Taxis: Service Standards

• HyperFocal

  14 Dec 07, 18:37

  Cab firms must do more than up fares
  Dr Kog Yue Choong
  
  Taxi companies appear to have tackled the dilemma of either paying its drivers more, or leaving them poorer due to rising costs, by deciding to hike taxi fares and passing the problem on to passengers.
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  Right now, it seems rather optimistic to think that the fare hikes will solve the issues of touting, lack of taxis where they are needed and the perennial problem of cabbies who are clueless even about landmarks such as the Esplanade.
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  Frustrated passengers must be wondering why exactly they should be paying more. They probably also expect better productivity and knowledge on the part of drivers. But the taxi firms don't seem willing or able to do anything — besides charging booking fees — about the long queues at taxi stands at certain times of the day.
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  It is also unclear if they have managed to adjust the shift-changing periods so that there is no shortage of available cabs at certain hours, as happens now.
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  And what about reining in wayward drivers who tout? It has been the Land Transport Authority which has wielded the big stick. Even the private sector, it seems, is developing a dependence on the State.
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  Apart from those who do not know the locations of key destinations, there are also drivers who take longer — or "scenic" — routes to destinations instead of practising the good ethic of taking passengers by the fastest and shortest route in the safest possible way, although some cabbies do offer passengers a choice of routes.
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  Hiking fares is not the only way to tackle even economic questions. As taxi drivers worry about higher fuel prices, one wonders what taxi companies have done to explore greater fuel efficiency or, better still, alternative fuels.
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  Another question that remains unanswered is whether taxi firms are using technology to help their drivers be where the action is — that is, where the passengers are.
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  There is usually no shortage of taxis at the airport, at any hour. Indeed, on some evenings the airport taxi queue even extends to a couple of kilometres along the ECP. It remains to be seen whether the new surcharges will lead cabbies to be similarly organised around the city centre during peak hours and weekends.
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  Taxi firms and their drivers may need to be briefed by the Urban Redevelopment Authority on leisure and recreational places around the city centre. Professionally speaking, cabbies should be where their services are needed, and taxi firms should help get their drivers to these places.
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  A cut in taxi rentals should be explored if the costs of the new Hyundai or Kia taxis work out to be less than those for the existing Toyota and Nissan taxis. One also wonders why taxi firms do not consider rebates for drivers who exhibit qualities such as professionalism, good service and safe driving, for example.
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  Drivers who make efforts to reach areas with more demand, in order to reduce taxi queues, should be similarly rewarded. In short, taxi firms should actively encourage passenger feedback and take it seriously as well.
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  Hiking cab charges will do nothing to solve issues related to inefficiency and just plain disregard of passengers' needs. Many passengers now are likely to be well-heeled tourists who do not mind spending the extra money to travel by taxi, particularly since Singapore's rates are competitive when compared with those in the West.
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  Taxi firms that opt for price hikes as a means of solving their drivers' problems are only ensuring that Singapore's taxi fares and transport system become less competitive.
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  What is also worrying is that more middle-income commuters may consider buying cars if taking taxis is going to cost the same as using a car.
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  Ultimately, the concern is whether taxis are going to become a privileged form of transport affordable only to the well- heeled. It will certainly add to the costs of those who need transport in an urgent or emergency situation.
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  Similarly, higher fares will mean added costs for families visiting relatives during festivals. Taxi firms should also realise that between midnight and 5am on most days of the week, taxis are the only form of public transport operating, and high fares discourage many night- and late-shift workers from travelling home.
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  Lack of affordable transport renders these workers homeless until public buses and trains start in the mornings.
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  Commuters who rely on public transport surely deserve more from taxi companies and their drivers.
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  Dr Kog Yue Choong is an engineering consultant and also an adjunct professor at the National University of Singapore. The views expressed here are his own.
  
• pearlie27

  14 Dec 07, 19:02

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  OMG, he is such a typical textbook-smart but street-fool professor! i definitely have to make sure my kids don't ever attend his class.
• happieman

  3 Jan 08, 11:33

  Originally posted by pearlie27:

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  OMG, he is such a typical textbook-smart but street-fool professor! i definitely have to make sure my kids don't ever attend his class.

  The taxi driver's service standard is important ... but the taxi company has to make responsible also .. they increase the taxi fare using the driver income as an excuse ... and they increase the rental ... in the end they are the one to get the money ..
  
  the passenger and the driver are the victims ...