Determinants of Using Ride-Hailing Service: Evidence from Malaysia

With the entrance of Uber into the land transportation industry, ride-hailing service has gained popularity and changed the way people travel in urban areas in Malaysia. Despite the growing popularity of this new mode of cab service, studies about factors that influence consumers' choice to use ride-hailing service are limited in developing countries. This study used primary data that was collected via a survey in Penang, Malaysia. This study aims to examine the factors that affect consumers' decision to utilise ride-hailing service. The novelty of this study is the adoption of a Heckman probit selection model to account for the possibility of sample selection bias and the introduction of an important explanatory variable, i.e., consumers' comparative satisfaction with the attributes of ride-hailing and traditional taxi service that affect consumers' choice of cab service. The results show that age, gender, education, marital status, income, cost considerations and vehicle ownership significantly determine the probability of using cab service. Consumers' choice between ride-hailing and traditional taxi service is affected by gender and their comparative rating of both services in terms of waiting time and the disposition of drivers. This suggests that it is necessary for cab service providers to improve their service in order to remain competitive in the industry.