By Saifulbahri Ismail, Channel NewsAsia, 7 Sep 2014
Taxi booking apps have helped passengers find taxis, complementing the Land Transport Authority's (LTA) push for more taxis to be on the roads, which it has done with the introduction of availability standards.
The standards are set to be reviewed next year, and the National Taxi Association has urged the LTA not to raise them or even consider lowering them.
The LTA told Channel NewsAsia that even though taxi apps are one way to match supply and demand for taxis, it is still dependent on the taxis being on the roads to accept such bookings. Hence taxi availability standards are still important. The LTA said it is reviewing the impact of third-party apps on the taxi industry and how it may benefit taxi drivers and commuters.
Taxi availability standards were introduced last year. During peak periods, taxi operators need to have at least 80 per cent of their fleet on the roads.
Since the implementation of the standards, the percentage of taxis on the roads during peak periods has increased - from 82 per cent in 2012 to 87 per cent in the first five months of this year.
More taxis are also being utilised - from 65 per cent to 68 per cent over the same period. This means more taxis are plying the roads, and more commuters are using them. The National Taxi Association attributed this to the growth in the use of third-party taxi apps on smartphones.
National Taxi Association executive adviser Ang Hin Kee said: "Have more commuters been able to get a cab during peak hours? Are more taxis plying the roads during peak hours? If, already we are achieving that, then I think the (taxi availability) indicators can stay as they are or be adjusted downwards."
National Taxi Association executive adviser Ang Hin Kee said: "Have more commuters been able to get a cab during peak hours? Are more taxis plying the roads during peak hours? If, already we are achieving that, then I think the (taxi availability) indicators can stay as they are or be adjusted downwards."
"You cannot ignore the fact that the apps have been a very effective way of matching demand and supply. We should welcome the fact that there are such tools, and therefore you don't have to use a very crude measure of availability indicators as it is today. We should welcome and be happy with the apps that are helping us meet the requirements," added Mr Ang.
The Association has been matching hirers and relief drivers to help cabbies meet the taxi availability standards. Under existing standards, taxi operators have to ensure 80 per cent of drivers clock at least 250 kilometres every day. Some drivers still have difficulties meeting the standards.
Premier taxi driver Foo Chi Yong said: "In the city, sometimes when you go for call bookings, you hardly travel any distance, and some of the drivers really can't make the 250km. So, it becomes a pressure for us and it will affect our livelihood and, of course, our driving."
Third-party taxi apps like GrabTaxi have helped cabbies get more passengers and helped passengers get a taxi quickly. "It's really useful, it takes no time to get a taxi anywhere, and anytime. I do use it a lot," said commuter Tan Thai Meng.
Third-party taxi apps like GrabTaxi have helped cabbies get more passengers and helped passengers get a taxi quickly. "It's really useful, it takes no time to get a taxi anywhere, and anytime. I do use it a lot," said commuter Tan Thai Meng.
GrabTaxi said call booking numbers have been increasing twofold every month since it launched the app last October. GrabTaxi's general manager Lim Kell Jay said: "Looking at the trend of technology, the proliferation of smartphones, more and more people are going to do stuff on their phones."
"Our goal is to one day make it so easy and so seamless for passengers to book a taxi through their phones - in the comfort of the homes, their workplace, in the restaurant - that there is really no need for them to be on the streets and hail a taxi anymore, or even call the call centre," added Mr Lim.
Taxis 'vanishing' from airport queues before peak hour
By Karamjit Kaur, The Straits Times, 8 Sep 2014
By Karamjit Kaur, The Straits Times, 8 Sep 2014
TAXIS are doing their disappearing act again and, this time, it is just before peak hour charges kick in at Changi Airport.
A Straits Times check at about 4.45pm on a recent Sunday found more than 80 people in the Terminal 1 queue, and hardly a cab in sight. But at 5pm, when the airport surcharge increases from $3 to $5 - as is the case from Friday to Sunday, taxis appeared, and the queue cleared in under half an hour.
On other days, cabbies collect an extra 25 per cent of the metered fare during peak hours from 6am to 9.30am, and after 6pm.
Travellers said they have noticed that queues can start growing 15 to 20 minutes before the extra charges kick in and, in some cases, the wait for a cab can exceed 30 minutes.
The problem has become worse with growing passenger and visitor numbers, observers said.
Changi Airport Group spokesman Robin Goh explained: "The long queue for taxis observed on Sunday (when The Straits Times was there) was due to the combined effects of a peak in weekend flight arrivals at T1, as well as the crunch in taxi supply generally observed islandwide between 3pm and 5pm, when taxi drivers change shift."
Airport ground staff have also noticed that some taxis intending to pick up passengers just before the start of the surcharge period may slow down.
Customers have long complained that taxis vanish just before peak hour, but this is believed to be the first time the problem has surfaced at the airport.
In 2012, the Land Transport Authority announced a slew of initiatives to be introduced gradually, including setting standards for taxi companies for the number of cabs that must ply the roads during peak hours, and the minimum mileage that drivers should clock up every day. Standards were also set for the run-up to peak hours.
But the cab shortage just before surcharges kick in has persisted islandwide.
For its part, the airport is taking extra measures.
Said Mr Goh: "We have deployed auxiliary police officers to patrol the roadways along Airport Boulevard, as well the taxi holding areas across all three terminals, to ensure that taxi drivers do not wait out in the taxi holding area."
Not all taxi drivers feel the need to comply.
Said cabby T.L. Wong, 53: "I don't see why it is so wrong for taxi drivers to wait for the surcharge so we can earn more. It is just a few dollars extra for the passengers anyway."
Despite the crunch, Indonesian housewife Nadia Wijaya, 62, who visits Singapore a few times a year, felt that Changi was still an efficient airport. "If you think this is crowded, you should come visit Jakarta," she said.