Mr Goh estimated that he could be earning more had he switched over to the ride-hailing platforms, or had concurrently used the ride-hailing applications on the job, which taxi drivers are allowed to do. Still, he has no regrets because of his familiarity with driving a taxi without having to depend on the apps.
However, he is still paying the price: Due to increased competition from the other ride-hailing platforms, a drop in passenger demand amid the raging Covid-19 pandemic, as well as increasing fuel and rental costs, Mr Goh said that his recent take-home income is about 35 per cent less compared with pre-pandemic.
Although he has been getting more customers of late due to the increase in transport demand following further relaxation of Covid-19 measures, his income has yet to see an uptick, he said.
As taxi drivers like Mr Goh continue to grapple with falling incomes — amid ever-rising overhead costs, neverending competition from private-hire car services and lingering effects of the pandemic — the future of Singapore’s taxi industry has once again come under the spotlight.
While younger taxi drivers are generally more willing to adapt to new technology such as ride-hailing applications or are willing to accept customers on multiple ride-hailing platforms, older drivers — those aged 60 and above — are generally more accustomed to “old-school” methods such as accepting flagdown rides, or bidding for jobs on their taxi terminals
TODAY’s checks showed that the number of drivers with a Taxi Driver’s Vocational Licence (TDVL) above the age of 60 is relatively high.
Statistics from 2019 show that about 34 per cent of those with a TDVL are 60 and above. In contrast, only 8.5 per cent of those with a Private Hire Car Driver’s Vocational Licence (PDVL) are above the age of 60, as of 2019.
The growing challenges faced by this relatively large proportion of older taxi drivers also come at a time when taxi fleet numbers have been on rapid decline.
According to data from Statistics Singapore and the Land Transport Authority (LTA) website, the number of taxis here fell by about half between 2014 and 2022. Over the same period, the number of private hire vehicles increased by more than threefold.
And it is not just the older taxi drivers who are disadvantaged by the increasing reliance on technology that has been thrust upon them following the emergence of the ride-hailing platforms.
Older commuters have also been forced to play the waiting game as taxi numbers plummeted.
Many of them, who are not on ride-hailing applications and prefer to wait at taxi stands or flag down taxis, told TODAY that they have had to tolerate longer waiting times in the past few months, some for as long as one hour just for a vacant taxi to pick them up.
The decline in taxi numbers or shortage of them is not unique to Singapore.
In New York City, taxi drivers of the famed New York City cab have been reportedly mired in debt, as the value of a certificate they need to acquire to operate the cab — called a Medallion — had plummeted in value, from about US$1 million (S$1.39 million) in 2014, to about US$100,000 as of 2021.
British daily The Guardian reported in October last year that the tumultuous state of the medallion can be traced back to its artificial inflation.
In 1937, New York City created the medallion system and placed a limit on the amount of medallions that could be sold, making one rare and valuable. By controlling the supply, demand for owning a medallion soared among taxi drivers who bought into the city’s promise that a medallion would bring them financial stability and a pathway to achieve the proverbial American dream.
But the way New Yorkers – and tourists – travel around the city has changed, and the medallion has plummeted in value, The Guardian reported. The medallion’s drop in value is due in part to the overwhelming demand for ride-share services provided by companies such as Uber and Lyft, causing potential taxi drivers to flock to these platforms.
Closer to home, Malaysia has also been experiencing a fall in taxi numbers. According to Malaysian daily newspaper Harian Metro, about 70,000 taxis have been abandoned at scrap yards due to the decline in demand for taxi services in the country since 2014, with losses estimated to be around RM2.9 billion (S$900 million).
This trend was observed after Grab had entered the Malaysian market in 2012, while the decline was further exacerbated by the pandemic, with drivers leaving the profession as demand for rides fell.
In Singapore, while private-hire vehicles have taken on a larger share of the point-to-point (P2P) market here, the total number of P2P vehicles — both taxis and private-hire vehicles — has been tumbling over the course of the pandemic.
Due to the fall in supply, there have been more reported instances of surge pricing on private-hire rides, much to the dismay of commuters.
While commuter demand is on the rise currently as the dust slowly settles, it is still firmly below baseline levels that were observed pre-Covid-19, said transport operators.
And going by the statistics, it appears that the taxi industry is taking the brunt of this overall drop in demand.
Still, Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS) transport economist Walter Theseira said that it is not the end of the road for the taxi industry — provided it adapts. And the same goes for taxi drivers, regardless of age.
Other than having the unique ability to accept street-hail rides, taxis drivers are also able to tap on all the benefits of ride-hailing firms, such as to use their applications.
“It’s a market service that meets a market transport need… As that need evolves, and as street hails continue to decline, then the market model needs to change,” said Assoc Prof Theseira.
“Already, the taxi operators themselves recognise that the street hail market is a sunset part of the business and they have placed more emphasis on their app booking system.”
As for older taxi drivers struggling to adapt, Assoc Prof Theseira noted that it does not make sense “to manipulate the market model for taxi services just to save these jobs”.
The Big Read: As the sun goes down on the taxi industry, some adapt while others risk being left behind & Latest News Update
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