Low quality car, reckless driving put taxicab business in jeopardy
Import of low quality cars, coupled with reckless driving, has sent some 8,000 taxi- cabs, out of a total of 11,000 cabs, to garages, operators alleged yesterday, expressing concerns of losing their investment of about Tk 8,00 crore.
“We are about to lose our investment. The government's wrong policy, along with the drivers' whimsical behaviour, has put us in such a grave situation,” said Abdul Mannan Chowdhury Khasru, president of Bangladesh Association of Taxi Cab Operators' (BATCO), at a press conference in Dhaka.
The BATCO alleged the government for allowing imports of low quality cars without considering the technical aspects, durability and expert opinion. They also blamed drivers for their careless driving for the losses.
Majority of these taxicabs are now out of order well within the government's permitted period of eight years for running the vehicles, operators said.
“We have to repair these cars. But we don't have any financial ability to do so,” he said.
Blaming the taxicab drivers, Khasru said the sector has failed to provide services to passengers due to negligence of some drivers. They (drivers) frequently charge passengers higher fare, express reluctance to go the distance and also assist in hijacking, he said.
“The whole sector has become hostage in the hands of the drivers. Lack of taxi-cab has encouraged them to behave in whatever way they like,” he said, as he sought a uniform code of conduct for drivers from the government.
The BATCO sought interest waiver against loans. “We want to get rid of bank loans by returning only the principal amount,” he said.
Comments