Regulating hours of work and rest is essential: experts

Fatigue is a major concern regarding passenger transport, experts say.

ABU DHABI // Taxi companies should consider the impact of fatigue on their drivers’ road safety and give them a greater share of the revenue, experts advise.

Although taxi drivers may feel the pressure to work long shifts, regulating their hours on duty and rest is essential, according to Simon Labbett, director of the Transport Research Laboratory in the UAE.

“In Europe there are strict controls of truck drivers and rules that regulate the amount of daily driving and work and the minimum amount of rest,” he said.

The airline industry, for instance, regulates air crews’ hours of work and rest, he said.

“There is a good reason, as fatigue impacts upon human performance no matter what nationality or part of the world they come from,” said Mr Labbett.

Glenn Havinoviski, a transport expert in Abu Dhabi who specialises in incident management, said there was “an issue” with enforcing the maximum hours of driving. “It is a similar issue that exists with truck and bus drivers,” he said.

If the base salary and commission of taxi drivers did not cover their personal expenses, they would work longer hours to secure higher income.

“Thus the financial structure may contribute to safety issues,” Mr Havinoviski said.

Because there is an emphasis on 24-hour taxi service and a significant number of taxis are on the streets overnight, it is easier for taxi drivers to get passengers during some periods than others, according to the expert.

“Setting the schedules up so that each driver works during at least one peak period would allow drivers to achieve a more reasonable revenue goal,” he said.

“It would also limit the number of hours they would need to work to meet their goals.”

Taxi companies could also consider providing incentives, such as a greater share of revenue, or a fixed commission percentage for all levels, he said. “Increasing the amount the driver gets to keep would also reduce the need to work additional hours to meet their expenses,” he said.

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Taxi companies should reconsider drivers' rosters to improve road safety while still giving cabbies a chance to reach revenue targets, experts say. Many drivers, on a basic salary of about Dh1,000, say they are behind the wheel up to 15 hours a day to bring in the Dh500 needed for a 20 per cent commission. Taxi drivers say they rely on the commission and do not expect tips – which is just as well. "Occasionally we get about Dh10 to Dh15 a day but most days we don't get any," said Indian Sunil Thampy. "Tipping helps but it is not necessary."

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