SMRT Taxis today announced an exclusive partnership with Grab, the leading ridehailing platform in Southeast Asia, to enable all SMRT taxi drivers to use Grab as the only ridehailing app for taxi bookings. Both companies are also collaborating to offer customers dynamic fixed fares for their taxi trips booked via Grab.

The dynamic fixed fare scheme, via a new Grab service which will launch soon, lets customers know the fare for their intended trip before the start of the journey. Dynamic fixed fares are displayed upfront, and already accounts for travel time, distance, booking fees, and real-time demand and supply for taxis. SMRT taxi drivers who accept bookings via this new Grab service enjoy fixed, competitive fares for their service.

Metered fares continue to apply for street-hail pickups as well as phone and GrabTaxi bookings.

Mr Tony Heng, Managing Director for SMRT Taxis and Private Hire Services said: “The market has evolved and matured significantly, and more customers are now open to having dynamic fixed fares for their taxi rides. This partnership with Grab allows us to keep the pricing for our services competitive, catering to different customer needs and preferences. In addition to our SMRT Taxi booking app and hotline, Grab’s platform will expand our taxi hirers’ access to meeting customer demands.”

Commenting on the latest developments, Melvin Vu, Head of GrabTaxi Singapore said: “Grab has been engaging the authorities since December on implementing dynamic fixed fares for taxis, and we are glad that they have given the green light. The current taxi fare model does not account for real-time passenger demand and driver supply, which often means that passengers pay a surcharge even when there are many available taxis within the vicinity. Dynamic fixed fares ensure that taxis are better utilised throughout the day and passengers enjoy more affordable rides based on real-time market demands, while not eliminating metered fares. We look forward to working with SMRT Taxis and our partnering operators to start bringing the benefits of dynamic fixed fares to the community soon.”

As part of the exclusive partnership, SMRT taxi drivers who are new to Grab (including SMRT Taxi Share drivers) will be incentivised to use Grab’s booking platform to complement their street-hail pickups. New SMRT taxi drivers will undergo training to help familiarise them with the Grab app and learn about Grab’s safety guidelines and expected code of conduct. With SMRT Taxis on board, Grab further strengthens its largest land fleet network of over 100,000 drivers spanning across all its services including GrabTaxi, GrabCar and GrabHitch.

About SMRT Taxis

SMRT Taxis is one of the leading taxi operators in Singapore with over 25 years of experience. We manage and lease a fleet of more than 3,500 taxis.

At SMRT Taxis, the welfare of our taxi partners is a top priority and we are constantly developing new initiatives to better meet their needs, such as helping them mitigate costs and increase their earnings. “We take better care of you” is our on-going commitment to our taxi partners. The range of activities include a Bursary award that helps provide financial support for the education of their children and a Helping Hand Fund that helps taxi partners tide over financial difficulties.

About Grab

Grab is Southeast Asia’s leading ride-hailing platform. Grab solves critical transportation challenges to make transport freedom a reality for 620 million people in Southeast Asia. Grab’s core product platform includes commuting solutions for drivers and passengers with an emphasis on convenience, safety and reliability, as well as its proprietary mobile payments platform, GrabPay. Grab currently offers services in Singapore, Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam. For more information, please visit: http://www.grab.com.