No Increase In Taxi Fare Rates For Now Says SPAD

A request by taxi operators to increase the rate of taxi fares in Malaysia has been rejected by the Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD), citing that the current rates are sufficient as it is structured to suit the industry.

According to theSun, SPAD chairman Tan Sri Syed Hamid Akbar said “The last fare revision in March was done after factoring in the expected increase in the price of natural gas (CNG) in September.”

This was in response to taxi drivers, who listed the hike in natural gas prices, the Goods & Services Tax applicable on servicing their vehicles, and yearly inspection as reasons to demand for another increase in the fares.

Yesterday, a group of taxi drivers submitted a memorandum to the SPAD’s Central Region office in Kelana Jaya with the aim of making the commission highlight their dilemma to the Consumer Ministry, Customs Department, Finance Ministry, Puspakom, and Transport Ministry.

The taxi drivers’ demands include either the government decrease the price of natural gas or provide them with a subsidies, and exemption from GST charges when sending their taxis for Puspakom inspection including the daily rental fee paid to taxi companies.

“It was quite alright from the last fare revision in March. But now it is back to square one since the NGV cost has significantly increased from 68 cents per litre to RM1.05. We have been suffering a lot," Port Klang Taxi and Hired Cars Association president Mohd Jani Kamis said, after handing over the memorandum to SPAD central region head Kamaruddin Khairi today.

"‎Our livelihood is at stake because of these mobile app such as Uber, Grabcar, Eazytaxi and others have been affecting our income up to 30%. Lately, we are feeling the heat as getting customers are not as frequent like before. We have been monitoring the ride-sharing apps for quite some time and we notice they are almost everywhere in the suburbs in the Klang Valley" claimed Mohd Jani.