Private bus company operators should be allowed to charge higher fares so drivers can be better paid, Public Land Transport Commission (Spad) chairperson Syed Hamid Albar said today.

A higher basic salary, Syed Hamid said, would discourage drivers from "chasing trips" for commissions to boost their income.

"We (Spad) have told operators that this (commission system) is not satisfactory…if they do that, it will encourage their workers to chase trips," he said.

"Chasing trips" is a common term to describe bus drivers taking on trips back to back, to earn more commission.

Syed Hamid said this in response to Pagoh crash, which saw an express bus travelling north plunge down a 20-metre ravine at Km137.3 of North-South Expressway on Dec 24.