Premier, the fourth biggest cab operator here, has bumped up the base fare for three of its taxi models by 40 cents to $3.60, reported The Straits Times.

This took effect on Monday and applied to Premier's Kia Magentis, Toyota Wish and Hyundai i30 cabs, or some 400 taxis in all. It means ComfortDelGro, which runs the Comfort and CityCab fleets, now has the cheapest taxis, with its Hyundai Sonata models having a $3.20 flagdown rate now.

Yesterday, a Premier spokesman told The Straits Times, "The revision is to be in line with the sentiment of simplifying taxi fare structure for the commuting public, as encouraged by the authorities." He said it will not raise rental rates for its taxi hirers.

Beside the Magentis, Wish and i30, Premier has two other types of cabs under its regular taxi fleet - the Toyota Prius and Kia Optima - which charge a $3.90 flagdown rate, for the first kilometre or less. Premier Managing Director Lim Choong Boo was quoted as saying in a media report that in the next one to two years, it will progressively replace its Magnetis and Wish cabs with Optimas, and most of its taxis will have a $3.90 base rate.