LTA updates: 2 new ride-hail operators and passengers can indicate the need for wheelchair space, child seat

SINGAPORE: The Land Transport Authority (LTA) issued announcements after having completed the evaluation of point-to-point transport (P2P) operators’ license renewals and applications on Monday (Dec 23).

All existing licensees have their licenses renewed, and two new ride-hail operators will also be given a one-year provisional license.

All licenses will take effect from Jan 1, 2025, the authority said, noting that the conditions for licensing were updated to include new regulatory requirements that are part of the first stage of the P2P industry structure and regulatory framework review.

The licenses of P2P operators responsible for CityCab, Comfort Transportation, Prime, Strides, Trans-cab, GrabCar, Ryde, TADA, Velox, and CDG Zig were awarded with multi-year respective Street-hail Service Operator Licences (SSOL), Ride-hail Services Operator Licences (RSOL) or Car-pool Service Operator Licences (CSOL).

Additionally, a one-year provisional RSOL was given to Geo Lah Pte Ltd and Trans-cab Services Pte Ltd. This should allow the operators to fine-tune their operational capabilities to meet LTA’s regulatory standards for safety and service provision before considering a full RSOL.

LTA included in its announcement a number of updates to licensing conditions, including the removal of the call-booking requirement, except for CDG Zig Pte Ltd, which operates the call-booking service for Comfort Transportation Pte Ltd and CityCab Pte Ltd.

Smaller street-hail operators will no longer be subjected to LTA’s Quality of Service standards and data submission requirements.

Another update stipulates that operators need to implement plans to respond to breaches of information security in a timely manner and to make sure there are contingency plans to manage incidents that would disrupt ride-hailing service operations.

Furthermore, ride-hailing operators are required to ensure that commuters have the option to indicate if they require a vehicle able to accommodate a folded wheelchair or one that is equipped with a child seat.

They also need to notify commuters if a matched vehicle cannot accommodate these needs to allow commuters to cancel and rebook within the grace period if they had forgotten to indicate their requirements.

Drivers may cancel a booking without incurring a penalty if passengers do not indicate that they need wheelchair space or a child seat at the point of booking, LTA added.

Finally, operators must display a standardized set of trip information to drivers to improve the transparency of trip requests. LTA’s full announcement of updates may be found here. /TISG

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