Move To Help Cabbies

Move To Help Cabbies - Taxis are going to enter a level-playing field with their ride-sharing counterparts, thanks to the Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD).

One of the most recent implementation is the re-classification of taxi licences, which will set the groundwork towards fare rationalisation. The present structure of five different taxi classes will be streamlined to just three (see graphic).

“We are trying to migrate all related classes to just taxis, hired cars and limousines once the 10-year age limit is up.

“They can choose to be metered taxis, a hired car, or if their car is a premier or executive taxis, then it becomes a limousine,” a SPAD spokesman told The Star yesterday.

The current licence classes are airport taxi, budget taxi, executive taxi, premier taxi and 1Malaysia taxi.

A circular released by SPAD dated March 31, called for the cancellation of current taxi licences to be substituted by a simplified class category.

The circular stated that licence operators which have reached the maximum age limit will be given a six-month grace period to transfer to the three new classes.

SPAD clarified that currently, there were too many categories and it was causing confusion.

With the new directive, SPAD said it would not renew the current licences.

“Every car older than 10 years will have to be changed. We want the change to be clean,” it said.

SPAD also said that if the taxis were only three years old, they could be maintained under the current classes.

“We won’t interfere. We know it costs a lot to repaint the car, so they are allowed to continue under the old scheme,” it said.

The re-classification is part of SPAD’s Taxi Industry Transforma­tion Programme unveiled last Au­­gust to resolve long-standing structural issues be­­setting the industry.

According to SPAD, the programme aims to create a fair playing field that will benefit drivers, operators and passengers.

Last month, Transport Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai lauded the programme for its potential to solve fundamental issues faced by the mainstream industry.

The programme, Liow wrote in his column “Walking on The Edge”, was designed to help taxi drivers become independent by offering financial support to liberate them from pajak (rent-purchase agreement) fee on which a huge chunk of their monthly revenue was spent on.

It also serves to encourage e-hailing adoption by taxi drivers, giving them a safe, secure working environment as well as better service to customers.