The Lagos State Government has announced new regulations for taxi operators and ride-hailing services such as Uber and Bolt which might lead to an increase in transport fares.
These regulations are set to be enforced from August 20, 2020.
This is according to a document titled, ‘Guidelines for Online Hailing Business Operation of Taxi in Lagos State 2020’, issued by the Lagos State Ministry of Transportation.
The new regulations for e-hailing taxing services are set to come into effect on August 20, 2020.
According to Part 4.1 subsection 5 of the document titled, ‘e-Hailing Taxi Operation’, all drivers must pay 10 per cent generated on every trip to the Lagos State Government.
It reads in part, “All operators of e-hailing taxi service must pay the state government 10 per cent service tax on each transaction paid by passengers to the operators.”
From August 20, 2020, service entities in the city with less than 1,000 drivers are expected to pay a ₦10 million ($27,341) licence fee, while those with more than 1,000 drivers are to pay ₦25 million ($54,682).
Subsequent renewals are pegged at ₦10 million ($27,341) for those with more than 1,000 drivers and ₦5 million ($13,670) for those with less.
Taxi and App Operators with 50 cabs or less are expected to pay a ₦5 million ($13,670) licence fee, while those with more than 50 cabs are to pay ₦10 million ($27,341). The former will pay an annual renewal of ₦1.5 million (~$3,870), while the latter will renew at ₦3 million ($7,700).
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The Lagos State Government states that all taxicabs must undergo a thorough inspection according to the State’s Road Traffic Law and under a special Taxicab inspection protocol. A vehicle must meet the following conditions:
- It must be brand new
- Where the vehicle is not new, the vehicle must be within the first three (3) years of its manufacture as specified by the manufacturer
- The capacity of the vehicle must not be less than 1.3cc
- It must have a completed, signed, and dated safety features compliance form prescribed by the Ministry
- The taxicab shall be equipped with a taximeter approved by the Ministry
“While operators kick against this provision, if it goes ahead to be implemented on August 20, the real losers will be the customers. Uber and Bolt will pass this 10 per cent cost along to end-users, making cab fares more expensive,” according to TechCabal.
The state government also makes it compulsory for all ride-hailing services to make its database accessible to the government.
The new policy comes months after motorcycle hailing services like GOKADA, MaxNG and O’Ride were forced to stop operations following a policy introduced by the Lagos State Government which cost investors millions of dollars
