Service Quality Performance of E-Hailing Services in Sarawak, Malaysia

Document Type : Research Paper

Author

Ph.D., Department of Social Science and Management, Faculty of Humanities, Management and Science, Universiti Putra Malaysia Sarawak, Nyabau Road, 97008 Bintulu, Sarawak, Malaysia.

10.22059/jitm.2025.99921

Abstract

With the advancement of communication technology, e-hailing services are becoming more widespread in Malaysia. Even though e-hailing services offer relative advantages compared to other types of public transport, research on the service quality aspects and customer satisfaction is essential to ensure customers receive worthwhile service with the money they spend on the services. Therefore, the growth of the e-hailing sector in Malaysia has drawn attention from the government, service providers, passengers, and even academics to the issues of service quality and customer satisfaction. Much research on service quality has been conducted in Malaysia; however, limited research has yet to be done on e-hailing services specifically for the state of Sarawak (East Malaysia) compared to peninsular areas. Thus, this research aims to measure the service quality performance of e-hailing in Sarawak and investigate the factors influencing passenger satisfaction. Three hundred ninety-two e-hailing users voluntarily participated in the survey, which was conducted in 2023. The partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was performed to assess the measurement and structural model. The analysis revealed that vehicle condition, customer service, and reliability have a significant one-percent relationship with passenger satisfaction. To ensure e-hailing vehicles are always in good condition, e-hailing companies and government agencies must make it mandatory for e-hailing cars to be maintained periodically. Next, the driver should improve communication skills and show a good attitude to provide excellent customer service. Besides, prompt response to customer orders is a must to ensure e-hailing services are reliable public transportation.

