Transport Ministry puts brakes on Dego Ride, relaunch expected

Local startup Dego Ride will temporarily cease its motorcycle e-hailing services after a mere two-day run, following the instructions of the Transport Ministry.

Dego Ride CEO Nabil Feisal Bamadha said a relaunch will take place on another date once they had "a few other things in place".

"We have informed our riders to halt pickups even though overall feedback from the consumers and riders are very good," he told Malaysiakini.

Cabinet is considering allowing both Dego Ride and its Indonesian counterpart Gojek to operate passenger services.

Following this, Dego Ride had resumed ferrying passengers, although cabinet had yet to make a firm decision.

On Aug 28, the company had begun offering users a free motorcycle ride each day for a limited time.

Dego Ride had previously operated a motorcycle ride-hailing service before the then-BN administration ordered it to cease operations in January 2017.

Current Transport Minister Anthony Loke further upheld the ban on Dego Ride in September 2018, after reports surfaced that the company had revived its operations.

Loke said last week that his ministry had been given a month to submit a report on the direction and mechanism for motorcycle ride-hailing services to the cabinet.

Nabil told Free Malaysia Today in May this year that the company was surviving on courier and delivery services after the clampdown on motorcycle ride-hailing by both the previous and current governments.

According to the e-hailing service's app, Dego Ride has “Pickup” and “Delivery” options available.

Aside from the daily free ride, usual charges are set at RM3 for up to three kilometres, with the Greater Klang Valley being the area of coverage.

The e-hailing company offers both car and motorcycle pickup options.