I will say I get cheated by a taxi driver about 5 % of the times.

Before I learned to avoid the bad pickup places and learned how to spot the good taxis it was 75%

 

There is simply too much to change.... 

 

Just this week:

 

1) I had to get out of one taxi after the driver turned on a video on his phone and didn't want to turn it off when I asked - He didn't seem to care that I asked him to pull over, gave him exactly what was on the meter and got out. 

 

2) A Taxi driver failed to stop at a lane closure - 3 guys waving the Orange Lights sticks and cones were not enough to stop him as he went up the inside of the cones into the 'closed lane' and nearly hit a truck carrying out repairs.

 

3) A beaten up old taxi, no seatbelt, suspension groaning, brakes grinding: I was only travelling a short distance down Sukhumvit so this wasn't such a major deal given the bigger picture. 

 

4) 3 refusals to travel to my destination. 

 

 

In short - the failure to meet a standard level of service is so frequent the task is so overwhelmingly huge as there are simply so many of these drivers who really do not care at all....

 

 

UBER and Grab are still much better options but unfortunately they are not always available, hence the standard Taxi's are at the very least a last resort which is a shame because if they sorted themselves out on a whole there would be no market whatsoever for UBER-X and GrabCar who's only market would then become the much less used executive transport. 

 

 

 

 

Edited January 22, 20188 yr by richard_smith237

11 hours ago, Dexlowe said:

As has been said a million times before by a million different people, the only way to change the mindset of the average Thai male is to hit him where it hurts most, that is the wallet, and to do it on such a regular basis that he finally realises he can't continue to dump all over people.

 

That's the stick. 

 

There's also the carrot option where taxis who spend the $$$ to upgrade can charge a higher fare.  That's done in lots of cities.  Passengers who want a cheap ride take an older, smaller (and often clapped out) taxi.  Those who want a more comfortable ride can choose to spend more and get an upgrade model- nicer, bigger, newer, well equipped, etc..  That's incentive for the drivers to upgrade- bigger van style taxis, newer cars, GPS, WIFI in cab, etc.  Right now, there is none.

 

For me, the value I get from BKK taxis is generally excellent for the money I pay.  A ride that would cost me $100 "back home" costs about $10-15 here. 

 

The one thing I'd like to see is 4G and GPS in each taxi.  Just about every taxi I take in China now has GPS that shows them the way and warns them of traffic jams.  And taxis there are about the same in other respects- like price, variation in cars, etc.  And I'm willing to pay extra for the benefits.  Unfortunately, lots of people aren't.

 

 

A humble suggestion if I may...they should put a ON buton near the passenger seat....to switch ON the taxi meter !!!

9 hours ago, Wiggy said:

The second and third lines negate your first line.

The point I was trying to make is: overall, the taxi service here is pretty good and nowhere near as bad as some people would have us believe. 

After 100s or more trips, I'm still a satisfied passenger. 

10 hours ago, samsensam said:

 

absolutely agree, i can live with the occasional refusal to take me as the next cab i hail usually will. the problem is the driving but as you say can be solved with a polite request to slow down.

 

the meter is always used, i have to remind them sometimes them but very occasionally and the driver almost always takes the route i'd take.

 

i dont know about locals but i think many foreigners have problems with taxis because they use taxis that are hanging around hotel and tourist places or drivers that approach them - always hail a cab - and because they come across as 'tourists'

 

in my experience taxis here in the vast majority are cheap and reliable.

100% agree re the taxi drivers hanging aroung hotels, etc. I avoid them like the pest. 

Here's one of those safer taxis as seen on Viphawadee Rd this morning. That button does seem to work.

 

Edited January 23, 20188 yr by Darcula