What is E- hailing concept of transportation?

Malaysia is about to implement it anytime soon.

“E” commerce in reality means “doing business using electronic means, to transact one’s business “.

It’s modern, fast and easy.

As said, we will transcend into the “e- hailing” system shortly.

With this the Road Transport Department or Jabatan Pengangkutan Jalan, its Minister, Y.B. Anthony Loke, has been quite busy promoting it to the public.

Taxis, buses and lorry will move over to “e- services” in the near future.

Except from what I’ve read and gathered from newspaper and news from the media, I have very little info about this subject.

Readers of this blog must surely be interested to know more about “E-Hailing”.

What should I do then?

Organizers of the above course that is my “superiors” have seen it fit to “conduct” the above course themselves.

J.P.J. has obviously supplied the institute particulars regarding the course.

Also in the driving school industry, I happen to have an interest in the “e-hailing” subject too. If possible, I would wish to dish out interesting articles on “e-hailing ” also.

Being unaware of what “e hailing” is all about, will not deter me.

I’ve decided to draw up or what I should say is “draw” up my “idea” of what I think “e-hailing” is.

If what’s evolved ends up being not correct, I will then be extremely sorry. It is not my intention to mislead anybody.

But as an educated person being in the driving business for such a long time, makes me believe that I can’t be very wrong.

Initially, the “e-hailing” concept came about with the advent of GRAB and UBER transport services into the country.

The above are two of the most well known private taxi transport means in other countries as America, England, Australia and other developed countries.

UBER and GRAB used private cars owned by the public.

Owners of such cars believed that “they” own “Posh” and sometimes expensive vehicles which are at times “underused”.

Such owners feel such mentioned vehicles could very well be better used to garner extra financial income instead.

Income derived from such sources could go a long way to help pay up “loans” and “hire purchase” debts.

Initially, the introduction of UBER/GRAB cars into Malaysia was intended to provide cheap and efficient taxi services to the public.

It should be borne in mind public transport like buses trains and others are in fact in a deplorable state.

Taxi drivers have long been offering costly and inefficient services to the Malaysian public for years.

In reality, taxis are badly run and the public suffers.

Malaysian taxi drivers are renowned to be the “worst” in the world.

Now the J.P.J. or the Road Transport Department has agreed to allow private cars to be used as “e-hailing” cars.

Public sufferings, cost and time savings is about to evolve.

Hopefully, good and reliable conditions in the transport arena will prevail.

What types of vehicles will be allowed to be used in the forth coming “e-hailing” industry?

Vehicles less than 5 years will most likely see the light of the day.

The public can also be assured that “e-hailing” drivers will be well educated, polite and well mannered as well.

They will be using electronic gadgets, hand phones and G.P.S. too.

E-hailing cars will also be fully air conditioned also.

And most important of all, the J.P.J. will be keeping a close eye on those “e-hailing” fleet.

A few extra facts about “e-hailing” before the subject ends.

JPJ has announced “e-hailing” vehicles should have:-

(i) Public Service Vehicle License.
(ii) Passengers Insurance.
(iii) An e-hailing sticker.
(iv) An e-hailing permit from the Land And Public Service Transport Agenty.

It is earnestly hoped this subject on “e-hailing” has been enlightening to readers.

The post E-hailing Services Concept In Malaysia appeared first on The Driving School Blog - By a Seasoned Driving Instructor.

The following article is therefore not necessarily of my own, It is infact by Star writer, Teh Eng Hock. The article appeared in an article “Bank Receives 781 Application for 1Malaysia Taxi Scheme” which the authorities launched recently.

With this article, I hope it will help readers who have intent to set up a taxi or school bus entity.

It is said, Bank Simpanan Nasional (BSN) is the sole authorised bank to give loans for the scheme. Taxi services are important. As the taxi services are currently beleaguered by problems, setting up the above scheme is infact much awaited by the public. It is hoped, that with it, at least some of our nations taxi woes can be eliminated.

