ComfortDelGro To Increase Taxi Flagdown Fare By $0.20 To Sustain Livelihoods Of Drivers

ComfortDelGro Announces Taxi Fare Hikes On 2 Aug

While public transport remains the most budget-friendly travelling option for most, some of us may prefer hailing a cab or private-hire vehicle to save time.

Flagging down a ComfortDelGro cab will be slightly costlier next month.

On Tuesday (8 Feb), the company announced price hikes for flagdown fares, distance-time rates, and waiting times.

This is their first price adjustment in a decade, which is necessary to help taxi drivers defray increasing operating costs and inflation.

ComfortDelGro taxi fare hike is the first in 10 years

In a media release on Tuesday (8 Feb), CDG announced a series of price increases that will take place from 6am on 1 Mar:

• Flagdown fares: $0.20 increase for all taxis
• Distance-timed rates: $0.02 increase for normal taxis; $0.03 increase for limousines
• Waiting time (per 45 seconds): $0.02 increase for normal taxis; $0.03 increase for limousines

CDG estimates that the price hikes will translate to roughly a 7.7% increase in fares for a regular taxi trip of 10km during off-peak hours.

According to CDG, this is the first price change for the last 10 years, since Dec 2011.

Taxi operating costs increase due to inflation & fuel prices

Justifying the fare increase, CDG says taxi drivers have had to deal with higher operating costs due to rising fuel prices and inflation.

Over the last 6 months, fuel prices have reportedly risen by about 10% on average.

On the other hand, inflation had gone up by almost 12% over the past decade.

CDG taxi drivers have seen a dip in their income throughout the pandemic, despite the aid extended by the government and CDG.

Hence, the price change is deemed necessary to help taxi drivers sustain their rice bowls.

Supporting our taxi drivers

In a healthy economy, it’s only natural for prices to increase progressively with time.

However, events like the Covid-19 pandemic disproportionately affect taxi drivers. As a result, this makes fare hikes essential for them to make a decent living.

While the price change is likely to be unpopular, we hope members of the public can approach it with empathy and put themselves in the shoes of our cabbies.

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Featured image by MS News.