Singapore’s largest taxi operator ComfortDelGro is in a bit of an awkward situation. It was just in January that it hooked up with Uber to present UberFLASH, the feature that allows riders to book the nearest taxi alongside regular private-hire drivers. A month prior to that, the taxi giant made a deal to take a 51 percent stake in Uber-owned rental car business, Lion City Holdings.
So what happens now that Uber’s exiting the whole of Southeast Asia by April 8? According to a text message sent by ComfortDelGro to its cabbies — delete your accounts.
“Dear cabbies, UberFlash will cease on April 8 2018. You may delete the Uber driver app any time now since it will no longer be in use”. An estimated 23,000 drivers received the message, The Straits Times reported.
A screengrab of the text message has been making the rounds on Facebook, thanks to the many drivers who were shocked at the sudden change. After all, ComfortDelGro cabbies who’ve been taking UberFLASH jobs the past couple of months are now left without any updates on other options.
The only thing they can take comfort in is that Grab prepared some vital information in an FAQ section on its website for Uber taxi drivers left in the lurch. ComfortDelGro drivers are encouraged to sign up with Grab before Uber ceases its services in Singapore on April 8.
