The new SMRT taxi which is user- friendly for wheelchair-bound customers has a specially trained driver and an automated hydraulic ramp to help them get on board, potential customers said the $8 booking fee is steep.

The 2.5-litre Hyundai Starex cab can be flagghed down on the roads and passengers pay the $3.20 starting fee but chances of spotting the cab are slim. There is only one in service for now, but four more will be introduced by the year-end. The cab was launched by SMRT Taxis at the Singapore Zoo yesterday.

On the $8 booking fee, Ms Sherena Loh, 49, senior manager of the Muscular Dystrophy Association, said: 'Unlike people who take luxury cabs for added comfort, the wheelchair users who need this special taxi have no other choice. And very likely, they do not have the means to spend that much on transport.'

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