40,000 Less

Tadi siang, time aku tengah riding dari Holland Ave on the way to town, macam biasalah teksi berlambak-lambak. Almaklum lah, peak period. So perangai apek-apek teksi pun berlambak-lambak - cut into my lane, berhenti sembarang-sembarang, bawak macam sukahati mak bapak dia peh jalan. All the usual stuff that comes with taxis.

So time tu aku tengah shiok riding depan Gleneagles Hospital, dekat-dekat tempat makan the old Taman Serasi, this pair of taxi biru, jenis Hyundai just cut into my lane, berhenti sembarang-sembarang and bawak macam sukahati mak bapak dia peh jalan.

Then I was just telling my pillion,

"Don't you think the road would be safer with 40,000 less vehicles?"

I think it would.

Even the PTC (Public Transport Council) justifies with higher fares for taxis every now and then, cos taxis are a premium service. Kirakan kalau kau naik taxi, nak amek dari depan pintu office, or sekolah kau, and nak dia hantar sampai depan rumah kau, be prepared to pay more la..

Leave taxis to just 3 options.
1) As a service from the airport, to the hotels.
This part makes sense. As a traveller, dengan bag-bag holiday macam nak pindah rumah, taxi is a convenient service. Sap sap sup, within 20 minutes you'd be at the hotel from the airport. Lagipun sekarang kat airport, taxi beratur berderet-deret macam orang nak belik nombor ekor. So this is a good move. So in this case, kau boleh imagine ah, kalau ade 40,000 taxis kat Airport. Comfirm apek teksi beratur dalam 27 jam, baru boleh dapat customer.

Which means less taxis on the road yang cut into my lane, berhenti sembarang-sembarang, bawak macam sukahati mak bapak dia peh jalan. All the usual stuff that comes with taxis.

Then how about orang-orang yang lambat gi kerja, or sekolah, or yang ngada-ngada takleh naik bas, step taknak kena jangkit H1N1 dalam bas?

This comes to the 2nd point.

2) Taxis available for booking only.
So katakan kau dari rumah, or office, or padang rumput terlantar mana kat Singapore ni, nak naik taxi, kena call the taxi company, diorang hantar tu taxi, pungut kau dari mana-mana tempat, and hantar kau gi mana-mana tempat kau nak pergi.

Lagipun, most of the time bila kita rushing, NAK naik taxi, taxi takde. Sebijik kat jalan pun takde. Tapi, bila kita TAK rushing, macam siang gi kerja, ke sekolah, taxi bersepah-sepah macam taik berkecah dalam toilet lepas orang yang kena cirit-birit pakai.

So the outcome? Nak taxi urgently, call a cab ah.
So this effect, you don't need so many taxis in Singapore.

Abeh orang-orang mabok yang keluar dari club camana?
Biarkan je diorang. LOL. Why?
a) Matrip mabok takde duit nak naik cab.
b) Apek taxi tak suka amek orang mabok, takut taxi kena muntah.

Abeh yang lain-lain orang yang naik naik cab?
Comes the 3rd point.

3) Taxis available freely on the roads, between 12mn and 6am only.
Fair enough lah eh. Apek taxi pun nak carik makan, and during this time, usually airport pun tak banyak flights coming in. So between 12am and 6am, diorang cuma boleh pick-up passenger dari special 'pick-up zones' yang nearby pubs, clubs and coffeeshops that will be marked by orang-orang garmen, like LTA or something.

Lagipun, the government is encouraging the people to take public transport, our world-class public transport. So to encourage this, takmo pakai taxi lagi ah...
Jalan raya lebih selamat cos there are lesser cabs in Singapore. Cuma tinggal orang-orang kurang ajar yang bawak kereta besar je, yang konon tu jalan dia...

From the Govt point of view, Comfort-Delgro (a speculated Temasek company), the 2nd largest land transport owns the 2 largest cab companies in Singapore. So potong cab numbers = potong profits. Not-so senang kan?

But that's lumrah hidup seorang mat motor. Konferm plus chop, pernah kena taxi yang cut into your lane, berhenti sembarang-sembarang, bawak macam sukahati mak bapak dia peh jalan. Confirm pernah horn, ke maki hamun, ke tunjuk jari kat apek-apek taxi yang ade sikit kurang ajar ni sumer.

Sebenarnya, naik motor ni selamat. Cuma orang lain je buat tak selamat, macam apek-apek taxi yang cut into your lane, berhenti sembarang-sembarang, bawak macam sukahati mak bapak dia peh jalan.

What do you think?
To all riders, and other road users, lain kali kita nampak taxi nak sembarang potong, or sembarang berhenti, sengaja kita bawak slow, tak kasi dia berhenti, or cut into the lane. Kalau dia buat jugak, kita stop depan dia, confront dia, then cakap,

"You nearly caused an accident!"

Then lepas tu kita call LTA @ 1800 2255-582 to lodge a complaint against the taxi driver or unsafe driving.
OK, maybe it would be a little leceh, but at least, kita boleh buat the roads a safer place to ride, or drive on.