Regardless whether you are a taxi driver or a private-hire vehicle (PHV) driver for ComfortDelGro, your goal would be the same – to maximise your earnings for the day.
How do you go about doing so?
As a taxi driver or PHV driver, your income is directly related to the number of trips you make a day. In order to earn as much as possible, you will have to increase the number of trips you complete.
Here are some tips for Taxi or PHV driver to consider:
- Morning and Evening Peak
Take advantage of the peak periods. Now that COVID-19 restrictions have eased, more workers are returning to their offices, which means the early morning crowds have started to reappear. As most workers travel to work in the morning and return home in the evening, taxi drivers and PHV drivers should ply the residential areas in the morning and commercial areas in the evening. This way, you will be able to catch the crowd and maximise your earning potential.
- Weekends and Public Holidays
New taxi and PHV drivers should also be aware that weekends and public holidays tend to have lighter traffic as less people travel to work. They generally wake up later, so bookings from residential areas will start later in the day. For Fridays and eve of public holidays, more people would tend to stay out late. As such, the demand for late-night calls may increase.
- Breaking News
Developments such as train breakdowns may just be another opportunity where taxi demand spike. By subscribing to news feeds on social media or listening to radio news, you will be able to pick up on such breaking news, which in turn, be an opportunity to pick up more fares. In addition, news of traffic congestions or vehicle breakdowns will help you avoid potential traffic jams and plan your routes better to get more trips.
- Additional Surcharges
Taxi drivers in particular should familiarise themselves of additional locations surcharge for taxis, such as Changi Airport Terminals, especially if there are flights arriving in Singapore. Instead of cruising the streets, taxi drivers can wait in the taxi queues at airport terminals. However, do note that PHV drivers are not allowed to pick up customers from the Airport.
- Make Friends
Finally, befriend other taxi and PHV drivers by joining driver-related chat groups and learn driving tips from the more experienced drivers to help get yourself accustomed to driving for a living. You will be surprised at how helpful some of these drivers are in sharing tips.
Hopefully you will find these tips useful in your day-to-day life as a taxi and PHV driver for ComfortDelGro!