Singapore Expats

oh that's why...excuses excuses.http://sg.finance.yahoo.com/news/why-t- ... 00482.html

morenangpinay wrote:oh that's why...excuses excuses.http://sg.finance.yahoo.com/news/why-t- ... 00482.html

They seem like valid excuses to me. Hard to fault them. Why take an added risk for no additional reward?

I saw nothing there that was unique to Singapore.

I did. 475K other incompetent drivers on the same roads in the rain. All still tailgating and not signalling. Can't say as I blame them either.

Taxi drivers face draconic working conditions. If they need to take days off for sick leave, they will still need to pay 80-130 per day for the car rental. Can you think of any company that will charge you for taking medical leave? And that is just for car rental. Who pays for the (expensive) gasolin, the driver or the company? And then you need to add on maintenance. I think they need to offer some kind of break to the drivers e.g one week of medical leave, so the drivers don't have to be so calculated and nickel and dime their way to make sure they are breaking even/ profitable for the day.

However, not sure how much more leeway the companies have so they can still stay profitable (and in biz). The cab fare in SG is very low compared to most metropolitan cities. In order to improve the welfare of these drivers, one option is to have a fare increase.

Try looking at it another way. The current business model gives the drivers the sense of ownership to the business - they would take care of the vehicles and be mindful of safe driving (in marginal sense).

Now if the business model were to change 180-degree, you can kiss goodbye to clean, well-kept and road-worthy vehicles, because the drivers won't have the initiative to care after the vehicles they are assigned to.

By the way, only small percentage of drivers have to pay the full day lease. Most of them go on sharing mode or shift mode. So one works during the day till 4pm, and then change shift with the second driver who will work from 4pm onwards.

Which is also why you can never get a cab between 3.30 to 4.30 pm. Even if you do, they will only pick you up if you're heading to the location where they will be changing the cab.

the lynx wrote:Now if the business model were to change 180-degree, you can kiss goodbye to clean, well-kept and road-worthy vehicles, because the drivers won't have the initiative to care after the vehicles they are assigned to.

Just look at KL..... shocking standard of normal taxis there and I believe that is the business model they use.

Fortan wrote:

the lynx wrote:Now if the business model were to change 180-degree, you can kiss goodbye to clean, well-kept and road-worthy vehicles, because the drivers won't have the initiative to care after the vehicles they are assigned to.

Just look at KL..... shocking standard of normal taxis there and I believe that is the business model they use.

Ironically, in KL you probably dont need a taxi, every working family member can have their own proton wira/saga at the minimum.

Wd40 wrote:

Fortan wrote:

the lynx wrote:Now if the business model were to change 180-degree, you can kiss goodbye to clean, well-kept and road-worthy vehicles, because the drivers won't have the initiative to care after the vehicles they are assigned to.

Just look at KL..... shocking standard of normal taxis there and I believe that is the business model they use.

Ironically, in KL you probably dont need a taxi, every working family member can have their own proton wira/saga at the minimum.

That's true. However when you get into town as a foreigner I would dread to rent a car and drive myself. Luckily there are the blue taxis which are quite good. The normal red ones are horrific to say the least.

Red taxis are the worst taxis in KL. The blue taxis are the most expensive.
Not only are the taxis are in bad conditions, its dirty on the inside and outside. It feels like its held together by 2 screws and some card board paper.
What I hate the most - my bugbear- no haggling.Meter taxi only. Huge plague by one of the entrance at Pavillion.
Then taxi driver surrounds me - RM40? RM35? Jam lah. Many cars. All one way street
I end up walking

In Manila you can share your chosen death trap taxi with cockroaches and be driven by someone high on drugs to stay awake long enough every day to earn enough money to feed his family.

I can understand the taxi drivers here not having the same motivation to go out and I do think fares are very low for a relatively expensive country in many other respects.

seems like the cab drivers don't need the income and they don't know the road very well.

PrimroseHill wrote:Red taxis are the worst taxis in KL. The blue taxis are the most expensive.
Not only are the taxis are in bad conditions, its dirty on the inside and outside. It feels like its held together by 2 screws and some card board paper.
What I hate the most - my bugbear- no haggling.Meter taxi only. Huge plague by one of the entrance at Pavillion.
Then taxi driver surrounds me - RM40? RM35? Jam lah. Many cars. All one way street
I end up walking

Exactly. Most of them don't even have an aircon unit but relies on the old fan system to cool. I have been in many of them where the fans didn't even work. Forget driving somewhere in a taxi wearing white pants or dress as you will have a dirty behind when you get out.
They do operate a bit with mafia like methods as well and are very pushy. Many of them quite simple refuse to drive on the meter and they are very rude.
I always use the blue ones now despite the expense. Just not worth it in a red cab.

Fortan wrote:

the lynx wrote:Now if the business model were to change 180-degree, you can kiss goodbye to clean, well-kept and road-worthy vehicles, because the drivers won't have the initiative to care after the vehicles they are assigned to.

Just look at KL..... shocking standard of normal taxis there and I believe that is the business model they use.

And most all taxis you can catch at KL Sentral after coming in on KLIA Ekspres are pure shit... lucky if you can get one less than ten years old... or you have to walk over to the hotel(s) to get a decent one.

The decent taxis will pick you up at hotels and malls... anywhere else, you get the shit red and white taxis... even Suria KLCC.

Not that I'm supporting the Singapore taxi model... the drivers take all the risk and get screwed while the taxi operators rent them taxis at extortionist rates.

morenangpinay wrote:seems like the cab drivers don't need the income and they don't know the road very well.

Exactly. They are just amateurs also when it comes to driving. They are here among the worst class of the drivers. They think they are professionals just because (they think) they drive a lot, but they drive just like the local average additionally spoiled by routine and self confidence that has no real base. On road most egoistic and focused on their own needs ready to violate half of the traffic code to pick up or leave a passenger.
Good that the vast majority of the cabs is now automatic. It was a real torture to observe these guys how they managed the manual gear box.

This all of course is my humble opinion and generalization that also takes into account how different drivers behave towards motorcyclists (as I am one of them). While other drivers try to leave or even make the space between the lanes available for the motorbikes (yes, it happens from time to time) the cab drivers do the opposite. They are notorious to position the cab so the space between of the lanes is blocked. They have to see what is ahead and others can wait.

So after venting off a bit, yes, I think they are right to stay at home if it rains. It make perfect sense. This even with me thinking that when it rains the Singaporeans drive actually very responsibly. Nobody is speeding, everybody is extra careful. I have never seen any serious accident during heavy raining.