. </div>
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So, I got the shrimps and some imported produce that were usually only available there, then it was time to head home. I was in a hurry so getting a cab was my only option. I got one pretty quick, but then a creepy feeling came over me immediately, especially when the driver kept talking and talking like we were close friends, his tone was different too. I don't mind conversing with drivers, don't get me wrong, but there was something niggling at the back of my head that didn't make me feel at ease inside that cab. I was only in the taxi for less than 5 minutes and I wanted to get out right away. What pushed me over the edge was when he suddenly suggested that I sit in the front seat next to him since it was just the two of us. He said it was better, so we could talk more properly during the long ride to keep him awake. He slowed down as if to put the car to a stop and kept on pressing me to move to the front, that's when I fabricated a call from a friend telling me that she was in Araneta and that I should just ride with her home. By then, we were almost at SM Cubao and there were guards nearby. So I hurriedly gave him 50 pesos and got out of the vehicle as fast as I could. He really gave me the creeps.<br />
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I took a different cab home, with a really old driver who I knew I could take on if he wanted to try anything funny unless, of course, if he was armed. I was mad at this point when I got past the shock and the realization that I could've been put in a seriously bad situation finally sunk in. I wanted to punch the cab driver from before but opted to just stay alert and get safely home, I wasn't out of the woods yet as far as I was concerned.</div>
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That night, as I was was browsing on my Facebook newsfeed I saw a post from a female who almost had the same experience I had, but unfortunately she didn't get out of the cab unscathed. Unlike me, this happened at night and she sat in the front immediately, so the driver got a hold of her and things happened. She had to jump off the vehicle while it was still in motion, was injured more and wounded due to that too. It was almost the same exact story, a taxi driver did that. That could've been me...<br />
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Back in college I remember witnessing stick ups (which unfortunately still happens to this day) in the jeepney, bus or fx that I was riding. I wasn't ever the sole target, but seeing it up close, a gun or knife pointed at one of the passengers in the same vehicle was still pretty scary. There were also times that I'd get the strong gut feeling that the driver was in on it too. I had money, jewelry, smartphones and a hat taken during those times, I'm just glad we weren't hurt, just winded out from the whole ordeal.<br />
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From personal experience and based on what real commuters who have taken jeepneys, buses, taxis to and from work or just to get around for years and now choose the alternative, say, I do believe that Grab and Uber are safer. That's just my two cents on this issue. </div>
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Are Taxis, Jeepneys and Buses Really Safe, LTFRB?

2017 app buses commuters convenience grab jeepneys july 26 ltfrb metro manila philippines public safety security taxis transport uber Are Taxis, Jeepneys and Buses Really Safe, LTFRB?

July 26 is going to hit commuters hard, Metro Manila the hardest I imagine. The matter regarding Grab and Uber has been making waves on ...

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