VIDEO: The reality of hailing a taxi in Bangkok on a rainy night

[anon467367354]

I never ask the driver IF he  would take to me to a certain location, I just get in and tell the driver where to go.

Supposedly refusing a fare is illegal, but Thai people still set themselves up for rejection and then complain about it.

Stop asking the drivers and start telling the drivers where you want to go, end of story.

 

[timewilltell]

I thought the corruption drive by the NCPO had cleared all this up 5555

[impulse]

Funny how everyone accepted Uber's "surge pricing" and multiple prices based on some algorithm, but when the BKK taxi drivers implement their own version of surge pricing, everyone's up in arms.

 

Personally, I'd like to see the fare go up for new taxi's and the bigger van style taxis to give the drivers incentive to upgrade and allow them to make more than a subsistence living.    Maybe they'd be a little friendlier if they weren't driving around the horrid BKK traffic on that last frayed nerve because they realize they have made a pittance all day.

 

Edit:  For everyone griping, how would you feel if you were in business and you were forced by the rules to take on customers where you knew you were going to lose money, when there's another customer 10 meters away where you could possibly make some money?  The crappy fare structure is the root of the problem. 

Edited April 4, 2018 by impulse

[InMyShadow]

Never engage a taxi that slows and rolls down his window. Just walk past..

[InMyShadow]

Funny how everyone accepted Uber's "surge pricing" and multiple prices based on some algorithm, but when the BKK taxi drivers implement their own version surge pricing, everyone's up in arms.
 
Personally, Id' like to see the fare go up for new taxi's and the bigger van style taxis to give the driver's incentive to upgrade and allow them to make more than a subsistence living.    Maybe they'd be a little friendlier if they weren't driving around the horrid BKK traffic on that last frayed nerve because they realize they have made a pittance all day.
 

They can go work in a factory or a construction site like millions of others.. But oh wait... That means actually having to work.. Don't feel sorry for these scabs, sitting in an aircon taxi is hardly working

[Thian]

58 minutes ago, InMyShadow said:

Same as baht bus drivers in Pattaya turn into taxis during heavy rain and cherry pick

These people are scum. Why can't a handful of police book these pigs, it's not hard work!

Don't worry, tomorrow we'll read that big Joke arrested them...

[Lupatria]

17 hours ago, Emmess said:

Definitely staged. Just a cheap gimmick to make Thai taxi drivers look bad. 

Send your post to the TAT. They are desperately waiting for a comment like this and will use it after they found a taxi to bring them to the office. 

[mercman24]

Me, broad daylight, outside Mcdonalds sukhumvit road, soi 5 BKK, whilst waiting for the local bus i counted 7 taxis, refusing service, for various customers, so multiply that a few hundred times, and i would call that an epidemic. nothing has changed at all

[rufanuf]

These A Hole taxi drivers  need sorting out. And it would be Soooo easy to do. Just a hotline number on all taxis to complain about fare refusal, and the rules simple. Refuse one, you lose your license. Forget rainstorms, yesterday in clear blue skies I had at least 3 rejects both ways on my destination, and it was a good fare! These drivers do not even have the most basic ethics of that its clear. So much for all the talk sometime ago about sorting this problem out.

[rufanuf]

22 minutes ago, impulse said:

Funny how everyone accepted Uber's "surge pricing" and multiple prices based on some algorithm, but when the BKK taxi drivers implement their own version of surge pricing, everyone's up in arms.

 

Personally, I'd like to see the fare go up for new taxi's and the bigger van style taxis to give the drivers incentive to upgrade and allow them to make more than a subsistence living.    Maybe they'd be a little friendlier if they weren't driving around the horrid BKK traffic on that last frayed nerve because they realize they have made a pittance all day.

 

Edit:  For everyone griping, how would you feel if you were in business and you were forced by the rules to take on customers where you knew you were going to lose money, when there's another customer 10 meters away where you could possibly make some money?  The crappy fare structure is the root of the problem. 

That may or may not be the case. Like all professions some will complain about the rules of the game some just get on with it and earn a living. I used to drive a taxi. It was always the same. The guys who make the money are the guys who take EVERYTHING. The ones that cherry picked where too busy moaning to earn a decent wage.

[DinoSabanovic]

And they complain about Uber taking customers.

[impulse]

7 minutes ago, mercman24 said:

Me, broad daylight, outside Mcdonalds sukhumvit road, soi 5 BKK, whilst waiting for the local bus i counted 7 taxis, refusing service, for various customers, so multiply that a few hundred times, and i would call that an epidemic. nothing has changed at all

 

What's changed is the cost of living.  The fares haven't.  It's just going to get worse.

 

[impulse]

8 minutes ago, rufanuf said:

That may or may not be the case. Like all professions some will complain about the rules of the game some just get on with it and earn a living. I used to drive a taxi. It was always the same. The guys who make the money are the guys who take EVERYTHING. The ones that cherry picked where too busy moaning to earn a decent wage.

