Now, we know that public transportation like LRT, MRT, buses and taxis are abundant in the city, but booking a ride using a mobile app speaks volumes for people like us who are creatures of instant gratification. You can literally do it in 30 seconds! No more hailing for cabs or rushing to catch the train like a mad woman whenever you’re running late.
However, there have been numerous sexual assault and crime cases reported in the news involving ride-hailing drivers and passengers, enough to make us want to drive ourselves everywhere… or simply never step out of the house.
This prompted a group of people to start Carriage For Her, a ride-sharing app that is created only for women.
By women, for women
Carriage CEO Nick Smith identified a need after many of his female friends complained about feeling unsafe when they hail a ride because there is a significant lack of women drivers in Malaysia.Based on their research, nearly 60 per cent of passengers here are female. And out of that number, about 70 per cent of them prefer having a female driver as well.
These results show that there could be a strong demand for women-only ride-hailing services in Malaysia. Hence, Carriage was designed to give women a safe and efficient service throughout the country.
Despite being targeted to females, Carriage is not strictly just for women passengers. Men are also welcome to ride, as long as they have a lady booking the trip and accompanying them.
She must first add them in the trip request so that the driver will be notified about a male passenger. The driver can later decide to accept or reject the booking request.
Serving women
Besides attending to the needs of female passengers, Carriage also aims to provide additional income opportunities for women drivers in Malaysia.So, this service is perfect for working women, stay-at-home moms, freelancers, real estate agents, insurance agents, you name it. Any women who wouldn’t mind picking up and dropping off fellow women passengers at their convenience, it’s Carriage For Her!
One of Carriage’s main efforts as a female-only ride-sharing service is the SOS button and emergency contacts software available within the app. This is important to ensure the safety and security of both drivers and passengers, as well as enable them to get help immediately as soon as they run into trouble.
Another element that is unique to this service is the variable rate commission system for drivers. The ‘Carriage Variable Fare Split System’ allows them to earn more commission the more they drive.
Although there is no sales experience required for this job nor are there quotas to fill, this is one way to reward drivers when they successfully carry out more trips.
There are also incentives for drivers when they refer a new driver. Each successful new sign-up will yield great rewards credited into the drivers’ wallet.
In fact, every new driver could potentially allow drivers to earn up to 100 per cent commission for their trips!
As for passengers, Carriage also has a fare calculation system exclusive to this app, called the ‘Flexfare’. This system tracks all tolls nationwide and calculates fares based on traffic conditions.
Knowing the traffic in the city here, this is great because passengers will no longer have to prepare extra cash for toll. The toll charges will already be calculated in the initial estimated trip fares when making a trip request.
So, even if the route changes due to accidents, traffic jam or passenger request, this flexible fare system will calculate the final route taken, including tolls passed, and add the amount into the final fare.
At the moment, Carriage’s driver app is already launched in Malaysia and ready for download here. On the other hand, the company is still tweaking the passenger app, but it is expected to launch in September.
The good news is that all registered drivers will receive a 90 per cent commission in the first month starting from the day the passenger app launches!
Making it in Malaysia
“Our aim is to have a fully functioning service for all women throughout Malaysia in two years,” Smith said.The team feels that this is a good time to launch a service like Carriage because the country is already helping women in the marketplace in many ways.
“Malaysia is actually quite advanced in terms of furthering women’s careers. About 35 per cent of women have managerial positions, which is high compared to our peers in ASEAN,” Carriage COO Yap Chun Fei said.
“Therefore, we feel that an app such as ours has a good chance of attracting women who want to earn extra money and will be productive for the Malaysian economy as well.”
But, let’s be real, Carriage is not the only ride-sharing app of its kind here in Malaysia. In fact, a similar service called Riding Pink was launched in October 2016.
Smith revealed that one way for them to stay relevant is to continue keeping their drivers and passengers happy.
“We intend to do this with outstanding customer service, excellent commission and a safe service that hopefully everyone enjoys using,” he shared.
Women can also look forward to partnerships and promotions with companies and brands they love. So ladies, if you want a safe, efficient and cost-friendly ride-hailing service, make sure you test out the app as soon as it launches next month!
You can visit the official website of Carriage For Her to find out more details about this hot new service in town.
Meanwhile, read our safety guide for women who are afraid of being sexually harassed during a ride.