{
  "id": 5517584,
  "title": "Private hire driver who charged S$65 fare at HarbourFront stand slapped with $650 fine for touting",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/04/private-hire-driver-who-charged-s-65-fare-at-harbourfront-stand",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-04T07:30:18.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Independent Singapore",
    "slug": "the-independent-singapore",
    "url": "https://theindependent.sg/private-hire-driver-who-charged-s-65-fare-at-harbourfront-stand-slapped-with-650-fine-for-touting/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "On March 31, 2024, Steven Gan Teck Guan, a private-hire vehicle driver, was accused of loitering to solicit passengers at the HarbourFront Centre taxi point. The driver claimed to have been approached by Mr Ranjit Singh while waiting in the taxi queue at the venue. Gan offered Mr Ranjit a ride for S$65, which the man confirmed after Gan denied being a tout. The driver was subsequently given a fine of S$650 for his actions, which violated Singaporean law that prohibits licensed drivers from loitering for the purpose of soliciting passengers. CCTV footage from March 31, 2024, showed Gan repeatedly walking around his parked vehicle in the taxi bay area, despite having no booked passengers between 5:00 and 6:30 pm. The case attracted attention after Mr Ranjit submitted feedback to the Land Transport Authority (LTA) regarding the encounter, including photos of Gan's vehicle. The judge accepted Mr Ranjit's testimony as credible and rejected Gan's claims of being falsely accused and conspiring with Mr Ranjit.",
  "summary": "Steven Gan Teck Guan was found guilty of loitering and looking for customers around HarbourFront Centre's taxi stand. He had accused LTA of fabricating stories against him. This article ( Private hire driver who charged S$65 fare at HarbourFront stand slapped with $650 fine for touting ) first appeared on The Independent Singapore News .",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}