SPAD: No more ‘old’ taxis by 2019

To be upgraded: To offer a more comfortable ride and better service for passengers, aged cars will be changed to new ones under the Teksi 1Malaysia (TEKS1M) brand.

PETALING JAYA: Riding in old, bone-shaking taxis will be a thing of the past by 2019 – or at least that is what the Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD) is aiming to achieve.

In a bid to improve the standard of taxi services in Malaysia, the commission is hoping to have all taxis aged 10 years and above replaced by new vehicles in the next four years.

Currently, there are about 10,000 such cabs on Malaysian roads.

To offer a more comfortable ride and better service for passengers, SPAD chairman Tan Sri Syed Hamid Albar said these aged cars should be changed to new ones under the Teksi 1Malaysia (TEKS1M) brand.

“There are two aspects that need to be looked into when transforming the taxi industry – physical changes and changing the mindset of taxi drivers,” he said in an interview.

While taxi drivers need to improve their discipline and attitude towards customers, Syed Hamid said physical changes also need to be carried out.

“We need to switch old cabs to new models. So far, we have managed to convert around 2,000 old cars to new models under TEKS1M,” he said.

In 2013, SPAD introduced a new class of taxis, branded as TEKS1M, which aims to improve the industry’s vehicle standards, driver quality and operating principles.

Since October last year, all taxis which have reached the end of their service life must be replaced with TEKS1M.

Given that budget taxi permits have a 10-year lifespan, the last non-TEKS1M cab is expected to disappear from Malaysia’s streets by the end of 2024.

In order to speed up the process, Syed Hamid said SPAD is considering allowing more car models to be included under the TEKS1M brand.

At present, only the Toyota Innova and Proton Exora, which are both multi-purpose vehicles, are approved under TEKS1M.

But this pool of TEKS1M models may soon be expanded to Malaysian-made sedan cars like the Proton Persona and Proton Saga by this year.

Syed Hamid said smaller cars are cheaper and will enable more taxi drivers to change to the TEKS1M class of cabs.

“We have received complaints from taxi drivers who cannot afford to change their cabs to the Exora or Innova which costs about RM60,000 and RM70,000.

“A Persona costs about RM40,000 and this will encourage more taxi drivers to change their vehicles,” he said.

Syed Hamid also noted that there was a lack of family cars in the taxi service.

He observed that some tourists who visit Malaysia with their family members do not want to take two separate taxis and prefer to be together in one family car.

“Therefore, we need to cater to the various market segments,” Syed Hamid said, adding that other Malaysian-made cars will also be considered to be included under TEKS1M.

He is expected to launch the additional models this year after they are approved and followed certain conditions and specifications.

Syed Hamid said the proposal to have more models under TEKS1M will accelerate the process of migrating old taxis to new ones.

“I also hope taxi drivers who migrate to TEKS1M will have better discipline and provide better quality service.

“They should not smoke, unbutton their shirts and expose their armpits to customers. They should also always wear their uniform,” he said.

Syed Hamid recalled seeing a taxi driver who had no qualms about drying his shoes on top of his cab’s windscreen in public.

“When I asked him why he was doing this, he said he was resting and his feet felt hot.

“I told him off, pointing out that it was impolite to have his shoes on top of his car. It could also turn off potential customers,” he said.

Syed Hamid pointed out that many taxi drivers drove cabs on a part-time basis.

“There are complaints that there is a lack of taxis during peak hours. Some drivers may be staying at home at this time while some could be using their taxis as their own private vehicles.

“This means they could be using the cabs to send their children to school, go to the market or for other reasons.

“This would ultimately deny service to customers,” he said.

There are over 60,000 taxis in Peninsular Malaysia, with 37,000 in the Klang Valley.

Syed Hamid said there is still “a long way to go” when it comes to improving the taxi industry in Malaysia.

The taxi industry has also been dealt with a blow with the growing popularity of ride-sharing services like Uber and GrabCar.

Taxi drivers are claiming that they are losing about 50% of their income with more consumers opting to use these services instead of hailing a cab.

With the coming MRT and LRT extensions, he said the demand for taxis will increase as there will be a need to send commuters directly to their destination from the stations.

While some taxi driver associations are generally supportive of TEKS1M, they want SPAD to drive Uber and GrabCar vehicles off the streets for good.

The Klang Valley Taxi Drivers Action Committee, made up of 22 taxi associations, recently submitted a memorandum to the Prime Minister, urging him to declare Uber and GrabCar illegal.

Committee president Zailani Isa Usuludin said if no action is taken against these services, the group, representing about 3,000 taxi drivers, may consider bringing their case to court.

“This will be our last resort if the Government does not want to listen to us,” he said.

Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Application Taxi Drivers Association (Pertapps) secretary Apriman Darlis said he supported SPAD’s efforts to migrate all budget taxis to TEKS1M, calling it a good idea. He also agreed that the age limit of TEKS1M cabs should be below seven years.

“But Syed Hamid must first get rid of illegal vehicles under Uber and GrabCar. If he fails to do this, then TEKS1M will fail, too,” he said.

Apriman says SPAD should also abolish taxi companies and give all drivers individual TEKS1M permits.

He said that previously, there were some taxi drivers who avoided picking up passengers during peak hours.

“But with the new calibrated meter and competition from ride-sharing services, taxi drivers do not care whether there is a traffic jam or not. All they want is customers,” Apriman said.

Pertapps deputy president Shaari Agus said taxi drivers are getting less business these days.

“About two years ago, a taxi driver was able to get an average of five to six trips to the airport a day. Now, we only get one,” he said.

Malaysian Taxi Drivers’ Trans­formation Association (PERS1M) vice-president Kamaru­din Mohd Hussain said taxi drivers were not on a level-playing field with Uber and GrabCar drivers.

“Uber and GrabCar drivers do not face any pressure as they are using private vehicles whereas ordinary cabbies have to answer to taxi companies and pay the daily rental for the taxi.

“Uber and GrabCar drivers also do not need to go for Puspakom checks. Taxi drivers on the other hand are limited to certain cars that can be used,” he said.

Kamarudin said taxi drivers want to improve industry standards but their welfare should also be looked into by the authorities.