Keywords

References

Abdul, K. R. et. al. (2022). Refining Electronic Hailing Service Quality on Customer Satisfaction and Impact on Electronic Word of Mouth. 8th International Conference on Science & Social Research, CSSR 2021. Environment-Behaviour Proceeding Journals, 61-67.
Ahmad, S. J. & Azizan, M. (2020). E-hailing services in Malaysia: Current practices and future outlook. Journal of the Malaysian Institute of Planners, 18 (3), 128 – 141.
Andreotti et al. (2017). European perspectives on participation in the sharing economy. European Perspectives on Participation in the Sharing Economy. https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3046550.
Anita et al. (2024). Towards better public transport services: Understanding service quality attributes of public transport in states of developing countries. International Journal of Management and Sustainability, 13 (2), 253 – 272.
Atheria, K., Michele, S. S. R. & Jugindar, S. K. S. (2021). The study of customer satisfaction among grab users in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Electronic Journal of Business and Management, 6 (2), 30-64
Azlia, J. et al. (2018). Critical dimensions on Ride Sharing Services (RSS) in Klang Valley. International Journal of Modern Trends in Business Research, 1 (4), 33-41.
Bernama (2023). Age limit for taxi, e-hailing vehicles raised to 15 years. https://www.nst.com.my/news/nation/2023/04/895794/age-limit-taxi-e-hailing-vehicles-raised-15-years
Bergh, A. & Funcke, A. & Wernberg, J., (2021). "The Sharing Economy: Definition, Measurement and its Relationship to Capitalism," Working Paper Series 1380, Research Institute of Industrial Economics.
Brown, A., & LaValle, W. (2021). Hailing a change: comparing taxi and ride hail service quality in Los Angeles. Transportation, 48, 1007-1031.
Chia, K. M. et al. (2019). Evaluation of Service Quality Dimensions towards Customer’s Satisfaction of Ride-Hailing Services in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. International Journal of Recent Technology and Engineering (IJRTE), 7(5s), 102 – 109.
Daphine, Y.  H. A. & Muhammad, A. S. (2022). Factors Influencing Consumer Satisfaction towards E-hailing Service among Malaysian. Research in Management of Technology and Business, 3 (2), 072–084.
Dhawan, Shivangi & Yadav, Priyanka. (2018). E-cab hailing: A study on cunsumer behaviour. ELK Asia Pacific Journal of Marketing & Retail Management, 9(3). doi:10.16962/EAP JMRM/ issn 2349-2317/2018
Dow, R. A. (2021). An annotated checklist of the Odonata (Insecta) known from Sarawak with        records to district level. The Sarawak Museum Journal, 81, 313-422.
Fattah, A. (2015). The impact of service quality dimensions on customer. European Journal of Business and Management, 7(7), 45-53.
Fatima, T., Malik, S.A. & Shabbir, A. (2018). Hospital Health Care Service Quality, Patient Satisfaction And Loyalty: An Investigation In Context Of Private Health Care Systems. International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, 35(6) 1195-1214.
Hamzah, M.U.H., Wahab, S.N., Hafiz, A.R.M. and Voon, B.H. (2023). Switching intention, WOM and quality of public transport services: A case of the Kuala Lumpur conurbation. Multimodal Transportation, 2(3), 100082.
Hair, et al. (2014). A Primer on Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publication, Inc.
Hair, J. F., et al. (2019). When to use and how to report the results of PLS-SEM. European Business Review, 31(1), 2-24.
Kang, G. D., & James, J. (2004). Service quality dimensions: an examination of Grönroos’s service quality model. Managing Service Quality: An International Journal, 14(4), 266-277.
Marlisa et al. (2023). The Determinant Factors of Tourists’ Satisfaction With EHailing Service. Journal of Positive School Psychology, 7(5), 613-626.
Memon, A. M. et al. (2020). Sample size for survey research: Review and recommendations. Journal of Applied Structured Equation Modelling, 4(2), 1-20. https://doi.org/10.47263/jasem.4(2)01
Mouwen, A. (2015). Drivers of customer satisfaction with public transport services. Transportation Research, 78(10), 1-20. doi: 10.1016/j.tra.2015.05.005
Nur’, N., Menudin, & Nooraneda, M. L. (2019). Factors affecting customers’ perception toward service quality of grab. International Journal of Recent Technology and Engineering, 7(5S), 55–62.
Olawole, M. S. (2021). An empirical study of commuters’ satisfaction with taxi service quality in Abeokuta, Nigeria. Transportation Research Interdisciplinary Perspectives, 11, 1-8.
Parasuraman, A., Zeithaml, V. A., & Berry, L. L. (1985). A conceptual model of service quality and its implications for future research. Journal of Marketing, 49(4), 41-50.
Rajendran S.D. and Wahab, S.N., (2022). Investigating last-mile delivery options on online shoppers experience and repurchase intention. International Journal of Electronic Marketing and Retailing, 13(2), 224-241.
Ruzzakiah et al. (2021). User satisfaction index of e-hailing services Based on co-creation Value. Journal of Theoretical and Applied Information Technology, 99 (10), 2445 – 2457.
Salleh, et al. (2021). Embedding Automobile Safety Rating In Malaysia’s E-Hailing Policy – An analysis of NCAP-Rated Fleet. International Journal of Road Safety, 2(1), 62-69.
Shaheen, S. et al. (2015). Shared Mobility: A Sustainability & Technologies Workshop: Definitions, Industry Developments, and Early Understanding. UC Berkeley: Transportation Sustainability Research Center. Retrieved from https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2f61q30s
Statista (2024). Ride-hailing – Malaysia. Accessed through https://www.statista.com/outlook/mmo/shared-mobility/ride-hailing/malaysia.
Teo, B.C., Mustaffa, M.A., & Mohd Rozi, A.I. (2018). To Grab or not to Grab? Passenger ride intention towards e-hailing services. Malaysian Journal of Consumer and Family Economics, 21, 153–163. https://www.majcafe.com/wp content/uploads/2019/06/Paper-10-Vol-21-2019.pdf.
Wu, H. C., & Ko, Y. J. (2013). Assessment of service quality in hotel industry. Journal of Quality Assurance in Hospitality & Tourism, 14(3), 218-244.
Yee, C. J. & Mad, I. S. (2022). “How” and “What” Service Quality Influence Passenger’s Satisfaction in Grab, Ride-hailing Service, Malaysia. Malaysian Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities (MJSSH), 7 (5), 1-21.
 
 
 
 
 
Journal of Information Technology Management
Volume 17, Issue 1
2025
Pages 14-32

Files

Share

How to cite

Statistics