Need advice from experienced drivers

Druss66 SG

Hi all,

I'm thinking very hard of switching my job to become a taxi driver cos I'm really sick and tired of the corporate world with all its stress and backstabbing. Need to have a job that is my OTOT one, retrenchment-free, and less mental stress.

At the moment, I work 12-14 hours weekdays, and 6-8 hours weekends. No time for family, friends, or even myself. My mental and physical health also taking a beating because of this.

I don't need to earn 4 - 4.5k that I'm making now. Just need to make about 3 - 3.5k without CPF is fine for me cos I only have one child to support and my wife oso working.

But there're 2 problems:

1. Still on company contract for two more years

2. I don't have a driving licence

I know that my immediate action should be to get a Class 3 asap, then wait for a year until my company contract expires, so that I can become a OMO hirer.

Questions:

1. Can I apply for the VTL licence while I'm still working under contract?

2. How long before the VTL licence expires? Renewable yearly?

3. Which taxi company has the best benefits (in terms of maintenance, insurance)?

4. Which model is the best for Diesel engine? Sonata?

5. Can I expect an income of 2.8 - 3.4 k if I were to drive OMO 12 hrs a day, Mon - Sat, breaking up my shifts to include both peak hours and the 3-5pm slot?

6. Installing a GPS system is additional cost or is it included in the daily rental?

Sorry for being so 'Chang Qi' but I really wanna know from the frontline soldiers than reading 'politically correct' versions on the company public webpages.

Many thanks for your patience and hope to hear some responses. Hope to join the ranks in 2 years' time!

FT SG

no driving licence u thinking of driving taxi??? uhmmmm…...what an ideal….

Tio Call Liao SG

funny , i dun understand , if im given a 4 to 4.5 k job i will kiss the ground my boss walks on, volunteer to work long hours for him, tahan all the backstabbing & politics.

why throw a well paying job to be a TD? TD is like tuas south ave 16, dead end one. why choose a dead end when there are so many paths to walk? hahaha

Tio Call Liao SG

guys with good paying jobs , stay and fight in your work place before all the foreigners start taking all the available slots. just imagine , foreigners take your job , u go be TD . end day u drive these foreigners sitting at the back and u at the front. happy?

singaporeans , dont cave in to pressure . show those farkers up there that u all are just as capable if not 10 x better than those FTS!

remember , wanna kick em out , this year is the time

Poolman SG

Hello , learn to drive properly first before even thinking of becoming a hazard on the road .

Druss66 SG

It's not the FTs lah. My job got few FTs. But the workload is really damn jialat. My average sleeping hours only 3-4 hours a day except weekends can sleep abit longer. Also no time for family at all. When got abit of time, body is so tired out and the mind is so stressed out with so much work related things. Seriously going nuts liao.

Also, my workplace got damn heavy politicking. Zero friends. Only ones that can be trusted are those leaving the company.

Tio Call Liao SG

ok choice is yours. my advice . be a relief. wanna spend time with family , then drive day. u wanna OMO come back to square 1 , no time for family.

btw why the heck am i telling u all these for? u havent gotten your license right? come back in 2 years time and ask la. by then hopefully im still alive to give some pointers .maybe poolman wud have listed his forum cum call centre on SGX liao haha no time to entertain new birds.

Poolman SG

Yah , then i'll be CEO of Pool Inc International .

Poolman SG

To the thread starter .....

First , u are working in those MNC earning near to $4 .

Second , u are white collar working 14 hours .

I guess u are a degree holder .

Then find a new job with your calibre , we dun need degree holders to drive a cab .

Dun waste your time , ur parents sent you to Uni not to drive a cab .

Dun disappoint them .

I earning $4000 as a cabby , i got Primary 1 brain , suitable for tis job .

U are Degree brain , u cannot make it in taxi line .

Go find a new job .

lazyeebone SG

One of the conditions to be eligible to apply for a TVL.

Posses a valid class 3 Singapore driving licence and
have at least 1 year’s driving experience with a clean driving record.

They say…Horse before the chariot or chariot after the horse also can. No other ways. Some say …count eggs don’t count chicken.

Tio Call Liao SG

To the thread starter .....

First , u are working in those MNC earning near to $4 .

Second , u are white collar working 14 hours .

I guess u are a degree holder .

Then find a new job with your calibre , we dun need degree holders to drive a cab .

Dun waste your time , ur parents sent you to Uni not to drive a cab .

Dun disappoint them .

I earning $4000 as a cabby , i got Primary 1 brain , suitable for tis job .

U are Degree brain , u cannot make it in taxi line .

Go find a new job .

well said KC , indeed a man with wise words. i cant agree more

komade SG

well said KC , indeed a man with wise words. i cant agree more

then me half fuck ite grad how?? :P

like they say ITE...Its The End......

