Grab to pilot motorcycle hailing in Malaysia

This article is more than 12 months old

Nov 28, 2019 06:00 am

Ride-hailing company Grab has launched a pilot programme for motorbike hailing in Malaysia, barely a month after regional rival Gojek was given the green light to begin limited operation in the country.

The Singapore-based company said on its website that the move was in line with the government's effort to test out the service. Grab is backed by familiar names in the technology sector including SoftBank Group, Microsoft, Toyota Motor and Uber.

Malaysia said earlier this month that it will allow motorbike-hailing services such as Indonesia's Gojek to operate on a limited scale for six months from January next year as a pilot scheme to test demand for the service.

The programme will allow the government and participating companies to gather data and evaluate demand while officials work on drafting legislation to govern bike-hailing.

Grab said the pilot service - limited to Klang Valley - will also include food delivery. Grab already operates GrabBike in other markets such as Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia. - REUTERS