WORLDWIDE


This month’s Worldwide Taxi Focus literally takes us to the four corners of the world. You have heard about London cabbies not wanting to


go south of the river - well, in China that river happens to be the Yangtse and authorities are clamping down on reticent taxi drivers. In Oz our story focuses on taxi owners not divid- ing profits up equitably, and back in Rome we bring you a story on the opening up of the taxi sector (sounds familiar). Finally over to the Big Apple and we report on the latest developments on wheelchair accessibility that we originally printed in December (see story online).


from China


NEW RULE TO FINE BEIJING AND SHANGHAI CABBIES FOR REFUSALS


Starting on April 1, taxi drivers who, without justification, refuse to take passengers or deliberately take longer routes to increase fares could face fines up to 200 yuan ($32), according to a new regulation by the trans- portation authority. Taxi drivers could also be fined for pre-arranging a price higher than the meter would read for the same trip, or for dumping passengers in the mid- dle of a trip, according to the regulation on management of taxi driver qualifications, released by the Ministry of Transport on its website. Passengers can file complaints to local transportation authorities, the reg- ulation says. According to China Daily, previously some cities, such as Beijing and Shanghai, also drafted rules regulating the taxi sector, but there was no nationwide regulation with clear punishment set for taxi drivers who dis- criminate against clients or cheat passengers, said Liu Meiyin, a ministry official in charge of taxi business. Also, the new regulation for the first time asks all taxi drivers to take qualifi- cation tests, which was not required before, he said. The new rule has drawn great interest from the public because it is getting more and more difficult to catch a cab in large cities such as Beijing. Li Huijuan, a consultant in Beijing, said she has been refused by cab driv- ers several times recently because the drivers wanted to take passengers to a particular direction that is near the drivers’ home or the place where the cab will be handed over to the next shift. “Sometimes I waited for nearly an hour and could not get a taxi willing to take me,” she said. A student from Thailand studying in Beijing, who only revealed her Chi- nese name as Guo Ruiqing, said she and many of her foreign friends also have been rejected by empty taxis around Sanlitun area. “Sometimes they don’t use the meter and ask more money for our trip. So we have to step out and find another,” she said. Taxi drivers said they have their reasons. “No one wants to break rules on purpose. The maximum fine imposed by our company could reach 1,000 yuan,” said Sha Xiaocao, 46, from Shanghai Qiangsheng Holding Co Ltd, who has been a taxi driver for more than nine years. “But we are also human beings. We also need to take a break or eat a meal. That’s why sometimes we won’t stop when a passenger hails a taxi,” he said. Wan Weidong, a Beijing taxi driver, said that when he needs to rush to a place to hand over the car to the next shift, “it’s really best to have one more trip in the same direction”. “I have to say no. If I agree to take some passengers to a place far away, I cannot give the car to the next shift at the promised time. If such a situa- tion happens several times, I will have problems with the next driver,” he said. Many passengers said they understand the drivers’ predicament but are frustrated nonetheless. “What troubles me are those drivers who stop in front of a bunch of people, ask one by one where they are going and pick only the one on their way. If they are in a rush to hand over the car to the next shift, they should just suspend business,” said Sang Jie, a Beijing resident. “Sometimes, after standing in the cold for 20 minutes for a cab, it is really heartening to see an empty taxi approaching. But being declined without


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a good reason really makes me angry,” she said. Although the new regulation supports punishments for such drivers, many passengers said that they will not file complaints against them. Some said they could appreciate the difficulties taxi drivers have making money, while others said providing evidence could be a problem. The Beijing municipal commission of transport said that it has opened a 24- hour hotline to hear passenger complaints, and passengers can use cell phones to record their conversations as proof. “I don’t think that is practical. Who would switch on a recorder and just wait for a taxi driver to turn them down?” Sang said. Also, taxi drivers believe that the transport authority should not only think about the needs of passengers but also protect drivers against false com- plaints. Fang Minhao, 57, who has worked as a taxi driver for five years in Shang- hai, said it is crucial to specifically define reasonable excuses for refusing to take passengers. “I have had lots of experience taking drunken passengers who threw up in my cab and did other unbearable things. I am really unwilling to take them. If their complaint against me is accepted, it could be unfair to me,” Fang said. According to rules, taxi drivers are allowed to refuse drunk people without company, passengers who try to get cabs in areas where vehicle parking is prohibited and passengers who are carrying flammables and explo- sives. In Beijing, they can also say no to passengers who take pets. Driver Sha agreed that taxi drivers should guard their own rights since complaints are often made against them for the wrong reasons. “Some of my colleagues even bought a voice-recorder in order to prevent unreasonable complaints,” he said.


from Australia


TAXI MOGULS GET RICH WHILE DRIVERS STRUGGLE IN AUSTRALIA


Taxi licence holders are raking in tens of thousands of dollars each year by renting out their plates while drivers earn a pittance, figures from the Taxi Industry Inquiry have revealed. The average cost of a taxi


licence in Melbourne has sky-


rocketed in the past decade to $500,000, double the price paid in the early 2000s. Licences in some places have recently sold for more than $400,000. Most licence holders have nothing to do with providing taxis, instead rent- ing their rights out to operators who pay about $30,000 a year, while the value of licences also soars. Meanwhile, drivers are earning as little as $8 an hour, according to the Vic- torian Taxi Association. Association spokesman David Samuel said the government leases 25 per cent of taxi licences and should cap the amount licence holders could charge operators. Mr Samuel said taxi brokers were also making money out of the system by organising deals between licence holders and taxi operators. The Taxi Industry Inquiry, chaired by Professor Allan Fels, has released a paper on taxi licences in Victoria as it continues to work on fixing the state’s troubled system. Professor Fels said many licences were now being treated as a financial investments rather than a licence to provide a service. “The inquiry has to question whether this is good for service and long term sustainability of the industry, considering the fact that drivers are poorly paid and service standards are slipping,” he said. Professor Fels said the fact that licence holders were making so much money raised questions about the need for taxi fare increases. The inquiry found that 80 per cent of taxi licence holders in Melbourne did not run taxi services, instead assigning their licences to operators. In country areas, the figure dropped to only 20 per cent. There are 5255 licences owned by 3400 licence holders, whose identities are not publicly known. The government limits the number of licences available, which has pushed up the market value. As well as hefty assignment fees or rent, the inquiry has been told that operators are making additional payments to licence holders in order to secure deals.


PHTM FEBRUARY 2012


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