Cabbies say 'no' to service refusal

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Cabbies say 'no' to service refusal

Published: 1 Jan 2013 at 17.43
Online news: Local News

More than 2,000 taxi drivers in Bangkok have pledged not to refuse service to passengers by choosing who to take or where to go.

The drivers made their promise on Tuesday as part of a campaign called “Taxi Jai Dee” (jai dee in Thai means kind, good hearted) initiated by the Royal Thai Police.

The campaign, which started Tuesday and will finish at the end of the 2014 New Year holiday week, was launched at Bangkok Bus Terminal (Chatuchak) where deputy national police chief Ruangsak Jaritek signed a commitment with Julie Sawangarun, president of Taxi Thai, Hua Jai Inter Club, representatives from the Taxi Drivers Association of Thailand and Wutthichart Kalayanamitr, managing director of The Transport Co.

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phaethon
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Discussion 27 : 02 Jan 2013 at 15.0327
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D21: 1) trains are crowded and I cannot stand for long periods.
2) Since the introduction of Rabbit + 15 baht surcharge it's cheaper to take a single taxi than BTS + taxi for the final leg.
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phaethon
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Discussion 26 : 02 Jan 2013 at 12.5726
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D23: "Why can't Paragon simply uphold the law...?"
Once you are outside their door Paragon couldn't care less about your well-being. For weeks now their security have been illegally blocking the public footpath with barriers forcing passers-by to walk in the road.
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barryw
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Discussion 25 : 02 Jan 2013 at 12.2925
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Dis#21 - why would you want to take a taxi from Udom Suk to Siam or Asok when the train gets you there in a 10th of the time or less? But I agree - despite what the law says, like every law in Thailand it is ignored. The only time laws are enforced is if the police can make money from it. Obviously, with taxis, they can't.
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patchar
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Discussion 24 : 02 Jan 2013 at 12.0924
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D14. Oh good for you that you've never experienced such thing here in Thailand. But to me, every time I go home and take taxi at mochit, I alwayshave that bad experience. Even my friends, they too have experienced these things. That's why when we ride in a taxi, we see to it that the money we gave is just the exact amount because if you give more than the amount, the tendency is the taxi driver will ask you not to get your change as his tips. awesome. soon you will experiencee these things in the future.
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tookay
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Discussion 23 : 02 Jan 2013 at 10.3023
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Selectively accepting passengers is the standard policy at Paragon. At the taxi queue, there is a Paragon employee who announces your destination with a loudspeaker, then the taxi drivers decide whether or not they want to take you. It's sort of like a bidding war. I stood at the front of the queue on Saturday for more than ten minutes as driver after driver refused to accept my destination, while others went before me. Why can't Paragon simply uphold the law and good practice by requiring any taxis who enters their queue accept all passengers, rather than have their own employee participating in taxi refusals?
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Jose

Discussion 22 : 02 Jan 2013 at 10.2822
This is a major problem with no end in sight. I live in BKK with family (thai spouse) and we are refused service on a daily basis. Anyone saying otherwise either lives in bangna or never takes a taxi. Try sukhumvit at rush hour. Or Silom. We have been told to get out of cabs halfway to our destination due to traffic. Hailing a cab near a tourist location like Chinatown inevitably leads to the "300 baht no meter" statement. It is frustrating to say the least.
from iPhone application.
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phaethon
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Discussion 21 : 02 Jan 2013 at 10.1821
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I rode my bicycle back from Sanam Luang in the early hours of the New Year. Many taxis stopped in front of me to 'interview' potential passengers, but very few - maybe less than 1 in 10 - got on board.
D10: The taxis were clearly cherry-picking and it's not just foreigners who get the treatment.
I rarely get refused for short journeys, or even longer trips outside the central zone, but trying to get a taxi to Udom Suk from Siam Square or Asok in the early evening is next to impossible.
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RonBargie
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Discussion 20 : 02 Jan 2013 at 09.5020
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I take it that taxi drivers do not see the inherant contradiction between their Buddhist beliefs and trying to cheat their customers?
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Ozman_Bkk
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Discussion 19 : 02 Jan 2013 at 09.3219
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Does anyone else find it amazing that there needs to be a special campaign just to get people to obey the law ?
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mrsdonesh
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Discussion 18 : 02 Jan 2013 at 08.2618
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At Fashion Island watched taxi's refuse pick-ups to Thais so its endemic. Hard to enforce law if not reported. Do understand rip-off as drivers receive small income but a fare is a fare so don't understand ride refusal. Tourists just need to be told "All taxis have meters, no such thing as after hours charges and never catch a Taxi in front of the hotel, walk down the road".
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Cabbies say 'no' to service refusal | Bangkok Post: news