Ride-hailing firms leave elderly cabbies in the dust

[superadmin]

PETALING JAYA: An elderly cab driver sits at the taxi stand in the heat outside Bangsar Village I in his crisp white shirt, looking around for passengers.

He waves at his fellow taxi drivers. Some join him on the bench but others remain in their cabs with the engines switched off and windows wound down to let the air circulate.

Bhavin and his mates, aged 70 and above, are being swept away by the tides of change that have come with the introduction of e-hailing services in the city.

This is because some ride-hailing companies allow only those aged 21 to 69 to be their drivers and require those aged 50 to 69 to pass a medical check-up.

For Bhavin, aged 72, signing up to be an e-hailing driver is a non-starter.

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