Cabby: I can't use money which doesn't belong to me

SINGAPORE - A taxi driver Monday returned $1.1 million in cash that had been left behind by a Thai couple in his cab.

The money - in $1,000 bills - was inside a black paper bag left on the rear seat.

ComfortDelGro cabby Sia Ka Tian, 70, had picked up the couple - on vacation here - from The Sail condominium at Marina Bay at around 11.30am yesterday.

After he dropped them off at Golden Mile Complex in Beach Road, he proceeded to look for a parking space so that he could visit a toilet.

After returning from the lavatory, he noticed the black paper bag on the right side of the back seat.
In it was another white paper bag which contained stacks of $1,000 notes.

Said Mr Sia: "When I saw the money, I thought, trouble is here. I was sure there was at least $200,000 in the bag."

Afraid that someone else might get into his cab, he locked its doors and drove straight to ComfortDelGro's lost-and-found department in Sin Ming.

"The money is unimportant to me. It doesn't belong to me, so how can I use it?" said Mr Sia, who has been a cabby for 31 years.

His colleagues at the office were stunned when he handed over the bag of cash. They counted the money and realised it was $1.1 million.

At the same time, the couple had contacted ComfortDelGro via a friend. They went to Sin Ming, where Mr Sia was waiting at the lost-and-found department.

To express their gratitude, they gave him a reward for his honesty. Mr Sia declined to reveal the amount.

The couple also declined to be interviewed and did not disclose why they were carrying such a large amount of cash.

Mr Sia, who joined ComfortDelGro as a cabby in 1981, has made six reports to the lost-and-found department in the past three years.

The items left behind were mostly mobile phones and bags.

ComfortDelGro said this is the largest find to date. In 2009, another cabby returned 5kg of gold bars worth $377,000.

Spokesman Tammy Tan said Mr Sia had acted quickly and with great integrity by returning the money directly.

She said: "Finding $1million in cash is not an everyday affair and, in fact, we wonder how many people would have possibly been tempted by it.

"We are immensely proud of him, and are glad that the passengers recovered their money."

The taxi operator also intends to present Mr Sia with its Crystal Award which is given to cabbies who have provided good service.

Revised fares hit cabbies' takings

COMFORTDELGRO taxi drivers reported a drop in daily takings of at least 20 per cent yesterday, the first day the company's revised fares kicked in.

Cabbies my paper spoke to lamented that some passengers avoided getting into their taxis as a result of the fare revision.

"Even though they see that our cabs are empty, they choose to board those of other companies," said cabby S. L. Chua.

The 50-year-old, who has been a taxi driver for more than a decade, said his earnings yesterday had been "significantly" affected by the fare changes.

"Typically, I could easily make up to 20 trips in a day. But this morning, I had to go around hunting for passengers," he said.

Cabby Teh Kok Wah, 58, said he barely made enough money yesterday to cover the daily rental of his taxi and diesel costs of about $120.

"It is a lose-lose situation for both the passengers and us. They end up having to pay more while we see fewer people taking our cabs," he explained.

Even during the evening rush hour, cabbies said they faced similar difficulties.

When asked how business had been affected yesterday, ComfortDelGro spokesman Tammy Tan said that it was "too early to say".

ComfortDelGro's taxi companies, Comfort Transportation and CityCab, manage a fleet of about 15,700 taxis. Drivers of other taxi operators, too, reported a drop in earnings yesterday.

Trans-cab cabby H. W. Wong, 58, said: "When the biggest player increases prices, the passengers assume that all the cabs are charging higher fares and so avoid them altogether."

However, cabbies said they expect the situation to stabilise within the next two weeks, once passengers get used to the changes.

They also pointed out that December has traditionally been a slow period due to the school holidays, when people go on vacation.

However, it being the festive season, "people are in a festive mood and won't mind spending, so a clearer picture will emerge after Chinese New Year next year", said Mr Teh.

Yesterday, SMRT, the third-largest operator with some 4,000 taxis, also announced changes to its fare structure.

When contacted, two of the four other taxi companies said they are monitoring the situation.

Trans-cab and Smart Taxi said they are in discussions with their drivers to review their fares.

Association urges other taxi operators to follow fare revision

The National Taxi Association (NTA) has urged the five other taxi operators in Singapore -- Trans-Cab, SMRT, Premier, Smart and Prime, to follow ComfortDelGro's fare revision, The Straits Times said on Tuesday.

The NTA represents taxi drivers here and currently has more than 11,000 members.

It said this would help to defray rising costs of operation, for example, higher diesel prices, and increase the annual income of taxi drivers.

