Thai ‘kereta sapu’ stealing business from taxi drivers

Thai ‘kereta sapu’ stealing business from taxi drivers

“It is very difficult to earn even RM20 a day. They (Thais) just hop over easily and offer fares that are much lower and steal our customers, ” lamented a 46-year-old taxi driver who wanted to be known only as Amran.

He complained that the situation involving the transport operators from Thailand has persisted for years.

“...depa (they) operate as though they are immune to the law and are free to pick up passengers, ” he said when met at the Padang Besar taxi stand here.

He said these illegal operators not only ferry passengers around Padang Besar but also transport workers of Thai restaurants in Penang, Alor Setar and Seremban to renew their social visit passes at the Padang Besar Customs, Immigration and Quarantine Complex.

Most of these illegal operators, he said, were from Pattani and Songkhla in southern Thailand and carried out their activities during the school holidays and weekends.

Amran disclosed that they had three illegal stands around here, one in front of the Padang Besar Railway Station, another in front of Arked Niaga Padang Besar and the other in front of the Padang Besar Fire and Rescue Station and that it is not difficult to identify the vehicles because they have tinted windows and Thai registration plates.

“When the JPJ (Road Transport Department) officers are on patrol, they just ‘disappear’, ” he said.

“This is all I made today, not even RM20 toiling from morning to evening. If it continues, I don’t know how I will feed my wife and children, ” he said, showing a RM10 note and a few RM1 notes that he had.

Amran said he and several other fellow taxi drivers have lodged complaints with the authorities and even furnished photographs and video recordings of the illegal activities.

“The patrols carried out by the authorities are not enough to stamp out this menace, ” he said.

Also affected by these kereta sapu (pirate taxis) is a fellow taxi driver identified only as Rahmat, 52, who claims that the local taxi drivers are living a hand-to-mouth existence now, unlike five years ago.

He has been in the business over the last 11 years and recounted the good old days when the returns were lucrative with domestic and foreign tourists alike patronising their services because they (tourists) did not have much choice then.

“Now, they (the pirates) not only pick up passengers on the Malaysian side but also bring passengers in and out of Thailand.

“Depa (they) are having the best of both worlds, ” he said.

If kereta sapu and vans are not bad enough, he revealed, there is now the added menace of motosikal sapu (pirate motorcyclists) from Thailand.

The father of four said that, to his knowledge, they are only allowed to operate in Thailand and cannot pick up passengers on the Malaysian side.

Checks by Bernama found the pirate cars, vans and motorcycles from Thailand operating daily, from 10am to 6pm.

During the Chinese New Year festive season, Bernama found about 50 pirate motorcycles operating, charging fares ranging from RM7 to RM10 for a trip to Padang Besar town on the Thai side.

Rahmat said the authorities, including the state government, must think of ways to overcome the problem. “If this is not cleaned up, my taxi will end up a rust bucket, ” he said. — Bernama