Healthcare workers to get free rides via GrabBayanihan

MANILA: Ride-hailing platform Grab and allies from the public and private sectors rekindle the age-old spirit of bayanihan in the Philippines by offering their services for free to healthcare workers while also providing driver-partners a means of livelihood during this "enhanced community quarantine" period.

Called the GrabBayanihan Car service, it aims to start with an initial 100 driver-partners — pending approval by the Inter-agency Task Force on Emerging and Infectious Diseases — that can ferry up to two healthcare workers at a time in accordance with the government’s social distancing guidelines. The vehicles will be clearly marked so that their target passengers can easily spot and locate them on the road.

Healthcare workers who wish to subscribe to the service must approach their hospital administrators to request for the GrabBayanihan Car service. The forms are available here.

GrabBayanihan drivers will be trained to have the strictest standards in terms of hygiene and infection prevention measures while also provided with the necessary personal protective equipment for their own personal health and safety as well.

Each GrabBayanihan unit will be equipped with a clear plastic sheet to separate the driver from passengers to reduce the chances of infection and contamination.

GrabBayanihan volunteer driver-partners will each receive a minimum daily income of PhP 550 for 8 hours of service, in addition to PhP 300 in gas vouchers sponsored by Unioil, Phoenix Petroleum, Seaoil, and Caltex. They will also receive free communication top-ups from Globe and PLDT-Smart.

Grab has also deployed some 50 GrabWheels e-scooters — and some 300 on standby — to city governments of Manila, Quezon City, San Juan, Muntinlupa, Navotas, Marikina, and Pasig. These will be for the use of healthcare workers and barangay officials in their communities.

Grab also plans to provide income opportunities to displaced drivers by hosting virtual training session in order to provide them information about how to become a driver-partner for GrabFood and GrabExpress.

“More than a public health crisis, the Covid-19 outbreak has been a call for all sectors to band together for the common goal of providing meaningful services to the Filipino people. For us at Grab, the last few weeks have been a testament to our innate ability to innovate for all and to use our platform to help our community endure this period of uncertainty and disruption. We hope that now more than ever, other players will help carry out this vision of bayanihan while preventing the spread of Covid-19,” said Grab Philippines president Brian Cu in a statement.