Tio Call Liao SG

im also just as half fucked. partial A level cert , cho lan ah? can say im good as gone liao. ITS the END . game over. bye bye hahaha

Teolk SG

Druss66, sleep only 3-4hrs everyday? you really no life sia

I'm a full time cabby,if I sleep only 3-4hrs daily

my income will also be more than than 4k or even 5k

But I don't have medical & annual leave,no cpf & no bonus...

sick also must drive,no such thing as son sick take urgent leave

I'm also like you sick of all the backstabbing from the office & corporate world....

took my TVL & here i am,a full time cabby, a happy cabby i should say

but b4 i took my tvl,i've been on the road for 15 years,so no problem for me adapting....

taxi driving is not easy & it's not for anyone,but just follow your heart,who knows you will be like me becomes a happy cabby :) just take your class 3 first & see how later,alot of things can happened in 2 years time,you may have totally diff sets of ideas 2 years later maybe

komade SG

muz hav strong determination n hardworking to be a cabby ;)

even when tins not goin well tat nite u muz psych urself tell urself

that u will hit the target collection end of the day. Works for me

most of the time but knn rushing around like mad man haha

Hwaimeng SG

dont think any cap company will take in a 12 points new driver

and dont think u will pass the road test if u dont drive on the road with any experiance

dont think u will know where is "jalan behargi road" when 1 customer wan to go there

and dont think u will pass the 1st test in driving test

think of new plan thanks

Ngkialeong888 SG

Bros here, I quite agree with teolk. Work must be happy, even if you got paid $4-5k u not happy, life is a drag. Driving taxi for me is about free time to do what I want, make use of the free time to work out a plan to generate residual incomes. Taxi driving can be a permanent career or a stepping stone to another financial freedom. it totally your choice.

But the time you put on the road is about the same you put on the job 12-14 hours. Does it make any difference to you. You don't get office politics, no bosses face to see. but you have to handle nasty and unreasonable customer, idiotic drivers, white angels. It a different kind stress. Driving taxi is not as sweet as you think. I remember when i started driving, life was hell cos i got nobody to turn to help. But with some proper planning and helps from all this lao jiao here, i am sure you can make it. You cannot think like a uni grads, you got to think like TD. No spreadsheet or data calculation on paper will help, thats only for LTA. TD nowsaday are a new generation breed, no more like the older one doing the old way. You have to innovative in your thinking.

Right now the most important things is to get your license and plan your move. You never know what going to happen 2 years down the road. Maybe you have a new thinking in your career directions, maybe you can own the taxi 2 years time, maybe pools Inc Limited is form, maybe comfort bankrupt... blah blah blah

Plan as you go along and see how it work out

JLKL SG

i think this forum has motivated people from all walks of life to be a cab driver, me included.. which makes this forum a success. my thinking is that cab drivers who are able to earn at least 3k a month are those experienced, hardworking, disciplined and thinking drivers. for newbies, i think for a start, must visualise and be realistic.. and i dun think for a newbie, average collection of $20/hour is achievable due to many factors including lifestyle adjustments and physical condition.. driving continuously is no joke if your physical condition is not there esp for those in corporate world and has been sitting in the office type for donkey years. this takes time.. for a newbie to go all out from the start, very fast punctured liao and can get easily demoralised especially when at the end of the day, earn miserably. my thinking is perhaps the first 3 months is something like a probation and learning period where u learn as much as possible thru sweeping roads, the timings, ur body conditioning etc which means dun expect to earn a lot the 1st 3 months, just like a property agent... must be mentally prepared for the 1st 3 months and then i believe from the 4th month onwards, should be able to see some good results..

mental preparation is important

f1taxidriver SG

Druss66

actually whether u know where Jalan Bahagia is or not does not matter. You just need to ask pax to guide u to the place. 99% of the pax know the shortest way, even the angmos.

Your biggest worry is to how to be a safe driver - no accidents, dont get fined by TP, dont get photo'ed by LTA in the bus lane, dont pass thru ERP gantry without a card, dont park illegally and get fined. And must always lun and lun the angry pax. Unless u r lao jiao like Pool, dont even try to fuck your pax.

You followed many rules correctly in order to get your driving license. As a TD, you have to follow even more rules correctly in order not to lose your license and money from getting fined. Last time you wonder how to enter the carpark. But now as a TD, carpark locations are no longer as important. You must know all the taxi stand locations and where to find passengers, and where to it is possible to stop illegally (no fine) and eat/drink safely.

Insg SG

One of the conditions to be eligible to apply for a TVL.

Posses a valid class 3 Singapore driving licence and
have at least 1 year’s driving experience with a clean driving record.

They say…Horse before the chariot or chariot after the horse also can. No other ways. Some say …count eggs don’t count chicken.

At least 30 years young.