This article was first published on Digital News Asia

GRAB, a ride-hailing platform in South East Asia, on Feb 7 launched GrabCoach in Singapore, its new service catering to group travellers and corporate customers.

Passengers travelling in large groups can use the Grab app to book a GrabCoach, comprising a fleet more than 200 13-seater, 23-seater and 40-seater vehicles. Fares are fixed and priced at S$65 (US$46), S$95 (US$67) and S$150 (US$106) for a one-way trip respectively.

Commenting on Grab’s newest transport offering, Grab Singapore head Lim Kell Jay said, “Introducing GrabCoach right after GrabShare came as a natural choice, as we saw an opportunity to digitize the traditional coach-chartering business for a better customer experience. Now for the first time, those who need to travel in groups can conveniently schedule a GrabCoach within minutes via the Grab app without having to spend hours coordinating with coach companies.”

Bringing ride-hailing innovations to coach-charter companies

With Grab’s scalable and robust technology platform, GrabCoach provides small fleet owners with immediate access to Grab’s growing passenger base and innovative app features.

Fleet owners can streamline their payments and communications with customers via the Grab app through features such as GrabChat, Grab’s in-app instant messaging feature to facilitate quick communication between driver and passenger.

As with other Grab services, GrabCoach accepts cash and cashless payment options via its GrabPay cashless payment platform, such as credit cards, AliPay, Android Pay and GrabPay Credits.

This enables fleet owners to focus on fleet management and growing their business on the Grab platform instead of investing considerable resources on building and maintaining their own technology, payments or customer service operations.

Paint the town green with GrabCoach

GrabCoach 13-, 23- and 40-seater can be booked on-demand or up to seven days in advance. Once a booking is confirmed, passengers can use the Grab app to access their driver’s profile, track their vehicle’s location in real-time, and be notified when their ride is arriving. GrabCoach caters to every function and occasion, such as:

• Family holidays: GrabCoach 13-seater is perfect for families of six and above, and has ample room for all their baggage.
  
• Wedding ceremonies: Keep wedding stress at bay by scheduling a 23 or 40-seater in advance for guests, especially when they are required to be at different locations throughout the day.
  
• Corporate functions: Be it a team dinner, school excursion or corporate outing, team coordinators and event planners now have access to a ready fleet of mid to large coaches to transport them to their destinations. Corporate customers can use the Grab for Work portal to manage, pay and expense corporate GrabCoach rides.
  

Concierge teams can also book GrabCoach for guests via GrabVenue Terminals, Grab’s enterprise solution that allows multiple ride bookings. GrabVenue terminals are located within the following hotels, shopping malls and establishments: