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Here’s what Grab is doing to ensure concertgoers don’t get lost

Yeo Ling Yong and Siti Narimah Yapah, Grab Transport

. March 1, 2024

The post-concert rush can be overwhelming. That’s why we have spent months planning and going on the ground to ensure that concertgoers can get home smoothly.

From making sure that you won’t get lost at the sprawling National Stadium to setting up alternative transport options, here’s a sneak peek at what our teams have been busy with.

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Increasing the number of shuttle buses

Our free shuttle bus service was a hit during the Coldplay shows in January—we ferried some 9,000 passengers over 200 trips, sending them closer to their homes. We are doing more for The Eras Tour. In anticipation of larger crowds, we will be increasing the number of shuttle buses for the Taylor Swift concert.

Securing the best pickup point

For our shuttle bus service to run smoothly, we worked closely with event organisers to secure a pickup point. Positioned opposite the National Stadium multi-storey carpark, Pickup Point A offers several advantages. The road flow in the vicinity is notably smoother given that it is closest to the main road. This means quicker exits for our shuttle buses to help passengers get home sooner.

Making sure you don’t get lost

Days before the concert, the team heads down to the National Stadium to prepare and put up signs so concertgoers won’t get lost. This includes spending some 3 to 4 hours attaching cable ties and putting up 40 signs all over the National Stadium.

Apart from sign boards, the Grab app also has an in-app walking guide tool to direct users to their pickup point. In addition to the pickup points near the National Stadium, we have multiple other pickup points nearby to cater to over 50,000 concertgoers each night. These alternative pickup points can be found at the Singapore Indoor Stadium, OCBC Arena, Kallang Wave Mall, Kallang Leisure Park and Stadium MRT.

Building our in-app walking guide tool required our teams to carry out a detailed survey of each venue in order to identify landmarks and signs that are useful in guiding users to respective pickup points. They captured images and documented walking directions that would help users navigate complex buildings, such as the National Stadium.

Prior to the concert, our team also went on-site to trace these routes personally and to validate the accuracy of the walking guides.

Grabbers by day, crowd management crew by night

We’re expecting more people at the Taylor Swift concert. So we are deploying over 10 Grabbers each day to help manage the crowd. They will direct concertgoers to the right pickup points, ensure the orderly flow of foot traffic, and address any concerns or questions that consumers might have.

@xianfinds it was pouring but we weren't the slighest drenched, thank you @Grab Singapore 🥹 #tiktoksg #erastoursingapore #taylorswiftconcert #taylorswifterastour ♬ original sound - rannunn 🦖💚

(Video via @xianfinds/TikTok)

Our colleagues went above and beyond on when it started raining heavily on night three of the Taylor Swift concert. They ensured that passengers were able to board safely without getting drenched.

Getting drivers and passengers to the right pickup point

Preparation starts months in advance. We coordinate with event organisers and transport authorities to get a heads-up on road closures and other mobility restrictions that might affect operations.

We then update our maps in both the driver and passenger apps so that we can reliably direct them to particular spots where pickups and drop-offs are allowed. This is important because roads will be congested during the post-concert rush and we don’t want drivers and passengers to miss each other.

Getting more drivers to meet demand

Based on past travelling behaviours, we know concertgoers—particularly tourists—would visit popular eating and drinking spots after the show. We will increase the number of drivers in these areas so that they can effectively serve demand.

The driver interface on the Grab app also displays areas where many passengers are searching for rides, allowing driver-partners to go where demand is high. This helps us ensure that there are enough driver-partners in areas with high demand to accept bookings.

Meeting tourist demand

We also found that tourists tend to make up a significant proportion of bookings at similar large-scale events.

With Singapore being the only Southeast Asia destination for The Eras Tour, we are anticipating even more travellers flying in to attend the concert. To help tourists get around Singapore with ease, we have rolled out Ride Pack—a special savings bundle for travellers to get discounts off their rides.

At the end of the day, our goal is to help concertgoers get home as quickly as possible. This is why we’ve put in so much effort to manage traffic and human congestion.

Stay tuned as we continue to refine our crowd management strategies to enhance the experience at large-scale events.

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