Petrol price goes up, taxi fare goes up. Petrol prices goes down, taxi fare remains the same

Price of crude oil on the global market has dropped to lower than $60 a barrel. Petrol price in Maldives has gone down to Rf 8.50 per liter –which was approximately price of petrol 2 years ago. Taxi fare in Male’ was Rf 15.00 and raised to Rf 20.00 on 1st December 2007 by Ministry of Transport (link), citing increase in fuel prices.

We have seen a pattern of government authorisation to increase taxi fare every time fuel prices go up. To some extent this is understandable. But what consumers do not understand is why taxi, pickup and lorry fare never goes down no matter how low fuel prices are!

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