To date, BSN have received 781 applications from taxi operators. 176 of them have since been approved. A total of 47 were however rejected. Some 360 of them are pending process by the bank. Others have yet to provide proper documentation by the taxi drivers.

The Suruhanhaya Perkhidmatan Awam Darat (SPAD) is provided the task of dealing with taxi drivers. Initially, BSN said it has received some 91 applications in July. Between 20 August to September, it received 690 applications.

Of the initial group of applicants, so far 73 of them have been approved. Their new taxis will be delivered soon.

Tan Sri Syed Hamid Albar, SPAD’s Chairman, revealed though 1000 units of Proton Exora have been allocated under the TEKS1M scheme, BSN has only approved 85 of them.

SPAD is in the process of promoting the scheme amongst taxi owners. It is also playing its role of issuing permits. As reiterated, BSN is responsible for loan applications and financial disbursement of loans.

The process of loan applications under the 1Malaysia Taxi scheme will take 5 working days for applications to be processed.

BSN also added, under its Budget Taxi Loan Scheme (SPTB), it has approved 2,028 loans. Some RM70 million have been disbursed so far.

So much then for the 1 Malaysia Teksi Scheme. Hopefully, the standard of taxi services in Malaysia will be set to improve. This augurs well for the country, especially tourists. We must not forget, 2014 is Visit Malaysia year. Taxi drivers will have to play a greater role to make the campaign a success.

The post 1Malaysia Taxi Scheme (TEKS1M) – Improving Taxi Service appeared first on The Driving School Blog - By a Seasoned Driving Instructor.

In Malaysia, school buses, factory buses, taxis as well as express buses come under the control of the Commercial Vehicle Licensing Board (CVLB).

School buses are painted canary yellow. Factory buses, for your information, are painted blue. Taxis in Malaysia, are however painted white and red in colour. The above commercial vehicles are all painted in their distinctive colours for easy recognition by the public and also the authorities which are the police and the Road Transport Department.

A friend of mine, Johari who hails from Gombak is an illegal taxi driver. Johari operates his taxi service from the Gombak LRT station to the Genting casino. Although Johari has been a taxi driver for many years, unfortunately, his attempts to secure a registered taxi permit from the Road Transport authorities has been in vain.

I also know a few taxi friends and colleagues as well. One is Ah Suei, now 70, and the other is Wong who is currently a driving instructor. Talking about taxi drivers, Singapore is renowned to have one of the best taxi services. England, is also said to possess excellent taxi services.

My brother-in-law, Mr. Ooi, once went to England for a short holiday. He was reported to have left an old camera in the taxi in London. A few weeks after he returned to Malaysia, Mr. Ooi received a letter from the taxi agency from London, requesting him to claim the camera from the taxi company.

Unfortunately, according to tourists who visit Malaysia, Malaysian taxis have been described as smelling like toilets. Malaysian taxi drivers are said to be discourteous and the service they provide rank as one of the worst in the world.’

To become a legal taxi driver in Malaysia is actually not easy. The authorities which issues the taxi permits, the CVLB in Putrajaya, has spelt out some strict and stringent requirements.

In today’s article, I shall endeavor to touch upon 6 rules and regulations which the J.P.J. look for.

1) A driving license and many good years of experience in driving.

A person intending to apply for a taxi permit should ideally possess good and clean driving records. In short, the capability to be able to drive competently would be a boon. It is my understanding that many ex-soldiers or army personnel, eventually land up as taxi drivers as they are said to be of good and impeccable character as well as disciplined.

2) Possess a Public Service Vehicle (PSV) license.

Not everyone can become a taxi driver in Malaysia. A person who wishes to become one must first of all attain the PSV license. To get a PSV license, one has to go through a rather tedious process. Amongst the requirements are:
i) Attend a 1 ½ day course organized by driving institutes and Road Transport officials.

ii) Sit and pass a 50 question subjective examination.

iii) Getting a PSV license to enable him to drive a taxi.

iv) Must also sit for a practical test conducted by the J.P.J. at driving institutes which have taxis and cater for such practical exam. Most driving institutes do not have such facilities. Such services are only available in large institutes in Petaling Jaya and Kuala Lumpur.

