IMPOSING a surcharge may be an easy way out for taxi companies, say experts.
And there may be better solutions to the problem of long queues of taxis waiting for passengers at one location while long queues of passengers wait for taxis at another location nearby.
From today, cab companies will charge an extra $3 for trips from Marina Bay Sands (MBS) to give taxi drivers an incentive to pick up passengers from there.
Taxi companies also started imposing a $3 surcharge for trips from Resorts World Sentosa (RWS) on Jan 18.
Associate Professor Lee Der-Horng, a transport researcher at the National University of Singapore, said: "I'm not saying you cannot impose the surcharge, but you must give us the basis."
He felt it was not right for these companies to have the mentality that 'if you want taxi, then pay more'.
While he can understand the rationale for imposing the midnight and airport surcharge - to compensate for the inconvenience, waiting time and driving distance - he cannot say the same for the surcharges at the two resorts.
He said: "Location wise, I don't think they are far away from anywhere. What kind of basis is there to impose a surcharge?"
Prof Lee believes that imposing a surcharge would only help to alleviate the problem in the short term.
He felt that there needs to be a concerted effort, especially from the integrated resorts and taxi companies to improve accessibility.
In Macau, said Prof Lee, free shuttle buses are provided from casinos to the ferry terminal, airport and border crossing.
Frequent and high-quality shuttle buses to MRT stations or shopping malls for a small fee, comparable to the bus system, is something the integrated resorts can look into, said Prof Lee, adding that there is room for improvement in the RWS shuttle service.
