Meters to be installed on taxis

Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation has announced the decision to install meters on taxis which operate in the Male’ area.

Speaking during a press conference this Thursday afternoon, Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation, Aishath Nahula said the decision followed requests by an overwhelming majority of the public.

“Many members of the public now want meters in taxis. They request meters to be installed on taxis. This administration came to power with the goal of providing citizens with the conveniences and changes they desire. And we will model taxi services based on this goal and introduce it to the public soon,” said Nahula.

Nahula said the administration was working on implementing the change as soon as possible, but hasn’t yet established a timeline to implement the change.

Deputy Director-General of Transport Authority, Mohamed Rafeeu said the decision was based on constructive criticism and ideas by both taxi drivers, members of the general public, as well as media reports on the subject.

“No doubt, such a change will be implemented by ensuring no party suffers any loss. Further details will be announced after we conduct our research on how to implement this change without either the service provider or the service recipient suffering any loss,” said Rafeeu.

Highlighting the online survey launched by the Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation, Rafeeu said the survey wasn’t just directed at restructuring taxi service. And that information gathered from the survey may be used in multiple future decisions.

More than 100,000 people have filled the ministry’s online survey form so far. Results of the survey – which will be closed next Sunday – shows 59 percent of the population want metered taxi service.