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Cabby
whacked because he didn't know directions
At first, he was verbally abused.
Then the passenger punched Mr Michael Tan's back while he was
driving his Comfort taxi.
When the 56-year-old cabby refused to continue driving and stopped
on the Ayer Rajah Expressway (AYE) near Normanton Park around 1am
on Sunday, the burly passenger rained blows on him before throwing
him into a roadside bush.
The relentless attack stopped only when passing motorists sounded
their horns.
It is the latest in a series of verbal and physical attacks on taxi
drivers here in recent years.
In this case, Mr Tan was not sure of the drop-off point and had
irritated the passenger by asking for his postal code so that he
could key in the destination on his Global Positioning
System.
Mr Tan ended up with lacerations on his face and back, scraped
knees, and blood on his shirt.
He has since made a police report and the incident is under
investigation.
Mr Tan said he picked up the passenger - a man who appeared to be
in his 40s - on North Bridge Road, at the junction of Coleman
Street.
The passenger wanted to go to Chwee Chian View, near South Buona
Vista Road.
Mr Tan recounted: "I wasn't familiar with the location and asked
him to give me his postal code so that I could use my GPS. He said
he wasn't a 15-year-old boy and that he wasn't drunk so he could
direct me there."
The instructions meant the cab was headed for the Merchant Road
entry into the Central Expressway towards the Ayer Rajah Expressway
(AYE).
Once the cab entered the AYE, Mr Tan asked the passenger which exit
to take. The passenger refused to tell him, saying that Mr Tan
should know the way since he was going by the AYE.
Mr Tan explained that he didn't know how to get to the destination
and asked the passenger to direct him.
The cabby said: "He sounded irritated, so I explained that all he
needed to do was to give me the postal code and he could sit back
and relax.
"But since he insisted on leading me personally, I had to trouble
him to do so, but I respected his decision."
Unhappy
The passenger became unhappy and started to scold Mr
Tan.
Mr Tan said: "I can deal with passengers scolding me, because it is
part and parcel of being a taxi driver... But when the passenger
challenged me to get down from my cab when we reached his
destination, I got worried."
Suddenly, the passenger punched Mr Tan's left shoulder three
times.
"That was the last straw, I stopped the cab as we could get into an
accident since he was hitting me while I was driving," said Mr
Tan.
He stopped the cab on the shoulder of the highway and asked the
passenger to take another cab. The passenger insisted that Mr Tan
continue driving, but he refused. Mr Tan got out the cab and the
passenger followed suit.
Said Mr Tan: "I saw him coming towards me and tried to get in my
cab, but he was too fast for me."
The passenger grabbed Mr Tan by the head, slammed him against the
side of the cab and punched his head several times.
Mr Tan estimated the passenger to be around 1.9m tall and about
100kg.
The cabby is 1.65m tall and 65kg.
Mr Tan broke free from his attacker and ran to the back of his
vehicle, but the attacker caught up with him and pushed him towards
the hedge by the side of the highway.
Mr Tan recounted: "He pinned me down and used both arms to punch my
head repeatedly... I used my arms to cover my head and block his
blows, but he was very strong and continued hitting me. I thought I
was going to pass out.
"Three cars stopped and sounded their horns. After a while, he
finally stopped and left, walking towards the Buona Vista
exit."
Mr Tan said he did not pay the fare, which had come to
$20.95.
Ten minutes later, a black car stopped behind his cab and its
driver, a man in his 30s who witnessed the attack, helped Mr Tan
locate his missing spectacles.
Mr Tan called another cabby for help and a TransCab driver he knew
came to his aid.
TransCab driver Christopher Toh, 51, was at Jurong East when he
received a call from another cabby - one of their mutual friends -
around 2.30am, telling him Mr Tan needed help.
Said Mr Toh: "When I saw him (Mr Tan), he looked stunned and in a
daze. His shirt was stained and there was even grass stuck to the
back of it."
Mr Tan, who became a cabby in December 2011, said the incident has
not put him off driving the night shift.
"I meet more passengers who are good and even tip me for my
service. I take this bad experience as an occupational hazard. But
I hope that my attacker can be caught and that justice can be
served."
