Regulation of taxi fares - a new approach

The Minister for Transport announced in Parliament that the Government will regulate the standard of service for taxi drivers but will not regulate the fares. The Minister believes that deregulation of fares allows greater flexibility in the supply of taxis. The public finds the deregulated fares and surcharges to be confusing.

I wish to suggest an approach:

• The Government should regulate the fares for a basic taxi service that picks up passengers on the road or at taxi stands
• Taxi companies can operate special services for customers that book a taxi at their call centre; they can set their own fares

Some taxi companies may prefer to operate the basic service, as they do not have to incur the high cost of maintaining a taxi booking service. Commuters will also benefit as the fares for the basic taxi service can be used as a benchmark to decide on the taxi company to choose for call a taxi.

I hope that the Land Transport Authority will consider this approach.