AirAsia enters Malaysia’s ride-hailing scene

 

AirAsia has expanded into the ride-hailing market in Malaysia with the launch of AirAsia Ride, the group’s newest offering under its super app.

Services are currently available in the Klang Valley, with expansion to more cities in Malaysia planned throughout the year. The AirAsia Ride e-hailing service can be booked by clicking on the ‘Ride’ icon on the AirAsia Super App, or via the website airasia.com/ride.

Amanda Woo, CEO of AirAsia Super App, said: “AirAsia Ride inherits the DNA of running a low-cost model which enables savings to be passed on to guests and strives to offer the lowest fares on the road, introducing great value to the highly competitive e-hailing ecosystem.”

Lim Chiew Shan, CEO of AirAsia Ride Malaysia, commented: “What sets AirAsia Ride apart from others in the market would be the unique insights and data that we have due to our position as a super app that owns an airline, and have strong vertical products on e-commerce, fintech, logistics, and now e-hailing.

“This enables us to leverage on AirAsia Group’s rich and vast data and algorithm to provide a seamless and connected journey experience for our passengers where they will be able to perform in-path booking for both their flights and pre-book their ride to the airport and even for their return journey at the same time, all within the convenience of one single itinerary and without having to leave the AirAsia Super App.”

Lim added that passengers will soon be able to use their BIG Points to pay for their rides, and can also choose their preferred vehicle type and even drivers. AirAsia Ride boasts a 100 per cent fully-vaccinated driver fleet.

Currently, AirAsia Ride has about 1,500 registered drivers, and with its nationwide expansion, another 5,000 are expected to come onboard in the next six months, said Lim. Drivers take 85 per cent of the net fares, higher than other ride-hailing providers in the market, according to a release.

Fares on AirAsia Ride are set at an average of RM1 (US$0.24) per kilometre, and passengers are able to book on-demand rides, or even pre-book their rides in advance. A special feature allows passengers to book an ‘Allstar Ride’ and be chauffeur driven by AirAsia pilots and cabin crew.

-TTG Asia.