Industry players and experts on Saturday (Dec 17) welcomed what they described as an overdue move to scrap some of the taxi availability requirements including a minimum daily mileage. Such rules are no longer effective, they pointed out, in matching demand and supply in today’s environment where commuters have few issues, even during peak hours, booking taxis from traditional operators or private car hire services with their smartphones.

Cabbies also cheered the removal of the rules as they did not translate to higher earnings and in fact, caused problems for older drivers who are unable to work for long hours.

The Land Transport Authority (LTA) has announced that from next month, taxi drivers will no longer need to meet the 250km minimum daily mileage and ply the roads during peak shoulder hours after a review of the taxi availability framework.

National Taxi Association (NTA) executive advisor Ang Hin Kee said the requirements, which were introduced in 2013, were meant to assure commuters of the availability of taxis and used as a “rough proxy” to better match taxis to commuters. But despite the measures, it is not uncommon to see cabs cruising without customers. “So, creating supply does not necessarily mean that you’ll be able to meet the commuters where they are and when they want it,” said Mr Ang, who is also a Member of Parliament for Ang Mo Kio GRC. Given that most taxi drivers and commuters are using smartphones, Mr Ang pointed out that leveraging readily available technology could be a better measure to reduce empty cruising for cabbies and waiting time for commuters.

SMRT Taxis managing director Tony Heng noted that when the requirements were first introduced, the impact of third party apps and private hire car services were not felt yet. But since then, supply and demand have been better matched by technology and private hire car services. “We are glad that the LTA has taken that into consideration and level the playing field for taxi operators,” he added.

ComfortDelgro taxi driver Henry Tay, 48, said that fewer people are flagging down cabs and waiting at taxi stands. “Most of them just use the app to get a cab,” he said.

Another taxi driver, Mr Lim Jew Kok, who is in his 50s, added: “It is good that they remove (the minimum daily mileage requirement). I don’t have a problem driving 250km every day but driving longer does not mean you get more customers and more income.” Echoing the same sentiment, Premier Taxi driver Foong Chi Yong, 56, said the requirement affects drivers, especially when they have to take medical leave on some days.

Transport analysts reiterated that private hire care services provided by Grab and Uber have rendered the set of taxi availability requirements less effective now. The simplified framework will only stipulate that 85 per cent of an operator’s fleet has to ply the roads during peak periods (7am to 11am, and 5pm to 11pm). The requirement for peak shoulder hours (6am to 7am, and 11pm to midnight) will be removed, along with the minimum daily mileage rule.

SIM University (UniSIM) senior lecturer Dr Park Byung Joon said: “Back then, there was a need to make sure there were taxis on the road. But more cars have been added because of Grab and Uber. So, the taxi availability requirements does not really achieve any real goal.”

UniSIM transport expert Walter Theseira said that with the removal of some of the requirements, it might also be timely for traditional taxi operators to relook their business model in order to compete with the private hire car services.

Currently, these operators make money from rentals paid by taxi drivers and hope that drivers can earn enough income after the rental fees are deducted, he said. “On the other hand, the business models of Grab and Uber are skewed towards profit-sharing. Because they take a cut from drivers’ income, this also acts an incentive to help drivers grow their earnings. So, traditional taxi operators should look at this possibility, and whether it’s worth considering,” he added.

Source:
courtesy of TODAY

by Faris Mokhtar

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