Malaysian Transport : TAXIS IN KUALA LUMPUR - LET'S GUIDE THE GUIDES

I arrived at KL Sentral at about 11:50 pm on Sunday after a weekend trip to Ipoh. Upon arrival, I realized that I’ve missed all the train services that would take me close enough to the place I live. Thus, I have no choice but to opt for a taxi. When I reached the prepaid taxi coupon counter, there was no relevant people to attend to me but there were some cabbies waiting around, asking me where I’m heading to. Once I mentioned my destination, I was quoted a good RM 60.00 for a journey of 8 km. As I always do, I walked away from them not saying a word. I then, decided to stride out of KL Sentral to the area across, Brickfields so that I catch a decent cab. No taxis there were willing to take home with their metre on. Nevertheless, the 5 minutes walk from KL Sentral to Brickfields earned me a discount of RM 20.00. But I still could not convince myself that RM 40.00 would be the best I can get. I mean RM 41.00 was what I paid for the bus fare to & fro Ipoh. After another short walk, another cabbie approached me and he quoted RM 30.00. Now, this seems to be a better deal but I pushed my luck a little by saying RM 20.00. Being tired of traveling and with increasingly impatient feeling to get home, we finally agreed on a fare of RM 25.00. His taxi was parked illegally a few metres away from where we negotiated the fare and it was almost a brand new Proton Saga vehicle with the sign on its door that read “Haggling Is Illegal”. A little too late to argue on anything since the deal was already consented and finalized.

When I got in to the cab, I persuaded the cabbie to turn on the metre just for my knowledge in the future. He was kind enough to agree to my request. As he drove, we started to have casual conversation but I had an intention at the back of my head. I want to know how much can a cabbie earn in a month. So, to begin, I asked question about him. As we talked more, I started asking questions closely related to his job. The conversation I had with him is as below.

Me                   : Are you originally from Kuala Lumpur (KL)?

Taxi Driver     : No, I’m from Taiping. I’m alone here renting a room while my children and wife are all residing in Taiping.

Me                   : How many children do you have?

Taxi Driver     : I have 3 children

Me                   : How old are your children?

Taxi Driver     : They are 16, 12 and 9 years old.

Me                   : How long have you been driving taxi in KL?

Taxi Driver     : I’ve been here for 5 years now

Me                   : How old are you now?

Taxi Driver     : I’m now 46 years old

Me                   : Why did you decide to drive taxi in KL and not remain in the peaceful Taiping town?

Taxi Driver     : Life in Taiping is good but it doesn’t pay me well. So, I can earn a better living by driving taxi in KL.

Me                   : Your taxi seems very new and well kept. How old is it?

Taxi Driver     : It is 6 months old.

Me                   : In 6 months, you have driven close to 25,000 km?

Taxi Driver     : Yes, I did.

Me                   : How many hours do you spend on the road everyday driving?

Taxi Driver     : I spend about 12 hours a day driving on KL roads.

Me                   : Don’t you get sick and agitated with the road traffic congestion in KL?

Taxi Driver     : Yes, I do but this is what I have to put up with to make a living.

Me                   : Dou you own the taxi and the permit?

Taxi Driver     : No. The taxi and permit belongs to a company but I have a hire purchase agreement with owners. I tried applying for my own permit since 2 years ago but to no avail till to date.

Me                   : How much do you pay the company taxi?

Taxi Driver     : I pay RM 47.00 per day.

Me                   : So, for how long do you have to pay the company before the vehicle ownership is transferred to you?

Taxi Driver     : I have to pay for 6 years.

Me                   : Do you still have to pay them even if you decide to take a day off from driving?

Taxi Driver     : Yes, I have to make payments due even if I’m ill.

Me                   : What happens if you lapse on the payment?

Taxi Driver     : The company will repossess the taxi from me and will deduct the amount due   from the deposit that I’ve paid earlier to the company.

Me                   : Well, then, which party is responsible of the repair maintenance of the vehicle?

