ComfortDelGro taxi drivers can accept unfulfilled Gojek rides from April 29, fares unchanged

Starting April 29 this year, ComfortDelGro taxi drivers will be able to take unfulfilled rides on Gojek’s GoCar private-hire car service.

On April 23, Gojek Singapore and ComfortDelGro Taxi told The Straits Times that they will move forward with the second phase of their partnership, which will allow Gojek drivers to take on unfulfilled ComfortDelGro Taxi rides “in the near future.”

The partnership, first announced in November 2022, marks the collaboration between two industry giants: Gojek is one of the top ride-hailing companies alongside Grab, while ComfortDelGro is Singapore’s largest taxi operator, with about 9,000 Comfort and CityCab taxis.

In this collaboration, both companies aim to address the shortage of drivers in the city-state, providing drivers with more opportunities to earn by accepting additional rides without requiring them to download any additional apps.

Passengers will also benefit from experiencing shorter wait times for rides at the same fare rate as offered through the Gojek app.

To celebrate this partnership, Gojek app users can redeem a promo code to enjoy ride discounts of up to S$8.  

How does it work?

A cross-dispatch model will be used, where rides not taken up by one platform will be sent to the other. Both companies explained that operating on a two-shift system will ensure a more consistent supply of rides throughout the day. 

The ComfortDelGro website states that its drivers’ job acceptance procedures will remain the same. For instance, drivers will be able to automatically accept jobs by using the “auto accept” function.

Gojek passengers matched with a ComfortDelGro taxi will see the taxi company’s icon appear as the driver’s picture, along with the vehicle type and plate number.

Rides through this partnership are only flat-fare gigs. However, ride fares of more than $9 will include a 7 per cent driver commission, though it does not cover platform and payment transaction fees.

All extra fees applicable to a GoCar ride will continue to apply to rides fulfilled by ComfortDelGro taxis. For example, Gojek applies a platform fee of between 60 cents and $1 for every trip.

Customers and drivers share their thoughts

Gojek’s partnership with ComfortDelGro comes amid a sharp decline in Singapore’s taxi fleet, which dropped from its peak of 28,736 taxis in 2014 to 13,485 in January this year.

To account for the drop, the authorities announced in March that they had reviewed the Point-to-Point (P2P) transport industry structure, including changing the regulatory requirements for taxis and private-hire cars (PHC).

Notable changes include extending the statutory lifespan of non-electric cabs from eight to 10 years, as well as removing the requirement for smaller taxi operators to provide call-booking services.

Some Gojek users also expressed their excitement for the partnership, hoping that this will be a fuss-free experience.

In an interview with The Straits Times, 19-year-old Psychology undergraduate Shariffah Aisyah Aljunied added that ComfortDelGro might get the better end of the deal as it is “not as popular as Gojek.”

However, some ComfortDelGro taxi drivers think otherwise.

One driver pointed out that keeping the fares for both Gojek and taxis low would discourage him from accepting bookings. Another driver added that the pickup locations are usually far away, and the fares charged do not match the distance travelled.

He also shared his concern that the partnership may increase the competition among ComfortDelGro’s taxi drivers.

When contacted by The Straits Times, Gojek declined to answer questions about the number of private-hire cars on its platform, how commissions and fees would be split between the two companies and the current fulfilment rate of GoCar rides by Gojek drivers.

ComfortDelGro did not respond to their queries at the time of the report.

Featured Image Credit: Gojek Singapore, ComfortDelGro