Cebu City gov’t using Uber, Grab

The Cebu City government is using ride hailing apps Uber and Grab for a trial period of six months starting December this year to track the movement of its vehicles and personnel and monitor transportation expenses.

Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña has signed a memorandum of agreement with Uber and Grab to enable city hall employees to use them as transport services.

Osmeña, in a Facebook post after the signing of the MoA, said Uber will “monitor our vehicles are in real time” while Grab “will provide the vehicles.”

He said that six city hall vehicles will be initially registered with the Uber platform under its UberGov project to enable city hall personnel such as tax mappers or sanitation inspectors to go around the city with ease.

Osmeña said instead of waiting for a city government vehicle to become available, they can use the Uber app to summon a vehicle.

A Grab-registered city vehicle will then come to pick them up.

Using the apps, Osmeña said, will enable the city government to save money in the purchase of new vehicles and hiring of new drivers. The apps, he said, will also allow them to track their movements.

During the trial run, the Grab for Work System will organize and track city hall workers’ transportation expenses by gathering data on the cost per trip, its travel time, mapping, and other necessary information needed for the dynamics. (Minerva BC Newman)