Best Ride App..Comparable to Motorbike Taxi Prices

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Gaybutton
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Re: Best Ride App..Comparable to Motorbike Taxi Prices

Post by Gaybutton »

windwalker wrote: Thu Jul 15, 2021 2:34 pm And you can choose a motorbike, but why bother!
For me that would depend on where I am. If I am in Bangkok, for example, I would most likely choose a motorbike. I'm not afraid of motorbike taxis and no getting stuck in heavy traffic as you would in a car.

As long as I've lived in Thailand, and even before living here when I would come on holidays, I regularly use motorbike taxis whenever I won't be using my car. I've never had a problem and it is rare that motorbike taxis are involved in accidents.

If for some reason I think the motorbike taxi driver is driving unsafely, I have a surefire method of coping with the danger. I shut my eyes . . .

Anyway, this app obviously is a very good one and posting about it is going to help it succeed. Why didn't I know about this before? How long has this app been available?
Jun

Re: Best Ride App..Comparable to Motorbike Taxi Prices

Post by Jun »

I'm fairly sure more people will have died on motorcycles than from covid in Thailand in the last year, but the latter is affected by "availability heuristic".
I quite like the sound of this app, for when I am back in Thailand.
However, I would personally be choosing a car, unless we have near gridlock conditions.
Do the motorcycles show up with a proper helmet for the passenger ? Complete with strap etc, so it's not going to be like some useless ornament.

How does bolt compare with Grab ?
I've used Grab a couple of times in Chiang Mai & in Khon Kaen, usually when traveling with luggage. However, I don't recall that offering any reasonable options on the few times I looked in Pattaya & other locations.
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Re: Best Ride App..Comparable to Motorbike Taxi Prices

Post by Gaybutton »

Jun wrote: Thu Jul 15, 2021 7:34 pm Do the motorcycles show up with a proper helmet for the passenger ? Complete with strap etc, so it's not going to be like some useless ornament.
Every time I've used a motorbike taxi, no matter where, the answer is yes, they always have a helmet for the passenger - a proper one.

Jun wrote: Thu Jul 15, 2021 7:34 pm I'm fairly sure more people will have died on motorcycles than from covid in Thailand in the last year
You don't have to be fairly sure. You can be absolutely sure. But that doesn't mean very many of them involved people riding on motorbike taxis. Like I said, those accidents are quite rare. In my opinion those who refuse to use motorbike taxis - it's not a legitimate fear. It's a phobia.
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Re: Best Ride App..Comparable to Motorbike Taxi Prices

Post by Ruthrieston »

The Bolt charges for longer journeys like from Pattaya to Suvarnabhumi airport are disappointing compared to the excellent local charges. I use Boss taxi service who are a good service with sensible drivers and charge 1,000 Baht. Bolt charges 1,200 Baht for Pattaya to Bangkok service.
Jun

Re: Best Ride App..Comparable to Motorbike Taxi Prices

Post by Jun »

Ruthrieston wrote: Fri Jul 16, 2021 7:42 amI use Boss taxi service who are a good service with sensible drivers and charge 1,000 Baht.
Do they have good cars ?
A few years ago I was using Mr Toom (if I remember correctly), but they kept using ancient cars which might have been from the 1980s, with whining back axles. On one occasion, a driver stopped once to refuel and again for a pee between Pattaya and Suvarnabhumi.
I dumped them and started using The Limmo Pattaya, who showed up in relatively new Camry's.

Although, the only time I use a taxi between Pattaya & Bangkok is when getting a long haul flight. The bus service is OK the rest of the time & should also be safer.
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Re: Best Ride App..Comparable to Motorbike Taxi Prices

Post by Gaybutton »

Jun wrote: Fri Jul 16, 2021 3:03 pm and again for a pee between Pattaya and Suvarnabhumi.
Why didn't he just pee on the side of the road, like so many do, without giving a damn who might see him doing it, also like so many do . . . ?
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Re: Best Ride App..Comparable to Motorbike Taxi Prices

Post by Gaybutton »

Today for the first time i used Bolt. I needed a ride from my house to the Toyota dealership where my car was in for service. It is self-explanatory and very simple to use. All I had to do was verify my location, enter my destination, and decide whether I wanted a ride in a private car, taxi, or motorbike. For the 87 baht fee (less than I was ever charged for the same ride using a motorbike taxi), which was the most expensive of the choices, I chose a car.

The car arrived less than 2 minutes after I confirmed the ride. As soon as I stepped out my door and locked it, I could see the car already was coming up my street. It was a new car, spotlessly clean. The app gives you the name of the driver, a way to contact him (they don't give his phone number), and the car's license plate information. In other words, you have a way to recognize the car when it arrives and the full license plate and driver's name in case of any trouble.

Upon arrival at the Toyota dealership I paid the driver his fee plus a good tip.

That was all there was to it. If I need a ride again I definitely will use Bolt.

By the way - wear your face mask.
Jun

Re: Best Ride App..Comparable to Motorbike Taxi Prices

Post by Jun »

Bolt usually works well. My only failures are when it isn't showing the correct pick up location, so it's worth checking that.
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Re: Best Ride App..Comparable to Motorbike Taxi Prices

Post by BKKDreamer »

Hi Jun,

This also happens to me - as I live in the big View Talay 5 complex.
To make it work properly, I order the BOLT ride from the lobby exit of the building that I live in and then the GPS displays the proper pick up location. If I do it from my condo - then it picks up the neighboring buildings.

Also, sometimes when I need to go to an obscure place (for instance the Pattaya Expat Club - meeting place at The Father Ray Foundation) the BOLT app either does not find it or finds an unrelated place. In these cases, I use Google Map to locate the place that I want to go to and then I copy the address from Google Map into the BOLT app - (you need to truncate the zip code and province information) and then the BOLT app tends to then find the place that I need to travel to. In one rare case, it could not find it no matter what I did so I chose a place that was next to my desired destination and when I got into the BOLT ride I showed the true destination with Google Maps and I asked the driver to go there instead of the one displayed on the BOLT app. If the driver did not speak English - then I used Google Translate to make my request and I never had a problem.

With these issues - I truly do not see us living in a 100% AI (Artificial Intelligence) world in our lifetime. However, I see AI assisting us more and more and we need to be smart and creative on how to overcome the AI limitations to get what we want.
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Re: Best Ride App..Comparable to Motorbike Taxi Prices

Post by Asia Traveler »

I have not been to Thailand in several years but I am returning in January. What are the ride app options? In Cambodia I was using Grab and I liked being able to pay via the Grab app versus having to have the right amount of cash. Bolt appears to be an app where you pay in cash to the driver after the ride. Are there other options that are available such as Grab which I also used to use in Thailand a few years back.
Thanks in advance for any information or advice.
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