Lest you didnโt know, there are currently three nCoV patients who drive for a living.
Two are private-hire drivers and one is a taxi driver.
One of the private-hire drivers is a close contact with an infected patient (his wife who works in Yong Thai Hang). As for the other two drivers, their source of infection is still unknown.
So, 300K masks are given to PHV and taxi driversโฆ
Reader Bao: Oei, I thought experts said masks cannot protect from nCoV one?
โฆso that they can give it to their passengers who are sick.
Mr Bao, read everything carefully, please.
300K Masks Will Be Given to PHV & Taxi Drivers Who Are Supposed to Give Them to Sick Passengers
By now, if you still didnโt know, then you need to wake up your idea and watch the news more often: you shouldnโt use a surgical mask if youโre well.
The masks should only be used by people whoโre sick.
And that is the reason why the gahmen gives only four masks to each household: itโs not for daily use.
In order to protect drivers, the authorities are giving 300,000 masks to PHV and taxi drivers, so that if they spot any passengers whoโre sick without a mask, they can give one to them.
LTA said, โThese masks are intended for drivers to offer to passengers who are unwell but do not have a mask and need a ride to seek medical attention.โ
And because I know weโve many Reader Baos, hereโs LTAโs statement again, with me bolding whatโs important: โThese masks are intended for drivers to offer to passengers who are unwell but do not have a mask and need a ride to seek medical attention.โ
So, get it?
Itโs not for the drivers.
The masks, packed in four as well, are from the Governmentโs stockpile and will be given out to drivers from tomorrow(11 February 2020) onwards through their companies and operators.
Not sure how many masks a person who drive for a few ride-hailing firms would get, but anyways.
Temperature-Taking Stations for Drivers
Today, we who are advised to avoid the crowd became the crowd as temperature-taking measures were implemented in many premises.
It leads to long queues but no oneโs complaining; in fact, it reminds me once again that weโve beaten SARS before, so this is nothing.
For taxi drivers, temperature-measuring stations would also be set up, whereby drivers can have their temperature taken and receive a sticker to indicate that theyโre okay.
You know, kind of like what SIM is doing.
And because itโs 2020, companies like Grab and Go-Jek now get their drivers to take their temperature and submit the results via the app instead.
Anyone remember writing down temperature in a sheet of paper?
Earnings for Drivers Dropped in the Last Two Weeks
With the nCoV outbreak, the earnings of taxi and PHV drivers have been hit severely.
According to Mr Ang Hin Kee, adviser to both the National Taxi Association and National Private Hire Vehicles Association, taxi driversโ earnings have decreased by 25% while private hire driversโ earnings have dropped by over 30%.
Imagine youโve done nothing wrong and all of a sudden, your income dropped by almost one-third.
Letโs hope the battle against nCoV will be over soon, so we can finally see smiles in our taxi and PHV drivers.