ComfortDelgro orders 700 Hyundai taxis worth S$40m
27 Nov 06
SINGAPORE: ComfortDelGro has placed an order for 700 new Hyundai taxis.
The deal is worth S$40m, and the vehicles will be delivered next year.
Under the agreement, ComfortDelGro has an option for another 1,000 cars.
The transport operator says a decision on whether to exercise the option will depend on market conditions next year and feedback from customers and drivers.
The new taxis will be used to replace five-year-old models of Toyotas and Nissans.
With the replacement, close to 60 percent of ComfortDelgro's 15,300 taxi fleet will be three years or younger. - CNA /dt
Thursday December 28, 8:17 PM
Transport companies to handle own lost and found items: LTA
SINGAPORE : The Land and Transport Authority will no longer be handling lost and found items retrieved from public transport companies in January next year.
Instead, the various bus, taxi and train operators will be directly handling all reports on lost and found properties made by their customers.
The LTA says the move will help the transport companies be more responsive to their customers' needs.
If the owners cannot be traced or the found items not claimed within three months, the transport companies may dispose the items via public auctions or the items may be donated to charity.
Passengers are advised to report any incident of lost and found items to the relevant transport companies. - CNA /ls
Wednesday January 3, 8:17 PM
ComfortDelGro cabs to waive administrative charges for ABN AMRO credit card holders
SINGAPORE: ABN AMRO and ComfortDelGro have announced they would be waiving credit card transaction charges for taxi commuters.
This means Comfort, CityCab and Yellow-Top passengers can pay their rides using ABN AMRO credit cards without having to bear the 10 percent administrative fee normally imposed on credit card transactions, excluding goods and service taxes.
The two companies say the partnership -- the first of its kind in Singapore between a bank and a taxi operator -- will help cut travel costs.
Cashless payments on ComfortDelGro's taxis amounted to S$35m in fares in 2006 and are expected to grow as more cashless payment options are made available.
In addition to the administrative fee waiver, the partnership will also see a 24-hour priority booking hotline set up exclusively for ABN AMRO's cardmembers. - CNA /dt
Thursday January 4, 6:17 PM
ComfortDelGro reports total of over 17 million bookings in 2006
SINGAPORE: Singaporeans are calling for cabs more often.
ComfortDelGro received more than 17 million bookings for its Comfort, CityCab, and Yellow-Top taxis in 2006 - 20 percent more than in 2005.
The company says a stronger economy has brought more business for cabbies as people are willing to pay more to have a taxi at their doorstep.
It also credits its improved taxi booking system for bringing in more customers.
On average, commuters who call in only have to wait for 30 seconds to confirm a taxi, and are picked up within 6 minutes.
The highest number of calls was received on April 28, which was one of the wettest days of the year and the beginning of the Labour Day weekend.
There were 76,500 calls which were 53 percent more than the usual average of 50,000 a day.
The month of May was the busiest with more than 1.6 million calls, 14 percent more than the monthly average.
Recently, the heavy rain also boosted numbers.
ComfortDelGro says it will continue to fine-tune its booking system and find ways to cater to more calls, especially when demand surges during wet weather.
Current booking fees are S$2.50 during off-peak hours and S$4 during peak hours.
Peak hours are from 7am to 9.30am and 5pm to 11pm on weekdays, while weekends and public holidays are classified as off-peak. - CNA/so
Sunday January 7, 8:17 PM
Banks, transport companies work to tap cashless payment market
SINGAPORE: Public transport companies are establishing partnerships with banks in an effort to boost commuter numbers on buses, trains and taxis.
The companies aim to tap on the multi-million dollar cashless payment market.
Some two million passengers ride on the train, taxi and bus networks each day.
Apple Lee takes a cab at least seven times a week. Her credit card company, ABN AMRO, has just tied up with taxi company, ComfortDelGro, to scrap the 10 percent administrative fee that customers have to shell out when they use their credit cards to pay the taxi fees.
Ms Lee says it is an ideal option unless she is rushing for time as that would mean she has to spend extra minutes waiting for the transaction to be processed and to sign on the charge slip.
ABN AMRO wants to increase its credit card business by grabbing a slice of a market estimated to have grown 30 percent a year for ComfortDelGro for the past 10 years.
The business is said to be worth S$35 million last year.
Pamela Tan, Head, Consumer Finance, Consumer Client Segment, ABN AMRO, says: "With the partnership with ComfortDelGro, we will be able to bring in another 20,000 new customers. I believe we are projecting a minimum of 20 percent incremental in terms of revenue this year."
But the market potential is bigger. Credit card Mastercard says payment for transportation currently represents a small proportion of money spent on its card. The company adds that this means cards have a huge opportunity to expand because two years ago, Singaporean consumers spent S$14 billion on transport.
And banks are not just working with taxi companies.
Train operator SMRT wants to get more people onboard its trains and taxis by working with Citibank.
They have introduced a Citibank EZ-Link card which offers cashless payment for SMRT train and bus rides.
In turn, the bank gets access to strategic location of train stations where it plans to build 10 branches in places like Ang Mo Kio, Tampines and Jurong.
Chan Sow Han, Marketing Director, Citibank Singapore, says: "SMRT has the largest network of train stations and these stations are spread throughout all the 51 stations. This gives us natural access to the commuters out there."
Teo Chew Hoon, Vice-President, Commercial Business, SMRT Investments predicts the venture will help generate at least 20 percent of revenue for SMRT.
The train operator hopes the partnership will also help to boost the falling number of public transport users.
Ms Teo says: "The convenience, as well as the added value, would encourage the public to use public transport."
Predictions show this market is going to expand, with benefits for both businesses and savvy credit and debit card users. – CNA/so
SINGAPORE: Getting a taxi in town at night can be a long waiting game.
But thanks to new signboards at taxi stands, passengers will soon know just how long the wait is likely to be.
According to a recent Land Transport Authority (LTA) survey, the wait at Paragon Shopping Mall is the longest – averaging 48 minutes between 10 and 11pm.
Second in line is Lucky Plaza at 39 minutes, while passengers at Suntec City Mall and Far East Plaza have to wait for around 34 minutes.
There is a higher demand for taxis at major shopping malls come closing time so shoppers have to wait for at least 15 minutes for a taxi.
From next month, the LTA will put up signboards at taxi stands in town to indicate the average waiting times for the evening.
It will also update the information monthly to reflect the latest waiting times in the city so that passengers can decide whether to join the queue or wait elsewhere.
Some passengers said this move would not solve the problem of long waiting times as it is ultimately an issue of a shortage in supply, while some expressed that the initiative does help commuters make alternative transport plans.
Other initiatives to improve taxi services include a quarterly survey of service standards, which was first introduced in 2003.
Taxi companies are assessed in three areas – availability of taxis through radiophone booking, safety and customer satisfaction.
LTA's latest survey found that all the taxi companies met the assessment criteria except SMRT Taxis which failed to ensure that 90 percent of calls led to taxis being allocated.
Companies that do not perform up to mark incur penalties.
TransCab was fined S$6,118 for not meeting the standard on accident rates consecutively from January to March 2006.