As commuters face difficulty in booking a taxi, some commuters are turning to the dating app Grindr to find rides to their respective destinations.
In a tweet, a social media user shared how he asked a Grindr user if he can give him a ride to his destination.
“TANG*** NIYO JOYRIDE, ANGKAS AT GRABCAR. DISKARTE NGA BA ANG KULANG?? EDI SIGE SA GRINDR TAYO MAGHANAP!!!” Troy Tolentino said.
“Sabi ko, hala kailangan kong isipan ng diskarte ‘to so nag-book ako, nag-open ako ng Grindr tapos sabi ko maghahanap ako ng may kotse sa profile picture so ayun minessage ko siya tapos sabi ko, ‘Can you drive me to the place’ tapos babayaran ko and um-oo naman siya,” Tolentino shared in an interview with News5.
RELATED: Convenience comes with a price: Commuters face difficulty in booking rides amid Christmas rush
Some online users also shared that they have used the dating app to find transportation.
“Lol, I’ve also tried this. Booking a ride these days have been,” a social media user qoute tweeted Tolentino’s post.
The online discussion about the use of dating apps to hail a ride has encouraged some commuters to download and use these apps as well.
“[I] will download Tinder and Bumble for this reason only,” a Twitter user said.
“Baka time na para mag download din ako lmao,” a Twitter user said.
“MAKAPAG-INSTALL NA NGA GUSTO KO LANG PO MAKAUWI NFMFMVKCFKF,” an online user wrote.
On a serious note, a social media user said that people resorting to unconventional means of finding a ride is “funny at first but in the end, this is a very sad situation to be in.”
Aside from booking rides via dating app, some commuters also use delivery services as their transportation.
Delivery service Lalamove reminded users it is not licensed to transport people following online posts of Filipinos using its service to commute.
READ: Delivery service reminds commuters it is not licensed to transport people
Recently, commuters also reported that some registered motorbike taxi riders are now operating as habal-habal riders amid the Christmas rush.
They also shared that these riders charge them fees higher than the suggested rate in the ride-hailing platforms.
RELATED: Amid holiday rush, commuters complain vs motorbike taxis operating as habal-habal riders
These complaints on lack of transportation options are being experienced amid the holiday season.
Last month, a think tank ranked Manila as one of the cities with the worst public transport system in the world.
“Road transport faces challenges including the poor quality of roads in the metropolitan area and the limited regional connectivity provided by the national road network. Manila is congested and polluted, but a low level of car ownership should help prevent these problems from worsening,” it said.
