Private-hire drivers join call for taxi deliveries trial
Mr S Thiagarajan, the National Private Hire Vehicles' executive adviser, urged the Land Transport Authority (LTA) to review its regulation, which bars private-hire car and taxi drivers from solely transporting goods. TODAY file photo
SINGAPORE — A day after the National Taxi Association urged the Government to allow taxi drivers to make deliveries as part of a trial, its counterpart representing private-hire car drivers echoed the call.
In response, the Land Transport Authority on Thursday (Aug 3) maintained its stand that taxis and private-hire cars are “public service vehicles licensed to carry passengers for hire and reward”, but said it would “monitor recent trends to see if these regulations need to be reviewed”.
Earlier in the day Mr S Thiagarajan, executive adviser of the National Private Hire Vehicles Association — representing more than 2,600 private-hire car drivers — urged the LTA to review its regulation, which bars private-hire car and taxi drivers from transporting goods solely.
Mr Thiagarajan said this would allow private-hire car drivers to “maximise the usage of their vehicles and draw on different opportunities to drive and supplement their income”.
Many private-hire car drivers are hoping for the flexibility to allow them to take up alternate job opportunities. He said the transport sector is transforming rapidly, adding: “It is getting extremely competitive as private-hire drivers strive to make a decent living.”
TODAY reported on Thursday that the National Taxi Association, together with taxi operators, plan to propose a “regulatory sandbox” allowing cabbies to make deliveries.
The approach would give room to experiment before any changes to regulations are made.
Freelance drivers, some with ride-hailing firms Grab and Uber, have been delivering goods for Amazon’s Prime Now service and Amazon has also booked taxis for deliveries, albeit with a passenger on board.
If the authorities hold a trial to allow cabbies and private-hire car drivers to deliver goods, National University of Singapore transport researcher Lee Der-Horng said they would likely monitor factors such as taxi drivers’ incomes and whether fewer taxis run empty as a result.
Such a trial would have to last at least a year so that the authorities can collect the relevant data, he added.
Prime Taxi deputy general manager Neo Chee Yong did not want to comment on regulations or the NTA proposal, but said the company is open to the idea “as long as it benefits drivers”.
Taxi drivers could make deliveries during lull periods, typically between 11am and 4pm, and continue ferrying passengers during peak hours, he said. This will allow drivers to make better use of their time and “find something to do when there are no passengers out there”.
“Why not give it a try?” he said.
Mr James Ng, managing director of HDT Singapore Taxi’s parent company HDT Singapore Holding, said a trial would allow taxi drivers to have a go at goods delivery, and see if the task suits them.
Transport economist Walter Theseira from the Singapore University of Social Sciences did not feel a regulatory sandbox to be the right platform for an experiment, as such test grounds are typically limited in scope and scale.
The policy needs to be applied to the entire market for its impact to be grasped, he said.
To test the idea, the authorities would probably have to allow the arrangement and track its impact on factors such as vehicle availability and market prices.
Dr Theseira added: “If you just have a limited trial, I don’t see how you could learn anything from it.”