NTA president Wee Boon Kim said drivers are expected to make about $6 or $7 more under the new fare structure.


Other firms say they have not decided whether to revise their fares, and will make a decision after seeking feedback from their drivers.

The report added that SMRT Taxis will consider a fare revision as drivers' operating costs have increased since the last fare revision in 2007.

ComfortDelGro explained the reason behind the revision by pointing to how "strong population growth and an increase in tourist arrivals" have led to a significant increase in demand for taxis throughout the day -- even during "off-peak" hours, The Straits Times said.

ComfortDelGro to revise cab fares

TAXI fares for many commuters are likely to go up from Monday after Singapore's largest taxi operator, ComfortDelGro, revises its fare structure.

The company said yesterday in a statement that its new fare structure will include reductions in the peak-hour surcharge. For example, the $1 public-holiday surcharge will be removed.

But, at the same time, peak periods will be extended, and will also include those during weekends and public holidays. For example, the evening city- area surcharge will be applied on Sundays and public holidays.

The last taxi-fare adjustment was done in December 2007.


"Since then, taxi drivers have had to cope with higher costs of living as a result of inflation," said the statement.

ComfortDelGro said the introduction of SMS and smartphone taxi-booking services in the past three years had greatly increased taxi-booking demand.

ComfortDelGro now handles 2.4 million bookings a month, up 47 per cent from 2007.

To cater for the high booking demand, the peak period will start at 6am and end at 9.30am on weekdays.

Current call-booking charges will be reduced by 20 cents - from $3.50 to $3.30 - during the peak period and from $2.50 to $2.30 at all other times.

ComfortDelGro's taxi companies, Comfort Transportation and CityCab, manage a fleet of about 15,700 taxis.

 

SBS Transit appointed Downtown Line operator

SINGAPORE: SBS Transit Limited has been appointed the new operator for Downtown Line, Singapore's fifth Mass Rapid Transit line.

When completed by 2017, the Downtown Line's 34 stations are expected to serve about half a million commuters daily.

The Land Transport Authority (LTA) says the Downtown Line is the first rail line put up for competitive tender under the new rail financing framework LTA adopted in 2010.

Among other things, the licence period for the appointed operator is shorter - about 15 years, down from the existing 30 to 40 years.

And the LTA will own the rail operating assets and be responsible for timely replacements and enhancements.

In the case of the Downtown Line, the licence period is about 15 years from full completion in 2017, a few years after Downtown Line Stage One's targeted opening in 2013.

The LTA says the shorter duration will encourage efficiency through competition, as other operators may bid at the end of the licence term.

The appointed Downtown Line operator, SBS Transit Limited, will pay an annual licence charge over a 19-year licence period.

This payment is expected to reach an estimated total of S$1.6 billion at the end of the 19 years.

The payment will be placed in a Railway Sinking Fund to be managed by LTA to meet future expenditures on operating assets.

The LTA says the two local public transport operators, SBS Transit Limited and SMRT Trains Limited, both submitted competitive proposals to operate the Downtown Line.

It says SBS Transit Limited was picked after careful consideration.

SBS Transit is about 75 percent-owned by Singapore's biggest bus and taxi operator, ComfortDelGro.

The Downtown Line project was announced in 2005. It was later described as a major challenge.

LTA's project engineer, Darren Lau, had said: "The Downtown Line is currently one of the most challenging rail projects in Singapore, as it passes through varied soil conditions along the stretch. In certain areas like Bukit Timah, we even had to resort to using explosives to break up the granite rocks."

The Downtown Line was initially a five-station extension to the Circle Line. Known as Downtown Extension - running between Millenia Station and ending at Chinatown Station on the North East Line - it was expected to cost some S$1.4 billion and be completed by 2012.

But in 2007, the government approved S$12 billion worth of plans to add more than 40 kilometres to the existing mass rapid system.

The aim is to raise the number of those commuting by public transport to 70 per cent by 2020.

The Downtown Line will now have 34 stations in all - constructed over three phases.

Stage One involved the stations of the original Downtown Extension, running 4.3 kilometres from Chinatown to Bugis.

Work on Stage Two started in 2009, covering 12 underground stations over 16.6 kilometres.

When completed in 2015, Downtown Line 2 will run from Bukit Panjang, along the Bukit Timah Corridor and terminate at Rochor Station, where passengers can connect at Bugis.

The final 21-kilometre stretch of Downtown Line 3 will link the Singapore EXPO Convention and Exhibition Centre in the east to Bukit Panjang, with a loop through Marina Bay.




Personal View: This will more or less cause a upswing for the stock ComfortDelGro, do keep a lookout for it.