Singapore – Expensive Taxis
Just spent 3 days in Singapore. Looks like the economic troubles are finally hitting hard. Recessionary times indeed.
Government appears to be struggling to keep the place in good shape. They are taking actions, ofcourse. Dipping into a country’s reserves can be the most serious action a nation could possibly take, and Singapore is taking that drastic action. Do I agree ? No. But I am currently not living in Singapore, so my direct ability to comment is significantly reduced.
I saw in the Friday newspapers (20th Feb) that public transportation costs are being cut by an average 4.6%. Not a big drop, but Singapore always believes in small, incremental, non-damaging steps. I asked myself, what about the ridiculous taxi fares in these difficult times ?
I saw firsthand the impact of the economic problems on the roads and in the shopping mall across from my hotel. It was always a difficult proposition to get a taxi in Singapore, though per capita taxi population could be one of the highest in the world. Now, I saw plenty of taxis available on the road, with the green lights on. There were few takers, though.
Why ?
Taxis are expensive in Singapore. For a distance of less than 7 Kms, I had to pay S$ 11.60 which included a 35% peak surcharge at 7:40 AM ! First, I do not agree that 7:40 AM is “peak traffic” time. Secondly, I do not agree with the surcharge. It looked like the “congestion levy” charged by the airlines in India. Why should an average passenger suffer because there is congestion or peak traffic on the roads ? In any case, the meter runs and charges a high fare, despite the oil price cuts.
Not only that, I got into a Hyundai Taxi in front of my hotel yesterday. And the minimum fare showed as S$ 3.00, instead of the usual S$ 2.80. I did not like it, and asked the driver why ? And, in the usual sarcastic tone so charateristic of Singapore Taxi Drivers, he responded saying, “hey, look at the seats, these are real leather, further see there is no engine sound, you get a smooth solid noiseless ride”, thinking probably in his mind, these folks do not enjoy such rides in their respective countries and they complain when they come here ! I was surprised when he further said that it is the reason why the fare is slightly higher, so in fact, the fare was higher than the previous two days. I paid S$ 12.95 instead of the S$ 11.60 I had paid previously.
Just ridiculous, to say the least ! Hotels colluding with taxis to charge their guests a higher taxi fare, without proper notice being displayed that the victims will be paying a higher fare. Not acceptable in a “clean” city like Singapore.
The other day, when I pointed out to the lady taxi driver that Singapore’s taxi fares are on the higher side, she got angry ! She said, “No, the fares are not high, infact the fare should be higher !”. She kept shaking her head vigorously, thinking probably, these passengers are useless……
Well, there is no choice folks : fares will need to be cut, and you all would see that soon enough. Otherwise taxi users will drop hugely, leading to retrenchment of drivers by Income and Tibs and other operators. That is my considered opinion. Plus, do not levy these surcharges or penalties on taxi users – these are not right economic tools. People will desist from using your mode of transport despite need. And that would be the start of the “depression”.
Hope the right sense gets to their collective heads !
Have a wonderful week ahead,
Cheers
Vijay Srinivasan
22nd Feb 2009
Mumbai
See...lah an old article, but like this kind of passenger, will you welcome him.
Time is Money.