The Land Transport Authority (LTA) has confirmed and announced the rules and regulations that will be imposed on third-party taxi booking apps starting the second quarter of 2015.
According to a press release issued today, the basic regulatory framework was put together after consultations with commuters, the National Taxi Association (NTA), as well as businesses affected directly or indirectly: taxi companies and third-party booking apps.
The biggest players currently consist of ComfortDelGro, GrabTaxi, Uber and Hailo, the London startup that recently announced its partnership with SMRT and Prime Taxi.
Under the framework, third-party taxi booking apps will need to register with LTA for a certificate that will allow them to operate in Singapore for three years. Further, these companies will only be allowed to dispatch taxi and drivers that hold valid Taxi Driver's Vocational Licenses.
All information on fare rates, surcharges and other fees payable for the journey are required to be displayed to commuters upfront. Third-party taxi-booking services may also want to provide commuters with the option to set user preferences to automatically reject certain types of taxis or taxis with certain fare rates and surcharges.
To ensure that taxi services remain equally accessible to all members of the public, LTA is also banning bidding and pre-trip tipping, as well as the mandatory 'specify your destination' requirement. In addition, booking fees also cannot exceed that charged by taxi companies.
LTA also requires all third-party booking services to provide basic customer support such as lost and found and a reliable query/complaint platform.
Photo: Coconuts Singapore / Shawn Danker
The Land Transport Authority (LTA) has confirmed and announced the rules and regulations that will be imposed on third-party taxi booking apps starting the second quarter of 2015.
According to a press release issued today, the basic regulatory framework was put together after consultations with commuters, the National Taxi Association (NTA), as well as businesses affected directly or indirectly: taxi companies and third-party booking apps.
The biggest players currently consist of ComfortDelGro, GrabTaxi, Uber and Hailo, the London startup that recently announced its partnership with SMRT and Prime Taxi.
Under the framework, third-party taxi booking apps will need to register with LTA for a certificate that will allow them to operate in Singapore for three years. Further, these companies will only be allowed to dispatch taxi and drivers that hold valid Taxi Driver's Vocational Licenses.
All information on fare rates, surcharges and other fees payable for the journey are required to be displayed to commuters upfront. Third-party taxi-booking services may also want to provide commuters with the option to set user preferences to automatically reject certain types of taxis or taxis with certain fare rates and surcharges.
To ensure that taxi services remain equally accessible to all members of the public, LTA is also banning bidding and pre-trip tipping, as well as the mandatory 'specify your destination' requirement. In addition, booking fees also cannot exceed that charged by taxi companies.
LTA also requires all third-party booking services to provide basic customer support such as lost and found and a reliable query/complaint platform.
Photo: Coconuts Singapore / Shawn Danker