JoyRide raring for trial run in bid to challenge Angkas

MANILA, Philippines — Upcoming motorcycle taxi service JoyRide is raring to go and challenge Angkas, seeking immediate government approval for its inclusion in an ongoing trial run which seeks to determine the viability of having two-wheeled vehicles operate for public transport.

JoyRide is a service to be offered by We Move Things Philippines Inc., a local company which develops apps and software with the aim of providing mobility services. The company is currently operating Happy move, an on-demand delivery app around the Metro.

“Our request is really for JoyRide to be part of the pilot implementation. Our appeal is for JoyRide to be part so that we can first hasten the collection of data, second make it more transparent and make information more accurate. With more players being involved in the pilot implementation, it becomes more helpful to Congress to craft the legislation that is necessary,” JoyRide vice president for corporate affairs Noli Eala said in a briefing yesterday.

Eala said the company has expressed to the Department of Transportation (DOTr) as early as August its intent to be part of the trial run.

Angkas, the first app-based motorcycle ride-hailing service in the country, is currently on a government-sanctioned pilot run after it was granted last June by the DOTr a six-month trial run that legally allowed the service to operate in Metro Manila and Metro Cebu.

The pilot run came following the release of general guidelines last May that cover safety requirements, fare matrix, data-sharing standards and key performance indicators for the motorcycle-taxi operations.

Data from the trial run will be used to determine whether the government will permanently allow motorcycles for public transport, which would require amendment of Republic Act No. 4136, or the Land Transportation and Traffic Code, which mandates that two-wheeled vehicles cannot engage in business or offer public transport.

“So hopefully we can be given a chance before the pilot implementation expires because under the House resolution which the DOTr is following, it is stated there that it is possible that there is one year for the pilot implementation to be undertaken so the one that will expire by December is only six months. We think there is still room for additional data that we would have,” Eala said.

Eala said JoyRide’s network, including its app and riders, is all set to go once given the go signal for a trial run by the government.

He said the company has already invested a “substantial amount” to prepare for its eventual operations, including a 5,000 square-meter facility that houses its entire boarding process.

The company is expected to have trained a total of 6,414 bikers by end-November. It has likewise signed an agreement with Malayan Insurance Co. Inc. to provide it with the proper insurance coverage for the benefit and welfare of its fleet of bikers and the riding public.

“We have invested substantial amount even if we are not yet sure about whether we will be allowed to operate. That’s a risk we’re taking. But we are not looking into that,” Eala said.

“We are very confident that first of all, there is a need for this service. It’s really a matter of us ensuring that we are prepared when the time the law is passed. We are confident that the DOTr see the necessity for this kind of service,” he said.

Eala said as of 2016, there is almost one million motorcycles in Metro Manila alone and about half a million more in Cebu, which is also an area which JoyRide wants to cover immediately.

“The motorcycles are there already. All we want to do is tap on this resource and use it as a way to make transporting people more efficient and
ensure that  there is a viable alternative in the road for public transport. We also want to elevate the image of transport biker,” he said.