Taxis accepting ATM payment debut in Davao City

By Julia Jasmine Sta. Romana

Published July 6, 2012 1:42pm

Cashless commuting debuted in Davao City Friday after a local taxi company deployed cabs that accept fare payment via automated teller machine (ATM) cards. Premium units of Mabuhay Taxi have ATM card terminals where passengers can swipe their cards to pay their fares, radio dzBB's Davao affiliate reported.

With the new payment system, passengers need not worry about having the exact change for fares although they have to make sure their ATM accounts have enough funds, it added.

Also, the dzBB report said the cabs will still issue receipts to the passengers if needed. First of their kind

The black, cashless taxis are claimed to be the first of their kind anywhere in the Philippines. The cabs come with wireless ATM/Debit Card Payment Terminals –similar to those found in supermarket checkout counters– that accept Megalink and Bancnet member cards. These card terminals work a lot like those card terminals you see in malls or supermarkets.

But instead of connecting to the bank through phone lines, the card terminals connect to the bank directly through GPRS. This means that, as long as there is a mobile phone signal in the area, the passenger can pay for his or her cab fare using an ATM or debit card.

Mr. Ryan Tan, Assistant Manager for the Mabuhay Taxi Corporation, assures that the wireless payment system for these taxis will work practically anywhere in Davao City.

“The only places that the card terminals won’t work are in basement parking and in the outskirts of the city. These terminals also come with signal indicators that tell the driver that the area doesn’t have a GPRS signal and the passenger would have to pay for their fare in cash. And we can assure the riding public that there will be no surcharges and they can use their ATM/debit cards even at the minimum or flag down rate, ” he said. Cash for gas

One concern that was raised by the taxi drivers is that, with the cashless system, they may run out of cash for gas. They also worry that if this system becomes so successful, they may have a hard time getting their pay.

The Mabuhay Taxi Corporation says it hopes to solve this problem by shouldering the cost of gasoline. According to the company, all the taxis that come out of their lot have a full tank of gas, enough for a 24 hour shift. And with the card payment system, they’d be able to more accurate records of how much a driver actually made that day. The drivers need only to pick up their earnings, in cash, at the taxi lot at the end of their shift. This system also makes it safer for taxi drivers to work. With less cash, there’s less temptation for robbers who prey on taxi drivers. Global positioning system

These taxi cabs also come withfully automated Global Positioning System (GPS). This allows the taxi dispatchers to monitor the location of their taxis at any time. The GPS system allows the taxis to avoid traffic jams and helps the taxi drivers locate their phone or text clients, and help effectively dispatch the cabs to places they’re most needed.Mr. Tan says that they plan to eventually equip all their taxis with wireless card terminals and GPS, although passengers still have the option of paying in cash. They also plan to eventually expand their wireless card terminals to accept credit cards and to coordinate with international banks to accommodate credit cards and debit cards used by tourists. — LBG/TJD, GMA News

Tags: taxis, atmtaxis, davaocity