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Minimum daily mileage for taxi drivers to be removed from 1 January 2017

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8 years ago

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Land Transport Authority (LTA) has announced that following the review of the Taxi Availability (TA) framework and in consultation with key stakeholders such as the National Taxi Association (NTA), taxi drivers and taxi companies, it will be simplifying the TA framework from 1 January 2017.

LTA stated that the “Percentage of Taxis with Minimum Daily Mileage of 250km” requirement and the shoulder peak periods requirement in the “Percentage of Taxis on the Roads during Peak Periods” indicator, will be removed.

Source : LTA.

Source : LTA.

Second Minister for Transport Ng Chee Meng announced these changes to the Land Transport Authority’s (LTA) Taxi Availability (TA) framework on Saturday (17 December) at a fundraising event involving the taxi industry and other stakeholders.

Mr Ng, who is also Education Minister (Schools), said in Parliament in September that the Government would review the TA framework by the end of the year amid growing competition from private car-hire services such as Grab and Uber.

Mr Ng, who was then Senior Minister of State for Transport, said that the changes were meant to “further level the playing field” between such service and traditional taxi operators.

These availability standards which were put in place since 2013, required taxis to clock a minimum daily mileage, as well as ply the roads during peak hours. However, private car-hire services are not subject to such requirements.

In the statement, LTA said that technology has in the last one to two years particularly, enhanced the point-to-point mobility landscape in Singapore. Today, third-party taxi booking applications and taxi companies’ own enhanced in-house booking applications have enabled better matching between commuters and taxis, and there are also more options available for commuters such as private hire car services provided by the likes of Uber and Grab.

In September, a news report estimated that Uber and Grab had a combined fleet of about 25,000 private cars.

As such, and in order to give taxi companies and taxi drivers more flexibility to adapt to the evolving market, LTA stated that it will simplify the TA framework.

According to LTA, the percentage of taxis on the roads during peak hours has increased from 82% in 2012 to 93% in the first nine months of 2016 since the introduction of the TA framework on 1 January 2013. This translates to about 2,000 more taxis being made available to commuters during these hours.

It also said that over the same period, the percentage of taxis plying at least 250km daily has also increased, from 75% to 81%. In fact, 64% of taxis clocked more than 300km daily from January to September 2016. The proportion of taxis on a two-shift system has also increased sharply from 53% to 68% in the four years since the TA framework was introduced. These trends indicate that more taxis are plying the roads, and more commuters are able to get a taxi via street-hail.

Source : LTA.

Source : LTA.

Previously, taxi operators were penalised for not having the required proportion of taxis meet the minimum mileage of 250km. During the whole 2016, Premier was fined $12,118, Prime was fined $57,354, and SMRT was fined $43,753.

LTA then said that for the reasons mentioned above and as the assessment is that there are and will continue to be sufficient taxis plying the roads to meet commuter demand, especially during the non-peak periods of the day, It will remove the 250km minimum daily mileage requirement from 1 January 2017.

LTA stated that it will also amend the “Percentage of Taxis on the Roads during Peak Periods” indicator by removing the shoulder peak periods requirement from 1 January 2017. Based on analysis over the past three years, the demand for taxis during the shoulder peak periods (6am – 7am and 11pm – 12am) is well-catered for.

It also noted that the peak periods requirement in the indicator “Percentage of Taxis on the Roads during Peak Periods” will, however, be retained. This is to ensure that commuters would still be able to get a taxi during these high demand periods.

In 2017, in assessing whether the taxi operators will have to pay a financial penalty for TA performance, LTA said that it will apply the 2017 standards (unlike in 2015 and 2016 when LTA applied the 2014 standards for assessment of financial penalties).

It added that the condition for taxi fleet growth remains the same, in which taxi companies will have to pass the 2017 standards in at least four months of every half-yearly period to be eligible to expand their fleet in the corresponding six-month period in the following year.

William Lim, a taxi driver commented to TOC on the changes. He said, “It (Minimum daily mileage) shouldn’t be there in the first place. Actually, taxi drivers are looking more help from the government like reduction of tax which translates into rental rebate.”

Kelvin Low wrote, “Last time 250 is to prevent people from abusing taxi for personal use. Now people can get private car for personal use and do UBER/GRAB”

James Quaky wrote, “It’s just superficial amendments. It doesn’t solve the real problem that TDs are facing.”

Johnson Wong wrote, “They know the 250km/day is no longer needed since PHV is out of control over the limit and the population is more taxi controlled population.

By right, they should have kept supply below demand which leave room for taxi drivers to be able to make a living. And since now it is supply more than demand. That is going to push the fare drop and everyone left with tidbits to eat.”

Eddie Tan wrote, “Scholars…. paper plan always looks good… when plan screw up they just crush the paper n throw.. they forgot the problem still exist or got worst… good example the tpe busstop at punggol n now the stupid sliver zones at housing estate..”

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Singapore

SimplyGo revamps app to allow top-up and card blocking features

On 6 September, SimplyGo launched a revamped app allowing commuters to top up and activate card-blocking features for older EZ-Link cards via mobile phones. This comes after the government reversed its plan to phase out older payment cards in January following public outcry over the inability to view balances when tapping their SimplyGo cards on public transport.

