All taxi operators to raise their fares in March
SINGAPORE: Following ComfortDelGro's decision to raise fares from Mar 1, all other taxi operators in Singapore will follow suit from next month.
In response to media queries, the Public Transport Council (PTC) on Friday (Feb 25) said it has been informed that the other operators intend to raise their fares in March.
The operators are Trans-Cab, Prime Taxi, Premier Taxi, Strides Taxi as well as yellow-top taxis, which are owned and operated independently by drivers.
"PTC has noted their fare increase and reminded the operators to apprise commuters about the new fares at least seven days in advance," said a spokesperson for the council.
This comes after ComfortDelGro - which operates about 60 per cent of Singapore's taxi population under the Comfort and CityCab brands - announced earlier this month it would raise flagdown fares across its entire fleet by 20 cents.
ComfortDelGro said the increase was "necessary" to help cabbies defray higher operating costs, noting the income of taxi drivers has been negatively impacted over the last two years by the COVID-19 pandemic. The operator will also be increasing its distance-timed and waiting rates.
For Trans-Cab - Singapore's second-largest taxi operator after ComfortDelGro, with about 2,400 cabs in its fleet - flagdown fares on its Renault Latitude and Toyota Prius cabs will increase from S$3.90 to S$4.10 - a S$0.20 increase, similar to that of ComfortDelGro.
Meanwhile metered charges will go up by two cents to S$0.24, the company said in a notice in The Business Times on Friday.
There will be no change in the flagdown fare for Trans-Cab's limousine taxis, though their metered charges will also go up by two cents to S$0.35.
These changes will come into effect on Mar 8.
Strides Taxi, a subsidiary of transport operator SMRT, said it will increase its fares from Mar 11, with fares for all its cabs going up by S$0.20 to S$4.10.
Metred charges for its Toyota Prius and electric MG5 cabs will increase by two cents to S$0.24, while its London taxis will see an increase of three cents to S$0.33.
CNA has contacted the other taxi operators regarding the adjustments to their fares.
Taxi operators in Singapore last increased their fares in 2011.
While taxi fares have been deregulated since 1998, the requirement for taxi and private-hire operators to inform PTC of fare adjustments in advance "allows for better transparency and oversight", the council said.
This ensures fare adjustments are made in accordance with the unified fare structure for metred fares, while fares are stated clearly for fixed fare services, it added.
"PTC does not intervene in the setting of taxi and (private hire car) fares, which are determined by dynamic market forces," said the council.
"This allows demand and supply for such services to be matched efficiently based on prevailing market conditions, while spurring operators to improve their service offerings and to maintain competitiveness in their fares."
