Increased income for e-hailing drivers this raya season

KUALA LUMPUR: Amid the traffic congestion and shortage of parking space at crowded locations with people out shopping in preparing for the Aidilfitri celebration, it is more earnings for the e-hailing drivers whose services are much needed during this period.

One of them, Romy Irwan Shah, 42, said his income has gone up with the upcoming Hari Raya celebration.

Previously, he has been earning RM1,000 to RM1,200 per week but with this festive season, it has gone to over RM1,500 per week.

"Some people going out shopping for Raya prefer to use our services as they don't have to think about getting a parking space for their vehicle. Also, they don't have to rush for home as the e-hailing service is available round the clock," he said, here, today.

Having been an e-hailing driver for five years now, Romy said the passengers had not been complaining about the fares as they understood the dynamic fare rates, especially during the peak periods.

Another e-hailing driver, Suhaimi Sulaiman, 41, expects the number of customers to continue to rise until the last week of Ramadan.

"Alhamdulillah, there has been a slight rise in income compared to last week's. I expect it to increase further next week, depending on how hard an e-hailing driver is willing to work," he said.

Suhaimi also expects some people to be willing to use the e-hailing service to return to their village or hometown for the Raya celebration after two years of being unable to do so due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

A kindergarten teacher, Nornabila Abdullah, 23, said using the e-hailing service to shop in preparing for the Aidilfitri celebration would be more practical than driving one's car to the shopping areas or complexes.

"I would get tired if driving during heavy traffic and there's the need to find a parking space in order to shop," she added.

-- BERNAMA