{"id":187911,"date":"2023-06-13T17:52:34","date_gmt":"2023-06-13T09:52:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.grab.com\/sg\/?post_type=editorial&p=187911"},"modified":"2025-02-26T18:48:28","modified_gmt":"2025-02-26T10:48:28","slug":"mapping-hidden-roads-alleys-southeast-asia-driver-partners","status":"publish","type":"editorial","link":"https:\/\/www.grab.com\/sg\/inside-grab\/stories\/mapping-hidden-roads-alleys-southeast-asia-driver-partners\/","title":{"rendered":"Mapping hidden roads and alleys with the help of our driver-partners"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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GrabMaps, Grab\u2019s (NASDAQ:GRAB) proprietary mapping platform, powers our services in all the eight Southeast Asian countries that we\u2019re in.<\/p>

Mapping has also become an additional income stream for many of Grab\u2019s driver-partners who help with gathering data.<\/p>

It starts with flagging out roads that may need someone to physically go and help to update on the map.<\/p>

Some of these are automatically marked by our system, which detects when driver-partners aren\u2019t taking the route marked out on GrabMaps. This potentially indicates a blockage or change in the road.\u00a0<\/p>

Other errors are flagged by end-users or driver-partners, prompting the need for a manual remapping.<\/p>

Additionally, our operations team marks out areas that we want to expand to, or that require refreshing.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\tTens of thousands of driver-partners across the region pick up these mapping jobs.<\/b>\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/blockquote>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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These areas, or geohashes<\/a>, are marked out for driver-partners on a board, who can pick the ones they want to take up.\u00a0<\/p>

Tens of thousands of driver-partners across the region pick up these jobs, which can supplement the work they\u2019re already doing on the Grab marketplace.<\/p>

This is how Grab\u2019s map is updated constantly, fuelled by fresh data from the millions of rides and orders we serve daily. We get real-time feedback from driver-partners on road closures and address changes. Our partner fleet includes cars, motorcycles, bicycles, and even delivery-partners on foot.<\/p>

Asia is undermapped<\/h5>

Southeast Asia is not as well mapped as other parts of the world because it has traditionally been viewed as not as lucrative a region to map.\u00a0<\/p>

Large parts of the region are also developing at a rapid pace, and the quarterly updates that\u2019s typical of most big mapping players were not refreshing quickly enough to reflect real-life changes to roads and landmarks here.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Plenty of roads in Southeast Asia may not look like clear pathways on a map.<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Incumbent map providers have also struggled to map some of the region\u2019s more challenging terrain, such as small alleys that four-wheeled vehicles can\u2019t pass through. <\/p>\n

We\u2019ve introduced technology such as our Kartacam, a little action camera that mounts on bike helmets, allowing two-wheelers to capture alleyways and side roads.<\/p>\n

These narrow pathways are important because they\u2019re often common throughways for the region\u2019s two-wheelers. <\/p>\n

By mapping these alleys, we create a more granular and realistic view of road networks in Southeast Asia, and also allow our driver-partners to be routed through them for faster trip times.<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve mapped over 900,000 km of missing roads, and added these to the OpenStreetMap platform, benefiting the broader network of businesses and individuals who use OSM.<\/p>\n

Other than roads, points-of-interest are important markers that are necessary for orientation. So far, we\u2019ve mapped more than 50 million POIs in the region. <\/p>\n

This is thanks to our driver-partners who are helping to add an accurate picture of their hometowns, to keep business and movement flowing through the streets of Southeast Asia.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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