 

But your experience is predicated on a fare structure where all trips are profitable (Edit: and the hack laws are enforced with gusto), albeit some more than others.  That's not the case in a lot of locations around BKK. 

Edited April 4, 2018 by impulse

[rufanuf]

7 minutes ago, impulse said:

 

But your experience is predicated on a fare structure where all trips are profitable, albeit some more than others.  That's not the case in a lot of locations around BKK. 

Trust me, these guys will earn an average wage if they do a proper days work and STOP rejecting fares. Do you think the government transport department does not understand the fee structure or something? Or do you think, a taxi driver is the salt of the Earth with an IQ of a 150plus? And therefore  is worth far far more than an average wage?

Edited April 4, 2018 by rufanuf

[impulse]

7 minutes ago, rufanuf said:

Trust me, these guys will earn an average wage if they do a proper days work and STOP rejecting fares. Do you think the government transport department does not understand the fee structure or something? Or do you think, a taxi driver is the salt of the Earth with an IQ of a 150plus? And therefore  is worth far far more than an average wage?

 

 I think the cost of living here in BKK has gone up and the fares haven't kept up.  I think the DLT panders to the masses (at the behest of the Elite who want them placated) at the expense of the taxi drivers.   And I think that comparing "wages" to take home pay is unfair when a taxi driver's base pay is around -500 baht a day (that's MINUS 500).  They have to drive most of the day just to pay for the rent of their car and for fuel.  Factory workers get paid for every minute they work.  There should be a premium for taking on that kind of risk.

 

Edited April 4, 2018 by impulse

[rufanuf]

1 minute ago, impulse said:

 

 I think the cost of living here in BKK has gone up and the fares haven't kept up.  I think the DLT panders to the masses (at the behest pf the Elite who want them placated) at the expense of the taxi drivers.   And I think that comparing "wages" to take home pay is unfair when a taxi driver's base pay is around -500 baht a day (that's MINUS 500).  They have to drive most of the day just to pay for the rent of their car and for fuel.  Factory workers get paid for every minute they work.  There should be a premium for taking on that kind of risk.

 

Then you think too much, and it sounds like you should be a Union Advocate or a member of the communist party. Self Employment is concept most capitalist societies understand, without dressing it up as a negative wage.

[InMyShadow]

 
What's changed is the cost of living.  The fares haven't.  It's just going to get worse.
 

Even if the fares go up 100%. They will just double the off meter fare.

These guys are sharks cruising for the easiest meal.

[Proboscis]

16 hours ago, wgdanson said:

Can they not get into the cab, and then tell the driver where they want to go and for him to put the meter on?

I tried that a few times. THreatened with violence (could hear the guy calling his pals for reinforcement) once and had a guy declare the car broken down when I refused to pay the exorbitant off-meter fare - we waited each other out for about 10 minutes and I gave up.

 

If the driver does not want to take you, it is probably not a good idea to put it to the test. I probably pushed them both to the limit in each case cited above.

[impulse]

3 minutes ago, rufanuf said:

Then you think too much, and it sounds like you should be a Union Advocate or a member of the communist party. Self Employment is concept most capitalist societies understand, without dressing it up as a negative wage.

 

Who's dressing it up?  A taxi driver is 500 baht in the hole the minute his shift starts.  He has to spend most of his day digging out of that hole before he makes a baht for his family.

 

I think a lot of TVF'ers don't think enough.  Except about their own benefit.  Sometimes, it's helpful to look at behavior from the other guy's point of view.  But that's asking a lot.

[rufanuf]

9 minutes ago, impulse said:

 

Who's dressing it up?  A taxi driver is 500 baht in the hole the minute his shift starts.  He has to spend most of his day digging out of that hole before he makes a baht for his family.

 

I think a lot of TVF'ers don't think enough.  Except about their own benefit.  Sometimes, it's helpful to look at behavior from the other guy's point of view.  But that's asking a lot.

And I think you comment for the sake of commenting on topics you clearly know nothing about.

 

If you have ever been a taxi driver, or happen to know a few BKK taxi drivers (and I have known several for over 10 years) you would know your talking out of your proverbial.

 

Self Employment is a choice people can make in a free society. It's the route "self starters" often go because they feel maybe just maybe with their willingness to work harder than others they can do marginally better than sitting in a factory. Sadly however it can also attract, parasites and opportunists. The taxi profession is one of the oldest in the book for this mindset anywhere in the world.  Simply put education levels in Thailand are not great...but boy oh boy do Thai's have some "attitude", when it comes to the freedom and liberty to express their "capitalist" ideals. An uneducated Thai taxi driver is likely to drive around all day looking to "win the lottery" from some poor punter, not even realising that in the long run trying to cheat the system will end up costing them more money than they make in the end.

Edited April 4, 2018 by rufanuf

[soalbundy]

17 hours ago, wgdanson said:

Can they not get into the cab, and then tell the driver where they want to go and for him to put the meter on?

Yes, then when they see that the drive is only 3km he says sorry I have just remembered I have to pick someone up from the airport, you leave my taxi now. It has never happened to me but friends have told me they have experienced such behaviour.

