Taxi lottery

[Makingthemove]

So in my research on Life In Singapore (still not moved, tapping fingers in UK until Aug), I keep coming across this taxi thing – that they are plentiful and efficient for the most part but impossible to find during rush hours & school runs, rainy times and on Friday/Saturday nights. And public holidays. And never in certain areas, where they are almost always full.

I wonder, then, who DOES get to go in the taxis during such times, and how do 'they' do it?

[BillyB]

Believe it or not, there is an easy solution. It's called booking a cab - by phone or via a phone application - pay $3.00 and save getting wet, avoid waiting, eliminate trying to flag one down, and avoid the queues, and most importantly save time and avoid stress!

Amazingly, $3.00 is a large price to pay for some people; they'd rather get soaking wet, and cause themselves a load of hassle.

Easy!

P.S. The sarcasm isn't directed at you for asking the question.

[Makingthemove]

Phew. I did wonder if there was a booking system or not, glad to hear it. I can see why $3 would seem costly, I'd be offended at having to pay an extra quid over here just to book. Am sure I'll be coughing up now and then.

[sundaymorningstaple]

Actually I chaff at the idea of paying the booking charges. The damn taxi drivers hide in the side streets waiting for booking fees rather than cruising and picking up fares. Really pisses me off when they do that. It's the principle of the thing that rubs the wrong way.

[Makingthemove]

Sounds a lot like the International School debentures, then. Nice.

*gets umbrella and A-Z out again*

[the lynx]

It helps to memorise the phone numbers of the cab companies so that you can always jump to another company quickly when the first one is unable to serve you.

Start here:
http://www.taxisingapore.com/

And personal note, I always go for Comfort/City cab because they have the largest fleet of cabs (both belongs to the same company ComfortDelgro but still, each has a very large fleet), which means that these two will be the last companies to 'run out' of cabs during peak hours/rainy days/MRT breakdown/apocalypse.

[hapa-girl]

I finally got a car because even booking a cab in the rain is pretty impossible. After a few times of trying for over an hour, I decided that if I wanted to go anywhere in the rain, car was the way. Friday evenings from CBD is pretty hard to book too. I would say you just have to be lucky to get cab during these occasions.

[Makingthemove]

Car not an option, don't drive and in any case really don't think as a family on a shortish stay we want to shoulder that expense. Hoping to use public transport but am noting taxi details in case (thks for tips, Lynx).

[BigSis]

Half the time with Comfort it's actually getting through to them when it's raining that's the problem - their telephone booking system seems to have got really bad over the past few years. I think it's because a lot of people now have aps on their phones, I don't think they employ as many operators. I don't have a phone that I can use aps on so I have to do it by a normal call and you can't get an answer at peak times.

I've started calling SMRT instead when that happens - they seem to have more operators.

As for getting cabs in the rain - not as impossible as it sounds lately and I think that's because the fares have all gone up. Standing at the bus stop on Marine Parade Rd this morning in the rain there were quite a lot of cabs going past with a green light on but I'm reluctant to get one because instead of a $1.70 bus fare into town I'll be paying almost $20 in a cab and I think most people must feel the same - despite the weather, nobody was leaping from the bus stop to flag one down.

Coming home from work - I leave at 4.30pm. There is usually a long queue at the nearest cab rank and no cabs in sight. If I pop into the supermarket and come out at just gone 5pm, there's nobody in sight and a long line of cabs

It's strange though, I could have sworn they said recently they were changing the peak time in the evening from 5pm to 6pm but maybe they didn't do that in the end.

[the lynx]

BigSis, they didn't. It is still 5pm... and until 11.59pm.

[curiousgeorge]

It helps to memorise the phone numbers of the cab companies

DO people still memorise numbers?! Or just store in phone?

Either way, if you are calling use 6-DIAL CAB (6342 5222). It is a number for all taxi companies...if the first company it routes you to is busy it will try another, then another up to three times.

[zzm9980]

Both ComfortDelGoro and SMRT Taxi have iPhone and Android apps you can use. Pretty easy, just open and click book. The phone's GPS does most of the rest.

But, quite often when its raining and the other options aren't working, the app will tell you that no cabs are available and to try again later.

I personally go near where the local busy taxi stand is, and walk a few hundred meters up-stream and grab the taxis there, right where two or three roads converge before coming up to the stand. It works where I live at least.

[Makingthemove]

Wow, I expected a train of rambling thought and perhaps some mystery-solving and got actual proper numbers - many thanks all, uber-useful

[BillyB]

Both ComfortDelGoro and SMRT Taxi have iPhone and Android apps you can use. Pretty easy, just open and click book. The phone's GPS does most of the rest.

But, quite often when its raining and the other options aren't working, the app will tell you that no cabs are available and to try again later.

I personally go near where the local busy taxi stand is, and walk a few hundred meters up-stream and grab the taxis there, right where two or three roads converge before coming up to the stand. It works where I live at least.

So you're one of those cheeky twats who pulls that tactic!

[the lynx]

Both ComfortDelGoro and SMRT Taxi have iPhone and Android apps you can use. Pretty easy, just open and click book. The phone's GPS does most of the rest.

But, quite often when its raining and the other options aren't working, the app will tell you that no cabs are available and to try again later.

I personally go near where the local busy taxi stand is, and walk a few hundred meters up-stream and grab the taxis there, right where two or three roads converge before coming up to the stand. It works where I live at least.

So you're one of those cheeky twats who pulls that tactic!

I'm guilty as well... Hey, still fair game, as long as you don't force the cabs to pick you up from restricted sections.