Our Transport Minister should do Hip Hop during the next Chingay
Everyone was talking about Transport Minister Raymond Lim’s comment about cabbies earning average $318 daily. The amount seems too good to be true. While everyone has different way of calculating the take home pay, all of us conclude that if the earning is $318, the monthly take home pay will be around the pay of a fresh grad (or even higher).
Most people feel that the figure is near impossible.
Then ComfortDelGro steps out to clarify the matters.
Luckily this article came out in time. I was about to submit my resignation letter and apply for a taxi license.
Although some cabbies claims that $159 per 12 hr shift is optimistic, at least the figure looks much more closer to reality.
Which makes you wonder something. Is Raymond Lim too disconnected from the average Singaporean? When the $318 figure was reported, everyone knew that there was an error. He didn’t ask or use a calculator to check before presenting this obviously flawed figure to parliament.
Either he has no idea how much an average cabbie is earning or he thought that cabbie can work 24 hour shift daily.
I think our Transport Minister Raymond Lim should do Hip Hop for the next Chingay to connect with the people. Just like what the P65 did last year.
Most people feel that the figure is near impossible.
Then ComfortDelGro steps out to clarify the matters.
ComfortDelGro has since clarified, $318 accounts for a taxi's takings over two shifts.
With most taxis shared between two drivers, to defray costs and working hours, the average daily takings for each cabbie — before deducting rent and petrol costs — would work out to $159. Minus expenses, this would mean the average driver pockets about $85 a day.
"We have over 30,000 drivers and there will definitely be drivers who earn more than the average and those that earn less," said ComfortDelGro spokeswoman Tammy Tan.
Luckily this article came out in time. I was about to submit my resignation letter and apply for a taxi license.
Although some cabbies claims that $159 per 12 hr shift is optimistic, at least the figure looks much more closer to reality.
Which makes you wonder something. Is Raymond Lim too disconnected from the average Singaporean? When the $318 figure was reported, everyone knew that there was an error. He didn’t ask or use a calculator to check before presenting this obviously flawed figure to parliament.
Either he has no idea how much an average cabbie is earning or he thought that cabbie can work 24 hour shift daily.
I think our Transport Minister Raymond Lim should do Hip Hop for the next Chingay to connect with the people. Just like what the P65 did last year.
They have lost touch with reality for a long time. First 75.2%, then 66.6%. Singaporeans have spoilt them. And it is unlikely Singaporeans will give them the wake up call anytime soon on the matter of realities on the ground.
And indeed this article is timely. $159 per 12 hour shift, deduct $50 for rental, $40 for fuel and you get $69 a day. Not so rosy anymore.
But the fact remains: fares are up 8.3% (just the metered fare alone, not incl. surcharges), but earnings are up only 3.6%. Inflation is 4.6%. Now that's really great help to the drivers. Makes one wonder why $5.50 per shift can't come from lowering the rental by $10 instead to help the cabbies.
Posted by
Xizor2000 |
1/25/2008 11:44:00 AM
xizor I heard that they are training more taxi drivers as tour guides to ease the shortage?
Posted by
Henry Leong |
1/25/2008 12:15:00 PM
Taxi driver tour guide:
http://www.asiatraveltips.com/travelnews04/33Taxi.shtml
Posted by
Henry Leong |
1/25/2008 12:17:00 PM
Xizor: ComfortDelGro claims to have over 10,000 cabs. Imagine earning $10 * 10,000 per day. That is a huge lost.
Henry: What's the point? How often do they act as tour guide?
Posted by
DK |
1/25/2008 12:24:00 PM
xizor I had some friends who are taxi drivers, some are tour guides. One of these day I got to ask them? How is the marriage of the two work out?
Posted by
Henry Leong |
1/25/2008 12:45:00 PM
dk> I agree with you that it will be a huge loss a day. But it could be recovered with increase renting of cabs if more cabbies are finding it viable to rent one and drive. As it is, I have heard there's a really big number of new cabs sitting in some park somewhere and un-used. That's even a greater loss than $10 a day. Above which, COE has come down quite a bit, if I am not wrong. Why haven't that translate into lower rents is beyond me.
Posted by
Xizor2000 |
1/25/2008 05:41:00 PM
Guess it only goes to show how much knowledge one has as a transport minister.
If he can't even spot an oversight like this, what else can he not see ?
Out of sight, out of mind.
The brain drain or The dollar gain?
Posted by
Anonymous |
1/26/2008 01:37:00 PM
minister paint a beautiful picture for singaporean to see that taxi driver earning not bad mah. you singaporean why go and dig the truth ?? let's all live in their presume fantasy world. hope that when we really woke up , all is lost by these elite leaders.
Posted by
Anonymous |
1/26/2008 04:18:00 PM
It happens to MP Gan Kim Yong when he reported on foreign students enrolment in local university. Read it here: http://theonlinecitizen.com/2007/07/18/university-places-numbers-dont-add-up/
Posted by
Anonymous |
1/27/2008 12:36:00 AM