[wvavin]

This never happened 30 years ago in Bangkok. The taxis were in Q waiting for you. 

[hottrader77]

17 hours ago, KhunBENQ said:

I can't be by chance that on my rare occasions in Bangkok I was stunned/angry about the behavior of these "fine drivers".

And that was not on a rainstorm, just on a morning trying to get to an embassy.

In the end my wife and I walked about 3 km.

 

yes its true , try getting a taxi sukhumvit road near asoke on a rainy night unless you look rich or an easy journey with no complications then forget it , start walking !!

[tezzainoz]

My Thai wife says she never has a problem getting a cab, as she just tells the driver where she wants him to take us , and their is a 300 baht tip on top of the fare, 300 baht is cheap when I can get soaking wet standing in the rain

 

 

[LatPrao]

It doesn't take a rainy night in Bangkok to get this kind of treatment at the hands of most, but thankfully not all, taxis around Sukhumvit. This kind of stuff used to be just around Hualumphong train station and late night Patpong after the BTS stopped running.  Now they roll down their window and want 3 or 400 baht for a short hop. No meter.  I just wave them off if they roll up and the window comes down.  Better than <deleted>! and risk a fight, although leaving the rear door slightly ajar and walking away gives some satisfaction.  The topper in this, and after all the articles on the police or government doing something about it was mid-day on Sukhumvit, after several no meter experiences - I complained in Thai to one of the police about it, so he waves a taxi down and asks to go for me and the taxi driver blew him off and refused to take me on the meter!  Just in case you wondered why something wasn't being done about it.  They're free to rob you or refuse you.

[alex8912]

Ahh again the monthly taxi whine. I took 2 different taxis last night in BKK the second one was on Silom about midnight. I did flag them both down as I always do. Opened the back door as I don’t ever speak through their front window. I said Sawadee Khrap bai “ insert street name and soi number” I say it quickly and clearly, as I’m opening the door and getting in he is turning on the meter!!   The street names and numbers are very easy to learn. I don’t speak Thai that well but I can pronounce things like “Sukumvit , Petchburi ( with no ch sound) Silom, Satorn, Paya Thai” etc. without some retarded Northern English ,  Queensland or Southern USA accent. I think 1/2 the whiners here can’t be understood by their English let alone Thai so maybe that’s the issue. They both got me to my destination quickly and directly. They both got a tip and they both were on their way.  Easy.

 

I hear some people yell through the taxis window 11 word long sentences ( when all they have to say is bai Sukumvit 18) sometimes and by the 3 rd or 4 th word the taxi drivers head is spinning. Then he holds up 2 fingers ( song roi) lol!!  

Also what taxi driver wants to go from Central BKK to Bang Na at 2 am??? 

I would say “no way!” And take off.  

 

I also think meters should be starting at 45 or 50 baht in BKK  It’s been 35 baht for far too long. 

 

[alex8912]

28 minutes ago, tezzainoz said:

My Thai wife says she never has a problem getting a cab, as she just tells the driver where she wants him to take us , and their is a 300 baht tip on top of the fare, 300 baht is cheap when I can get soaking wet standing in the rain

 

 

I’ll take you both in my car for 250 tip!! 

[moe666]

Yes it is staged just to get the TV guys in an uproar

[Cabradelmar]

3 hours ago, samsensam said:

 

this is not news, in all the time i've been here getting a taxi during heavy rain has never been easy; demand and supply

 

i take taxis a lot and taking taxi's has never been an issue for me, i think many of the problems people experience are due to the way they behave and/or dress. some easy, and common sense, ways to stop taxi hassles;

 

- never engage with a taxi driver that is hanging around waiting for passengers, especially at a hotel or in a tourist area, and never engage with a taxi driver that approaches you on the street. in short always hail a passing taxi

 

- be clear and confident in your destination; if you're a tourist do some research and find out how to pronounce the place you want to go to and/or get a thai (at your hotel) to write the destination down

 

- if a driver wont use the meter close the door and walk away, if you are in the taxi get out at the first opportunity; remain calm and confident.

 

- dont look and behave like a tourist.

 

 

 

 

My wife is Thai and the driver's treat Thai people just as (if not more) poorly. It has gotten ridiculous. All you can do is wait. And you will get a ride. But that does not excuse thr the problem.

[Bangkok Barry]

14 hours ago, petedk said:

I doubt very much if it is staged. I have experienced exactly the same several times around Asoke.

 

Some months ago there was a problem with BTS and Asoke station was full. I decided to pop down on to Sukhumvit and take a taxi to Thong Lor. I had about 10 taxis refuse or ask for 300 Baht. Some foreigners next to me wanted to go to the Emporium. They were quoted 150 to 200 Baht. The amazing thing was to see the taxis keep stopping and then refusing customers. Many of them must have driven most of the way along Sukhumvit without passengers.

 

And then they complain they don't make money. Maybe if they picked up passengers that might solve their problem. I know Thais are unable to join the dots, but that really should be obvious to them.