Taxi Driver     : I have to take care all of it on my own.

Me                   : What about the road tax and insurance for the vehicle?

Taxi Driver     : That is also my responsibility.

Me                   : Do you have insurance for yourself?

Taxi Driver     : No, I don’t. I can’t afford it.

Me                   : How much can you make in a day?

Taxi Driver     : I make about RM 150.00.

Me                   : How much do you spend on the fuel daily?

Taxi Driver     : Luckily, we have natural gas vehicle’s (NGV) cylinder installed in the taxi. So, I spend averagely RM 15.00 per day on fuel.

Me                   : Is the money earned sufficient for the needs of your family and yourself?

Taxi Driver     : It is not enough but I don’t know what else to do. We can’t source for help from anyone especially the banks or the government. My wife has to work just to pay the tuition fee of my children. With the upcoming MY Rapid Transit (MRT), I’m unsure if my earning will reduce. Above all, immigrants are also seen driving taxis these days and some irresponsible taxi drivers are bringing down our reputation. Subsequently, it is reducing the demand for taxis by people in Kuala Lumpur.

   

By the time all these questions were answered and before I could ask more, we reached my destination and the metre showed RM 16.40. After all, to pay RM 25.00 wasn't too bad if I include the midnight surcharge. On the contrary, I don’t know how far the truth of the information shared by this taxi driver is but he answered every question of mine without hesitating or thinking twice. Consequently, based on the information given, I briefly have summed up and wish to share the earnings of this taxi driver as below.

Description	Income / Expenses Per Month (RM)
Gross Income	4,500.00
Taxi Hire Purchase Payment	-        1,410.00
Maintenance & Repairs	-           300.00
Fuel	-           450.00
License / Road Tax / Insurance / Inspection & Misc.	-           100.00
Medical Benefits or Insurance	Nil
Employees Provident Fund	Nil
SOCSO	Nil
Total Net Income	2240.00

If only the taxi permit is issued directly to the taxi driver, he will be able to increase his earnings by another RM 600.00 to RM 800.00. This is simply because a bank loan repayment of a Proton Saga for 6 years will not exceed RM 500.00 per month. However, the taxi driver is currently paying RM 1,410.00 to the taxi company just because the taxi driver doesn’t possess a permit to own a taxi.

In the conversation with the taxi driver, he raised some issues pertaining to political imbalance issues but those can’t be shared here without evidence. Nonetheless, I personally feel that these taxi drivers should be given importance in Malaysia. There are approximately 37,000 taxis in Kuala Lumpur alone at the moment. We must understand that they are not just here to earn a living. Immaterial of rain or shine, they are out there for up to 12 hours per day supporting or accommodating the transportation industry in Malaysia. Many will agree to me that the road traffic in KL can be torturous especially if you spend half your day on the road. More to the point, they are also the important frontlines of our country for the tourism industry. If we do not keep them motivated and disciplined at the same time, I can expect the ugly image they will put out to the tourists. Merely, privatizing taxi services may not be the ideal solutions to the problems of taxi drivers in Malaysia. There has to be adequate check and balances implemented in order to control and maintain the required standards of the taxi vehicles and the drivers. The taxi drivers’ interests in entire country have to be safeguarded.

When any of us raises the lack ability in a system, some parties may disagree or claim that it is untrue or comment that it is easier said than done. I’d say give the opportunity to the right people in the industry and they will help to prove how lay men like taxi drivers can help to boost the country’s economy. As a conclusion, the taxi drivers in Malaysia should be appreciated and intrinsically as well as extrinsically motivated. At the same time greater fines should be enforced on those taxi drivers who violates the rules and laws. Instead of blankly labelling them as cheats, lazy, apathetic, embarrassing, intimidating or anything else, we should drill down to the grassroots on the cause of the problem and give the taxi drivers all the support they need to resolve their issues.

VIDEO : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8D00kTiyeSQ

Thank you for reading.

Best regards,

Mahinder Singh Malhi