END of road?

PETALING J AYA: The conventional taxi industry may collapse in the next 16 months due t o s t i f f competition from ride-hailing companies Grab and Uber, which charge cheaper fares and enjoy other alleged unfair advantages.

Industry insiders said taxi companies are bracing for up to a RM60 million loss in revenue by the end of the year if the Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD) does not intervene to save the RM230 million industry.

A bumiputra taxi operator said the industry is experiencing a rapid fall, with a growing number of new taxis yet to be leased and existing taxis returned by cabbies unwilling to continue driving.

“On average, there has been between RM15 million and RM20 million losses monthly across the industry. The business was bad post-GST and with Uber and Grab in the picture, we are suffering even more,” said Avenue Drive Sdn Bhd managing director Abd Razak Abd Aziz.

“Take for example, a new Proton Persona taxi at a cost of RM50,000 each. Imagine the losses if an operator cannot lease out 50 Persona taxis or has them returned (by the drivers),” he said.

“RM2.5 million lost is just for one small company. Think about