3) Must be in possession of good character and not black listed with the police.

To be accepted as a taxi driver in Malaysia, the rules require a person to be of sound character and to be trustworthy person as well. As such, people who were once ex-gangsters and bad hats will obviously not be permitted by the authorities to apply to become taxi drivers.

4) Must have the ability to own a vehicle.

A person must also have the ability to possess, ideally a new vehicle which can cost quite a large sum of money. A normal vehicle of say, a 1300 cc can easily cost anything from RM40,000 to RM50,000. In short, to own a taxi, you should have the financial capacity too.

5) Knowledge of local and popular place in towns and cities.

To be a good taxi driver, one has to know places, as they say. One for example, has to know popular destination such as KLCC, the Petronas Twin Tower, Bukit Jalil Stadium, PWTC and ideally all the roads which tourists and local folks might normally wish to go.

In fact, the authorities issuing permits subject a potential taxi driver to such geographical knowledge during the practical test.

6) Able to provide a fair calculation of distances travelled and usage of meters.

Taxis operators must be able to give an accurate calculation of the distance passengers traveled. Most taxis nowadays use meters. As such, the price of distance traveled should not be much of a problem.

A good taxi driver should be able to give passenger a correct calculation of taxi fares that are used after 12:00 pm. Such ability by taxis driver is very important as passengers will not feel short changed by unscrupulous taxis operators. By being fair and courteous, it will go a long way in redeeming the image of taxi drivers in this country.

Permits of taxis can be issued for:
i) Town and cities service.

ii) To outstations like airports such as KLIA and Penang airport.

iii) To provide services at specific places like Genting Highlands for example.

Tourists and local people alike seem to have a poor impression of services provided by taxi drivers today. But to be fair, there exits a saying which reiterates, “there are always 2 sides to a coin”. Without a doubt, there will always be bad taxi drivers and not forget too that there are also taxi drivers who are good as well.

To end this article, permit me to relate to you a touching episode of one Chinese taxi driver in Cyberjaya My youngest daughter was once waiting for a bus to arrive near her campus in Multimedia University at 7:30 pm. It was getting dark as night was approaching.

At the bus stop where my daughter was waiting, was a group of rowdy ruffians. Her safety was in fact threatened. While she was waiting for her bus to arrive, surprisingly a taxi stopped beside her. Sensing the apparent danger that my daughter was experiencing at that time, the taxi inquired why my daughter had not opted to hail a taxi instead.

On hearing that my daughter was at that time low on funds and therefore unable to use the services of a public taxi, the driver finally requested her to enter his taxi and ferried her to her destination to Kuala Lumpur free of charge.

This story has touched my heart tremendously. I do not know who the Chinese taxi driver is. All I wish to reiterate is, there will always be bad taxi drivers around. But at the same time, do not forget that there will also be taxi drivers who are caring and humane as well.

I am very sure that in your encounter with taxi drivers, you will one day surely come across taxi drivers who are not only courteous, fair and provide you the good services which you require. To all taxi drivers, do not be disheartened with the bad publicity your profession has garnered thus far. Persevere and I am certain you will prevail one day!

The post 6 Requirements To Become A Taxi Driver In Malaysia appeared first on The Driving School Blog - By a Seasoned Driving Instructor.

Procedures On How To Get Your Vocational Licenses Which Have Been Automatically Revoked Reinstated

A Competent Driver’s License (C.D.L.) holder, whose license has not been renewed for more than 3 years will automatically be revoked.

Pertaining to vocational licenses, of which there are 2, Goods Driver’s License (G.D.L.) and Public Service Vehicles (P.S.V.) license, the same is applied.

Can a person whose above mentioned licenses has been revoked seek for it to be reinstated?

The answer to the above important question is Yes!

