TS,Tuesday 3 January 2012
I refer to “SPAD to restructure public transport operation system” (Star, Dec 29).
SPAD Chairman Tan Sri Syed Hamid Albar and his team at the Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD) have the unenviable task of sorting the quagmire left behind by the defunct Commercial Vehicle Licensing Board (CVLB).
The inconsistencies in the current taxi system came as a result of CVLB making skewed decisions that defy logic and commonsense.
In 2007, I proposed that the starting fare for budget taxis be increased from RM2 to RM3;
10 sen for every 150m (66 sen per km) to 100m (RM1 per km); and 10 sen for every 45 seconds (RM8 per hour) to 30 seconds (RM12 per hour).
The proposed increase for the starting fare, distance and time was a consistent 50% and compensated for the removal of surcharges. Drivers could continue to collect toll charges and call-taxi service.
The rates for premier taxis should be increased from RM3 to RM4.50 for the starting fare; from RM1 to RM1.50 per km and from RM16 to RM24 per hour.
The rates for executive taxis should remain at RM6 for the starting fare, RM2 per km and RM36 per hour. This will streamline the rates for all metered taxis in the Klang Valley.
In 2009, the CVLB increased the meter fares for budget taxis to RM3, 10 sen for every 115m (87 sen per km) and 10 sen for every 21 seconds (RM17.14 per hour).
Instead of fixing at 10 sen for every 20 seconds (RM18 per hour) or 24 seconds (RM15 per hour), CVLB chose an odd figure of 21 seconds, equivalent to RM17.14 per hour.
In my proposed rates, premier taxis would fit perfectly right in between budget and executive taxis. The decision to abolish this category would prove unwise.
The introduction of executive taxis was poorly implemented as can be seen by the large variety of vehicles used. They range from cheap vans fitted with bumpy leaf springs to luxury multi-purpose vehicles that cost several times more.
An assortment of cars, MPVs and vans are licensed as executive taxis. They include Proton Perdana, Nissan Sylphy, Nissan Cefiro, Kia Optima, Hyundai Sonata, Hyundai Starex, Nissan Serena, Toyota Innova, Toyota Alphard, Naza Ria, Naza Citra and Kia Pregio.
The first premier taxi model was the custom-built Renault Enviro followed by the Proton Perdana. Models such as the Kia Pregio and Naza Citra should have been licensed under premier instead of executive taxis.
Seventeen months ago, the CVLB announced with great fanfare that 3,000 taxi drivers would receive permits to operate the Proton Exora as 1Malaysia taxis.
Since then, only a few of these taxis are on the road. The Proton Exora can only be licensed as a budget taxi but the vehicle price is about the same or higher than the Kia Pregio and Naza Citra underlines the stark inconsistencies.
The 1Malaysia taxi concept can still be successful if exemption is given for the Proton Exora to be licensed as premier taxi with meter fares right in between budget and executive.
As for limousine taxis, customers expect door-to-door service, not just from the hotel but also at their office, residence or any other location they choose.
In fact, the pioneer tour and car rental companies approached the Registrar & Inspector of Motor Vehicles (RIMV) to introduce this new category of license known as limousine taxis.
In the 1960s, only the affluent can afford to travel and many tourists enjoyed the scenic routes along our trunk and coastal roads of the peninsula in tour cars licensed as limousine taxis.
The boom in tourism and trade saw the mushrooming of 5-star hotels. Many of the guests are business travellers and hotel limousines became popular for airport transfers. This led to the CVLB adopting a myopic view that limousine taxis must only operate from a fixed hotel base.
Tour and car rental companies are often summoned for operating out of their designated base (pengkalan) when providing services to VIP customers travelling outstation in limousine taxis.
The authorities ought to realise that they should be no restriction on the use of limousine taxis just as the cars are not painted or marked to look like ordinary taxis.
On another matter, there is a big difference between hire car (kereta sewa) and hire and drive (kereta sewa pandu).
Hire cars are known as outstation taxis as they ply long distances between cities and towns, whereas hire and drive are vehicles rented and driven by the customers.
However, when the Tourism Ministry took over the licensing of tourism vehicles from the CVLB, these hire and drive vehicles were also permitted to be used for chauffeur drive, similar to limousine taxis.
Budget, premier and executive taxis are metered taxi cabs and together with hire cars have long enjoyed excise duty exemption but not for limousine taxis and hire and drive vehicles. The only exception was in Visit Malaysia Year of 1990 for limousine taxis.
On motor insurance and excluding the first thousand sum insured, the annual premium for taxi cabs is RM69.80 per thousand sum insured, RM102.50 for limousines taxis and RM122.10 for hire and drive vehicles.
Whether a car driven by an expatriate is licensed under hire and drive or private registration, the risk remains the same. Yet the difference in insurance premiums can be 4.7 times more!
A great service SPAD can do for car rental operators is to persuade Bank Negara to place both limousine taxis and hire and drive vehicles under the taxi cab category in the motor tariff, which has been unrevised since 1978.
Car rental operators may then insure more of their vehicles under comprehensive cover instead of third party.
Big operators have found that the difference in premiums between comprehensive and third party insurance is more than sufficient to cover the replacement of all vehicles lost through theft or write-offs, plus the cost of repairs for all accidental damage.
Placing all classes of taxis and hire vehicles under a common category in the motor tariff can boost the premium income of insurance companies as more operators switch insurance cover from third party to comprehensive.
Insurance companies that are happily accepting less than RM3,000 annual premiums for private cars costing RM100,000 can collect over RM7,000 for the same cover on taxis and hire cars under the proposed common category.
YS Chan
Kuala Lumpur
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