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SINGAPORE – All new private rental drivers must be Singaporeans who are 30 years of age or older with at least one year of driving experience to apply for their vocational license, the Land Transportation Authority (LTA) said on Tuesday (September 15) .
The revisions are to fully align the eligibility criteria for the Private Rental Car Driver Vocational License (PDVL) and the Taxi Driver Vocational License (TDVL), the LTA said.
All PDVL requests received before 5.30pm. From September 15th, they will continue to be processed according to the previous eligibility criteria.
Existing PDVL holders who are under the age of 30 or are permanent residents of Singapore will not be affected by the new rule.
“The proportion of PHC (private rental car) drivers under the age of 30 is small and PHC operators have shared that most of them drive part time. They will be able to continue providing APS services as long as they renew their PDVL before their expiration, ”said the LTA.
Meanwhile, the government will set aside an additional $ 112 million to expand the Point-to-Point Support Package (PPSP) to further support the P2P sector.
Many taxi drivers and APS drivers are “understandably concerned” about their livelihoods, the LTA said. While the resumption of some activities in Phase Two has increased the demand for taxis and PHCs, the number of passengers is still 70% lower and trips are shorter, resulting in lower rates per trip, compared to pre-COVID levels. The number of P2P users is unlikely to return to pre-COVID levels anytime soon, according to the LTA.
Of the $ 112 million, $ 106 million will be for a six-month extension of the Special Assistance Fund (SRF) through March 2021. The SRF helps active taxi drivers and PHC defray business costs by providing monthly payments of $ 300 per vehicle per month.
Drivers currently receiving SRF payments will continue to receive SRF payments for the extended period. More than 40,000 P2P drivers are expected to qualify for the extended SRF. Taxi operators will continue to offer equivalent rental rebates worth an additional $ 29 million to their contractors.
The government will also extend the liberalization of P2P rules to allow the use of taxis and PHC for delivery services for one more year until the end of September 2021. “Taxi drivers and PHC have also shared that this has helped them and have asked to continue the scheme, “said the LTA.
In March, LTA announced a special relief of $ 2,200 per non-contracted taxi over a six-month period to help taxi operators defray the cost of their non-contracted fleet. LTA will extend this relief for another six months through March 2021 at a cost of $ 4.6 million.
LTA will also extend the exemption from the nine-month operator license fee for another three months, at a cost of about $ 1.2 million.
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