Singapore P2P fares rise 12.3% in August

Singapore point-to-point transport prices rose 12.3% in August 2026 from a year earlier, Channel NewsAsia reported on Friday, Oct. 16, citing Singapore Department of Statistics data.

The increase exceeded the 2.3% rise in Singapore’s overall consumer-price basket over the same period, adding pressure on a service used to supplement public transport after hours and in less-served areas.

SingStat told CNA the rise was driven mainly by higher flat fares, rather than metered taxi fares. The figures cover major ride-hailing and taxi operators and include charges such as platform fees, booking fees and surcharges, CNA reported.

Walter Theseira, a transport economist at the Singapore University of Social Sciences, said subsidies for the sector would be hard to justify against spending on public transport. “There is very little case for why subsidies to the P2P (sector) makes sense compared to spending the money instead on public transport,” he told CNA.

Point-to-point transport, or P2P, refers to taxi and private-hire services that take passengers directly from one location to another. In Singapore, ride-hailing and taxis form a commercial layer around the mass-transit network, especially for late-night travel or routes with weaker public-transport coverage.

Prices have climbed well beyond the broader inflation gauge over a longer period. SingStat data cited by CNA showed P2P transport prices were 47.1% higher in August 2026 than the median price level in 2021, compared with an 18% rise in the overall consumer basket over the same span.

CNA said fuel costs and the Certificate of Entitlement, the quota-linked permit required to own a vehicle in Singapore, were among the pressures behind higher fares. The report also cited higher vehicle prices, platform fees and commissions as costs facing drivers.

Drivers interviewed by CNA said higher passenger fares do not necessarily raise take-home earnings. Ministry of Manpower data cited in the report showed driver incomes rose or plateaued each year from the COVID-19 pandemic through 2025, but several drivers said costs have weighed more heavily this year.

Yeo Wan Ling, adviser to the National Taxi Association and National Private Hire Vehicles Association, said gross fares do not determine drivers’ earnings. “What matters to drivers is not the headline fare, but what remains after rental or vehicle financing costs, fuel or charging costs, platform commissions and fees, insurance and other operating expenses,” she told CNA.

Analysts cited by CNA said platform fees can finance improvements such as better matching of passengers and drivers. Theseira said efficiency gains from ride-hailing platforms, including fleet use and shorter waits, have not been large enough to keep fares permanently lower.

The report did not cite any government plan to cap fares or subsidise P2P rides. CNA said platforms have pledged to balance passenger and driver interests, while commuters face higher costs and drivers contend with operating expenses.