Proposals to protect welfare of p-hailing riders
P-HAILING riders behaving recklessly on the road is a common sight these days. Their behaviour not only jeopardises their own safety but also poses significant risks to other road users.
Traffic violations committed by them include speeding, running red lights, dangerous queuecutting, and taking unauthorised U-turns.
One of the main reasons for this reckless behaviour is the pressure to complete a high number of orders quickly in order to avoid negative customer reviews. Late deliveries can have serious consequences on their earnings, whether they are delivering food or other items.
In response to a question during the tabling of the Land Public Transport (Amendments) Bill 2023 in the Dewan Rakyat last year, Transport Minister Anthony Loke said a total of 1,242 road crashes involving food delivery riders were recorded from 2018 until May 2022, resulting in 112 fatalities.
These figures do not take into account the victims or other parties involved in these accidents.
This situation is deeply concerning and requires urgent attention from all the stakeholders.
On the part of p-hailing companies, it is suggested that the owners/operators implement reasonable delivery time policies for their riders. For example, if a delivery from Kajang to Cheras typically takes 20 minutes under normal conditions, even if a rider completes the delivery in 10 minutes, he/she should still be required to wait an extra 10 minutes before receiving a new order. This discourages rushing, as riders will realise that speeding will not result in any additional benefits.
Every p-hailing vehicle should also be equipped with a black box system that collects crucial data while the rider is on the job. This data can be analysed by the companies, perhaps on a monthly basis, to monitor the riders’ behaviour during the deliveries.
If riders are found to consistently violate traffic rules, they should be penalised or even terminated from service. This would encourage them to adhere to traffic regulations in order to maintain their employment and income.
From the customer’s perspective, it is important to exercise patience and empathy towards the riders. If customers have to personally collect the items they ordered, they would need to expend effort, time and money, and probably face unfavourable weather or traffic conditions to do so.
Therefore, when someone else is willing to handle these inconveniences on their behalf, a slight delay should be met with understanding. Scolding or giving riders poor ratings for late deliveries is not only unhelpful but may also contribute to reckless driving as the latter try to avoid negative feedback. This, in turn, creates a dangerous environment for everyone on the road.
On the authority’s part, consideration should be given to installing more automatic enforcement system (AES) cameras in high-risk areas to reduce traffic violations. Furthermore, increasing penalties for serious offences such as running red lights and speeding should be strongly considered.
If these measures prove ineffective, revoking the riders’ licence and impounding their vehicles may be necessary. Although these actions may seem harsh, they are essential for safeguarding the lives of both the riders and the public.
Safety must not be compromised under any circumstances.