Other taxi firms to raise fares, following ComfortDelGro

Two weeks after leading taxi group ComfortDelGro decided to raise fares on March 1, other taxi operators, including Trans-Cab, Prime Taxi, Premier Taxis and Strides Taxi, are set to follow.

Prime Taxi will raise the flag-down fare for its basic taxis by 30 cents from $3.80 to $4.10, with metered charges to increase by two cents to 24 cents for normal taxis and to 35 cents for premium ones. Sources said more details will be available on Monday. The hike is likely to kick in on March 7.

Trans-Cab yesterday said its flag-down fare will go up by 20 cents for its basic Renault Latitude and Toyota Prius taxis, increasing from $3.90 to $4.10, effective March 8.

Metered charges will go up by two cents. This means that fares for every 400m up to 10km and every 350m after 10km will increase from 22 cents to 24 cents.

Every 45 seconds of waiting time will also cost passengers 24 cents, up from 22 cents, matching the hike by ComfortDelGro.

Strides Taxi said that its flag-down fare and metered charges will be increased by 20 cents and two cents, respectively, from March 11.

The Straits Times has contacted Premier Taxis for more information on its planned fare hikes.

A statement from the Public Transport Council (PTC) yesterday confirmed what has been anticipated since ComfortDelGro made its announcement earlier this month, with all four taxi operators informing the council of their decision to raise fares.

Under PTC regulations, the operators must inform commuters about the new fares at least seven days before they kick in.

ComfortDelGro, which controls about 8,900 cabs - or 60 per cent of the fleet here - has said its flag-down fare will rise by 20 cents and metered charges by two cents on March 1.

Steadily rising prices of goods and services, including fuel, since mid-2020 have hurt taxi drivers, even as ridership remains low.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine has also had an impact on pump prices here, with four out of five companies charging between six and 21 cents more for diesel and petrol after Thursday.

Commuters and observers expect that the impending move by taxi operators will not put people off taking taxis, since they will continue to compare prices between taxi companies and private-hire companies such as Grab and Gojek.

"The impact will be minimal since some commuters will already have their preferred mode of transport, be it taxis or private-hire cars," said Associate Professor Raymond Ong from the National University of Singapore.

"It depends on whether it is peak or off-peak. Commuters will always compare the various options, and this taxi fare increase is unlikely to be that different from the current fare differences between private-hire cars and taxis."

Strides Taxi driver Charles Ban said the hike will not be enough to completely defray rising costs.

"But in view of price competition with private-hire companies, taxis had to settle for this minimum hike," he said.

"If more people turn to private-hire cars, that will cause a surge in prices for them too. Private-hire drivers are also feeling the heat from rising costs."