Published

2 days ago

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6 September 2024

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SINGAPORE: On Friday (6 September), SimplyGo, an account-based ticketing (ABT) system primarily used for public transport, launched a revamped app that enables commuters to top up and activate card-blocking features for older card-based EZ-Link cards through their mobile phones.

The upgraded app offers a more comprehensive experience, integrating transit ticketing and travel card-related services into a single platform.

This move follows the merger of TransitLink and EZ-Link into one entity on 1 Sept.

The updated SimplyGo app provides access to the EZ-Link digital wallet for seamless in-store and online payments, announced SimplyGo.

Additionally, motorists can now use the EZ-Link Motoring service to pay for Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) and carpark charges using locally-issued Mastercard or Visa cards.

To top up older EZ-Link cards through the app, users must activate Near Field Communication (NFC) on their mobile phones and tap the physical card on the device.

The auto top-up feature, also available in the revamped app, automatically deducts a pre-set amount when the card’s balance drops to $3 upon exiting train gantries or buses.

For lost or misplaced cards, the new card-blocking function can be activated, though it may take up to 48 hours to complete.

SimplyGo emphasized that the revamped app is part of an ongoing effort to consolidate services that were previously split between the EZ-Link and TransitLink SimplyGo apps.

Existing EZ-Link app users do not need to re-register their cards, as their accounts will sync across the new app using their previously registered mobile numbers.

While the older EZ-Link app remains accessible, commuters are encouraged to switch to the upgraded SimplyGo app to access the full range of features.

Enhanced security measures are also in place, allowing only local mobile numbers for account registration, which ensures better fraud management and more accurate refund services.

Tourists and foreigners can use the app in “Guest Mode” to check their card balances.

SimplyGo’s Chief Executive Officer, Mr Tan Kim Hong, noted that the enhanced app is the company’s first step towards making SimplyGo the go-to platform for public transport commuters, offering a convenient and secure experience.

More features, such as a wayfinding tool for navigating MRT stations and bus interchanges, will be rolled out progressively.

LTA: Voluntary conversion to SimplyGo for MOE School Smart Cards to commence from 7 Sept

In a separate statement, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) announced that from Saturday (7 Sept), students will have the option to convert their student concession cards into SimplyGo school smart cards.

This option will be available to all students from Ministry of Education primary and secondary schools, as well as junior colleges and Millennia Institute.

“This follows feedback from parents and students who expressed a preference for converting their existing Student Smart Cards (SSC) to SimplyGo SSCs, allowing parents to top up their children’s cards remotely via the SimplyGo app,” said the LTA.

The conversion process is free and can be completed at selected ticketing machines across all MRT stations and bus interchanges.

However, those wishing to revert to a non-SimplyGo concession card will need to return their SimplyGo school smart card and purchase a new non-SimplyGo concession card for S$8.10 (US$6).

“With this, all commuters now have the option to convert their travel cards to SimplyGo,” said LTA.

In January, LTA U-turn on SimplyGo transition; Transport Minister issued apology

SimplyGo’s latest app revamp was announced following the government’s embarrassing reversal in January of its initial plan to transition entirely to SimplyGo and phase out older public transport payment cards, which was met with significant public outcry.

On 9 January, LTA revealed plans to retire the older card-based ticketing system used by EZ-Link and Nets FlashPay cards, in favor of SimplyGo, an account-based system (ABT).

This transition aimed to streamline fare payments by processing transactions on the back end, moving away from the traditional method of storing transaction data on individual cards.

However, the announcement triggered immediate backlash from commuters, who were particularly frustrated by the inability to view fare deductions and balances directly on the cards.

In response to the public dissatisfaction, Transport Minister Chee Hong Tat announced on 22 January that the government would invest an additional S$40 million to extend the lifespan of the card-based ticketing system, allowing passengers to continue using older payment cards until at least 2030.

Minister Chee publicly apologised for the government’s decision, admitting that the LTA had underestimated the strong preference many commuters had for the existing system.

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Singapore

COE prices hit new highs across all categories in latest tender

COE prices rose across all categories on 4 September, with premiums for smaller cars hitting a 2024 high of S$96,490. Category B COEs rose to S$106,300, while motorcycles saw the largest increase to S$9,801. Commercial vehicle premiums also climbed, marking the fifth consecutive rise.

Published

4 days ago

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4 September 2024

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In the latest Certificate of Entitlement (COE) tender on 4 September, prices across all five categories rose, with the premium for smaller, less powerful cars reaching a 2024 record of S$96,490. This marks a 2.8 per cent increase from the previous tender’s S$93,900 for Category A COEs, which cover smaller cars and electric vehicles (EVs).

Category B COEs, which are for larger and more powerful cars and EVs, also saw a slight rise of 0.4 per cent, bringing the premium to S$106,300 from S$105,889 in the previous tender.

Meanwhile, Open category COEs (Category E), which can be used for any vehicle type except motorcycles but are generally applied to bigger cars, increased by 0.8 per cent to S$106,901, compared to S$106,001 two weeks ago.

Motorcycle COEs (Category D) saw the steepest rise of 5.3 per cent, climbing from S$9,310 to S$9,801, while the commercial vehicle category (Category C) continued its upward trend with a 2.2 per cent increase to S$74,001, marking its fifth consecutive rise.

COEs are a crucial element of vehicle ownership in Singapore, granting the right to own and use a vehicle for a limited period. These rising premiums reflect the ongoing high demand and limited supply in Singapore’s car market.

 

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