KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 31 – A group of 102 taxi drivers from the Klang Valley had filed a suit on Wednesday against the Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD) over the Uber, Grabcar and Blacklane online taxi service providers claimed to be operating illegally.
Klang Valley Taxi Drivers Action Committee chairman, Zailani Isausuludin, 51, together with 101 taxi drivers aged 25 to 73 years, as the plaintiffs, filed the suit through Messrs R. Kengadharan & Co at the High Court registrar’s office, here. The plaintiffs are seeking a declaration from SPAD, as the defendant, that the Uber, Grabcar and Blacklane operations are illegal as such an online taxi service was not bound by the Land Public Transport Act 2010 (Act 714).
They are also seeking an injunction for SPAD not to approve the activities and operations of the three online taxi service providers, besides issuing a guideline and circular, subject to agreement of the terms, to ban their operations and activities. They seek general damages, costs, interest and other relief deemed fit by the court.
In their statement of claim, the plaintiffs say the Uber, Grabcar and Blacklane operations have adversely affected the local taxi service industry as the latter’s fares were lower than that of the metered taxis. They claim that the operations conducted by SPAD and the Road Transport Department against the “kereta sapu” or illegal taxis are seen as ineffective for as long as the taxi booking application by Uber, Grabcar and Blacklane is not stopped, thus causing turmoil to the local taxi industry.
The plaintiffs claim that the Uber, Grabcar and Blacklane drivers do not possess the driver’s card issued and approved by SPAD, besides using their own vehicles to pick passengers while the vehicles were not registered with SPAD. They claim SPAD has failed and neglected to take proactive measures to ban the services of the three online service operators and has instead given them priority at the expense of the local taxi operators.
They also claim that SPAD has not been able to protect the rights of the local taxi drivers, besides tarnishing the image of the industry and adversely affecting their livelihoods. Zailani, who was at court, said on Wednesday that the taxi drivers lost 60 per cent of their income since the existence of the Uber, Grabcar and Blacklane online taxi service, and hoped that they would get justice from the suit.
