Saturday 07 / September / 2024
Muscat: Private taxi drivers have begun hiking fares, some by up to 30 per cent, to compensate for rise in fuel prices, a year after the government removed the fuel subsidy to cut its soaring deficit.
Fuel prices for this month are highest since the subsidy ended last year and its cascading effect has trickled down finally to consumers as business-deprived taxi drivers pass on new expenses to passengers.
“We have increased fares since late last year. It had to be done else there is no profit,” said a group of seven drivers at the Ruwi taxi station. “The business is much less since Mwasalat started operations and we can’t make any profit if we keep the fares same,” said Ziad Al Habsi, a taxi driver for the past 15 years.
According to taxi drivers, a ride from Ruwi taxi station to Seeb would have cost about 600-700 baisa a year ago but now passengers have to pay 900 baisa to one rial for the same distance.
Fuel prices have risen by more than 50 per cent since subsidies were lifted last year. Currently the rates of petrol are 186bs/litre for M95 and 176bs/litre for M91.
“It is impossible to cover costs without raising prices,” says Sulaiman, another concerned taxi driver who has been driving a taxi for 10 years but feels the time has come to look for something else.
“I have increased prices for every destination by at least 100-200bs. I don’t have an option. The insurance cover is higher, price of vehicle is more and petrol prices are too high to keep the same old rate. Even with all the increase in rates, passengers are less so profits are still marginal. Maybe we need to look for something else,” he said.
Private taxi fares are not regulated by the government in Oman and rates for the ride are decided by mutual consent between driver and passenger.
Heated exchanges on fares is a common sighting at crowded taxi stations. In 2015, Times of Oman quoted Suleiman Al Jardani, one of six taxi drivers chosen as a spokesperson by 600 taxi drivers, saying that fares needed to be regulated.
“Most of the taxi drivers are not compliant of prices because there isn’t a governing body to regulate prices.For years, we have been asking for price regulations; and if there would have been one, we would have followed it,” Al Jardani said.
There has been a substantial drop in profits of cab drivers as Mwasalat took a major chunk of their business and the bus service is reportedly keeping their rates stable for the time being, which can cause another dent in taxi profits. Experts however believe it is an ordinary situation and it’s up to the taxi drivers to find out a way to make their services look attractive while still making money.
“It is a natural effect. You can’t expect taxi drivers to bear the brunt of rising prices. Motorists are affected and so should taxi passengers. It is like a Value Added Tax (VAT). You can’t have companies to pay for a consumer tax just like you can’t have taxi drivers pay for rise in fuel prices. It’s up to the cab operators to decide the rise and still stay in business,” says Aamir Patel, a chartered accountant.
