Taxi companies given an
extra six months to meet availability standards before fines kick
in
The Land Transport Authority
(LTA) will not levy fines on taxi companies that fail availability
standards for another six months.
In a statement on Friday, the
LTA said taxi firms will be given an extended grace period from
July to December this year, to allow them "more time to adjust to
the new standards".
It noted that while some taxi
companies are able to meet the availability standards, which
dictate a percentage of each operator's fleet be on the roads
during peak hours and ply a minimum daily mileage of 250km, others
have given feedback that they need more time to adjust their
operations and encourage their drivers to better utilise their
taxis.
In the first four months of
this year, Comfort, CityCab consistently met the peak hour and
mileage standards, while Premier, SMRT and TransCab met some
requirements and slipped in others. The smaller firms, Smart and
Prime, did not meet the standards. The LTA also launched a new
online portal Friday on its onemotoring website to help match
relief drivers and cabbies.
