Taxi fares in Taipei City will increase from Nov. 1, the city's Department of Transportation said yesterday.
From next month the current nighttime fare will apply around the clock, with the flag fall rate remaining at NT$70 for the first 1.25km, after which an additional NT$5 will be required for every 250m, down from the current 300m, officials said.
An additional NT$5 will also be required for every one minute and 40 seconds of waiting time.
Passengers will be required to pay NT$20 extra on metered fares between 11pm and 6am, the department said.
"It's been about seven years since the city's taxi fares were increased. With the recent increases in fuel prices, the city government and the taxi unions reached a consensus that it is time to raise the fee," Department of Transportation Commissioner Luo Shiaw-shyan (羅孝賢) said yesterday at Taipei City Hall.
During the Lunar New Year holidays, passengers will need to pay NT$20 extra, he said.
However, a NT$10 service fee for opening the trunk or telephone reservations will be canceled, as most taxi drivers do not charge such fees anyway, Luo said.
Taipei's taxi fares were last adjusted on Dec. 1, 2000. The city government considered raising the flag fall rate by as much as NT$25 last year, but in the end decided to reduce the vehicle license tax and fuel tax instead.
The government grants taxi drivers a subsidy of NT$2 per liter of fuel, up to a maximum of 550 liters per month.
The transportation department will issue 80,000 promotional stickers for taxi drivers to put on the windshields of their vehicles informing passengers about the new fares, Luo said.
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