ComfortDelGro Taxi starts food delivery service

TRANSPORT operator ComfortDelGro Corp has launched its dedicated food and beverage (F&B) delivery service, named ComfortDelivery.

F&B outlets can now sign up for an account on cdgtaxi.com.sg/comfortdelivery to have immediate access to a fleet of 10,000 taxis.

ComfortDelivery will be available daily from 9am to 10pm. It was set up to support the group's taxi drivers during the novel coronavirus pandemic and, in particular, Singapore's ongoing "circuit-breaker" period.

The service has been on trial since last Thursday, to familiarise cabbies and F&B outlets with the system and iron out any teething problems, ComfortDelGro said on Wednesday.

Deliveries will be charged a distance-based rate starting from S$6.50 per trip. Outlets that book cabbies for two drop-off locations in a single booking will pay a discounted rate starting from S$8.50.

All fees go directly to the taxi drivers' pockets, ComfortDelGro said. There will be no fee imposed on the cabbies or the F&B outlets during the "circuit-breaker" period which ends on June 1, 2020.

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F&B businesses that have more than one outlet will need to set up separate accounts for each pick-up location.

At any one time, about 20 orders - with up to three different destinations per order - can be made.

Cabbies will bid for the delivery jobs via the ComfortDelivery Driver app. Upon collection, the outlet simply pays the taxi driver through PayNow or cash. The app also tracks the location of the taxi and the time when the driver delivers the order.

Ang Wei Neng, chief executive officer of ComfortDelGro Taxi, said: "As a company we are not taking any fee from either the F&B outlets or the cabbies during the 'circuit-breaker' period. What the merchant pays is what the cabby receives."

With ComfortDelivery, the company aims to give F&B businesses access to a fast, reliable and affordable service that benefits consumers, while also helping its cabbies earn extra income "during these very challenging times", Mr Ang added.

F&B restaurants such as The Peranakan and The Straits Clan's Kin have signed up for the trial.

Lynn Yeow-De Vito, community leader for the #savefnbsg ground-up coalition of over 500 restaurants, said: "These are trying times for everyone and we're glad to be able to work together to find mutually beneficial solutions to the challenges we all face."

Unlike food delivery platforms where consumers order food through the apps, ComfortDelivery is catered for merchants' use. After an F&B outlet receives orders through its own system, it can visit the ComfortDelivery website to call for a taxi driver for the delivery, and pay the cabby directly.

Two weeks ago, ComfortDelGro also announced that some of its taxi drivers will deliver groceries for RedMart, Lazada's online supermarket. The RedMart iniative and other such tie-ups will run concurrently with ComfortDelivery.

Shares of ComfortDelGro fell S$0.02 or 1.3 per cent to trade at S$1.53 as at 10.56am on Wednesday.