Appeals can be received from holders who can furnish valid and good reasons. For this purpose, one is advised to submit appeals to the Transport Department’s head office in Putrajaya.

Section 29 (1) (b), read in conjunction with Section 2 A.P.J. 1987 permits appeals to vocational licenses which have been revoked.

However, holders of such licenses which if reinstated are required to attend a Theory Course to obtain the certificate JPJL2C.

For the public’s consumption, the above course is currently conducted only by driving institutes all over the country.

Where can applicants apply to if they so desire to make an appeal?

The proper and correct place to make such an appeal is none other than the “Licensing Department”, the J.P.J. headquarters in Putrajaya.

For those who are not sure where it is, seek help from your driving school operator or your nearest driving institutes nearby.

What are the necessary documents one would need for making such an application?

The important documents one would need to submit are:

i) Appeal letter containing particulars such as name, identity card number, correspondence address and duly signed by the applicant.

ii) A photostat copy of your license.

iii) Evidence to support your appeal.

Each application of appeal for reinstatement based upon good reasons will be reconsidered by the Director, J.P.J., Malaysia, taking into consideration the “Pengecualian Pemakaian Kaedah 5 (3) Kaedah-kaedah Kenderaan Motor (Lesen Memandu) 1992.

All appeals for reinstatement by the licensing department of the headquarters would take into consideration factors to verify if the applicant’s record is free from traffic violations and demerit points received do not total more than 10.

A final decision will then be issued by the Director, J.P.J. Malaysia henceforth.

The application to sit for the theory course to obtain the necessary JPJL2C, can be made with any driving institute, after the decision for reinstatement has been made.

The Licensing Department of J.P.J, Putrajaya will issue approval letters to state J.P.Js., including a copy of the approval to the applicant concerned.

The letter is only valid for a duration of 60 days from the date of issue.

No further appeals after the expiry will be entertained. The applicant will then have to undergo the usual and normal testing procedures thereafter.

It is hoped that readers who face this dilemma will now be familiar with the procedure they have to undergo should they wish to make an appeal for their vocational licenses like P.S.V. and G.D.L. licenses which have been revoked.

The post Reinstate a Cancelled Vocational Driving License appeared first on The Driving School Blog - By a Seasoned Driving Instructor.

One, you have to like the idea of getting up early. Because as you know, school starts quite early. With the present day jam and what not, you have to be an early bird. Besides this, one should also like children. If you have no “rapport” with them, then you’re going to have problems controlling them. You must also have a good rapport with the students’ parents themselves as well.

If you choose to own a medium-sized “bas sekolah” or “school bus”, a Toyota or Datsun would be ideal.

The above, they ferry some 20 – 25 students. Permit to operate a school bus lies with the L.P.K.P. or Lembaga Pelesenan Kenderaan Perdagangan.

To operate a small school bus, you first would require a bus. You also must posses at least a “D” driving license to be able to drive the vehicle. You should also get a P.S.V. (Public Service Vehicle) badge.

The bus you own, being a public service vehicle like taxis, for example, must be in good condition. It should therefore be sent for examination once in 6 months. Puspakom will be the relevant authorities responsible for the vehicle’s inspection.

Your vehicle should ideally be air-conditioned. Malaysian students and their parents as well are a rather “choosy” lot. They want the best for their children. They do not mind paying more.

As mentioned earlier, your school bus being service orientated, should posses the basic amenities such as first aid box and safety items such as fire extinguishers.

One other item normally overlooked by most other school buses is the “triangular red-coloured warning sign” or the “tanda amaran segi tiga”. Ensure that these 2 items are in your vehicle’s possession.

Before I forget, there is one other thing that needs to be mentioned. The insurance for the bus and the school children is meant to ferry or carry.

Being an entrepreneur interested in this business, you would have little problem dealing with issue. Should you have any other problems facing you, do feel free to drop this blog a line, and yours sincerely would be ever ready to assist.

The post Operating A School Bus or Bas Sekolah In Malaysia appeared first on The Driving School Blog - By a Seasoned Driving Instructor.