AMORNRAT MAHITTHIROOK
Licensed taxi drivers are demanding a revised fare structure and are defending their strike at Suvarnabhumi airport last Thursday.
Legal taxi driver Pathaweee Meerat said the continuing presence of illegal operators at both Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang airports is forcing registered drivers to demand verbally agreed fares for long-distance trips instead of using meters.
Drivers working at Suvarnabhumi airport went on strike on Thursday, calling for changes to the new taxi fare structure imposed on June 18 for metered taxis.
They said the new metered fare was unfair when making long-distance trips from the airports to provinces other than Nonthaburi, Samut Prakan and Pathum Thani.
The Transport Ministry on Friday agreed to let taxi drivers bargain with passengers for inter-provincial trips.
But the permission will not be granted permanently until the transport minister signs a regulation excluding long-distance trips from the ministry's taxi fare regulation.
The permission will be temporary, as authorities are working out a new fare structure for long-distance trips to the provinces.
Legal taxi drivers accuse illegal operators of snatching passengers from them, causing them to lose income.
They said they had tried in vain to bring the matter to the attention of executives of the airport since Suvarnabhumi opened two years ago, but the problem continues.
Illegal taxi drivers were criticised for damaging the country's image and the reputation of legal cabbies by overcharging foreign tourists.
One licensed driver said the illegal taxi problem had not been tackled seriously because authorities and influential figures were involved.
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