Good Bangkok Taxi Drivers Do Exist

[tartempion]

I had an 8 hour gap to fill between planes last Saturday and took the 551 bus to Victory monument and BTS to Siam.

No BTS running to National Stadion due to the reds occupying the whole area.

Spend some time shopping and eating at MBK.

Caught a taxi thanon Phaya Thai side, traffic was light and he took the second stage express way but remained underneath, thus saving me 70 THB toll.

Made it to Swampy in less than 30 minutes and 213B on the meter.

A few weeks ago paid slightly more between Swampy and Emerald hotel both directions.

I guess 9 out of 10 taxi drivers do a good job, not all are out to scam us

[kratiam]

Thanks for taking the time to post this......in my experience 90% good, 9% indifferent and just 1% bad sods. But then...may've had a row with their missus, eh?

[Cheops]

Even though I drive a car in Thailand I have used and still using taxi's on a regular base. From the countless drives with a taxi the bad experiences are very limited. Most of the drivers don't rip you off (well, at least outside the tourist area's) (I have never been ripped off in a taxi, but I speak Thai so this helps I think), BUT the major problem is that most of them simply don't have a clue how to drive a car safely with the responsibility of having passengers! Same goes for buses! I have witnessed fighting games between buses and taxis which if you did this in my homecountry for sure the driver will end up loosing his job and will end up in jail as well! Just unbelievable! Totally no responsibility for the passengers.

Edited April 27, 2010 by Cheops

[IMA_FARANG]

I'm glad somebody else had at least one good experience with Bangkok taxi drivers. I did, about 20 years ago now. At the time I was shipping some of my personal goods back to the U.S. I had the address of the shipping company's office. I was told to bring the boxes I waned to ship to their office, and they would take care of the shipping. So I went and bought an airline ticket, and took my boxes to the shipping company to send them home. I also had my passport, the ticket, and $300 dollrs in cash in an envelope. I put the boxes on the back seat of the taxi, put the envelope withmy passport. the ticket, and the money in it on the dachboard of the taxi, and off we went. When I got to the shipping company's office, I took the boxes out of the taxi. paid the driver, and he drove off. I had completely forgotten about the envelope on the dashboard.

When I realised I had left the envelope in the taxi, I went to the nearest police station. I reported I had left my passport, the money, and the ticket in the taxi. While I was in the police station an officer still filing the report a policeman came in with the taxi driver. It seems the taxi driver had found the envelope in his taxi after I paid him. He went to the nearest police station to tell them that a Farang had left the envelope in his taxi. It turned out to be thesame police station I had gone to. The policeman he contacted had heard there was a Farang upstairs who had lost his passport, so he connected that with the taxi driver's story.

The passport and the ticket were my main concern, I tried to give the taxi driver a reward for returning them, but he refused to take any miney as a reward. He told the police it was because as a Buddhist, he was onky doing what he thought was right, and he wouldn't accept any money for doing what he knew was right anyhow. He was insistant on that point, he just wouldn't take my money.

So there was at least one honest taxi driver anyhow, in Bangkok.

Edited April 27, 2010 by IMA_FARANG

[djlest]

I find 50% to be good and 50% bad

But perhaps i have a higher and more meticulous way of judging them...

The last one was a nice guy with a nice big smile, but the fare cost 50 baht more than normal and he was accelerating at about 5000rpm at a stopped red light...

But still - Lovely guy mind!!!

[Lando]

9 years in Bangkok, taking on average 3 or 4 cabs a day and NEVER had a major problem with a taxi driver....just exited the car a few times when they didn't want to use the meter or they refused to take me on when close to some shift end.....wish it could be the same in US or Europe...specially given the difference in terms of rates !

[Stjohnm]

I very rarely ever get a bad Taxi Driver, the only problems I've had are with the drivers at Swampy and the Don before it pestering me the minute I'm out of the air con, I just tell them what I'd pay if it were on the meter and they leave me alone.

[barky]

It seems to me that the mere fact of having to start (yet another) a thread to espouse the merrits of taxi drivers that the OP thinks the taxi "service" is worthy of praise. If the Taxi service was indeed worthy it wouldn't need to be trumpeted. It would be self-evident, obvious and therfore not newsworthy.

Over the 10 years dealing with BKK taxi drivers, in my experience, most are overall OK. Very few I would rate as worthy of starting a thread to tell the world.

In the main most of them do the job they are paid for. The odd one or two need a stilletto knife skewered through the back of their head.And yes the odd one or two do a job sufficently above the average (for a Thai taxi driver) to warrant you wanting to bother telling someone about it. I mean the fact that you've bothered to relate it to someone else reasonably indicates that your experience was out of the ordinary, even exceptional.

The all too common traits many of them share (but not limited to) are: driving too fast, recklessly, playing their radios far too loud, not wanting to take the fare (even though by law they have to, but we are in Thailand where the law is ignored), playing footsy with the brake/accelerator thus ensuring a jerking, uncomfortable, nausiating ride, driving in 2nd gear when it should be in 3rd thus ensuring a kangaroo hopping ride, pretending never to have any 5 or 10 baht coin or sometimes no 20 baht notes in the hope the fare will say "mai ben lie...keep the change", driving with one hand whilst having animated, loud conversations on their mobile phone, and sometimes you get the odd talkative one that will come up with the tried and true questions (eyes roll back in head) Why you come Thailand? You have Thai g/f? Where she from...Issan? You like Thai girl? on and on.

Rarely thesedays do I enter into any lengthy conversation.Only after I've decided the driver's questions are interesting and appropriate and therfore worthy of my interaction do I continue the discussion.

A recent (2 weeks ago) minor event : Hail taxi down, tell him where I want to go, he acknowledges and permits me to enter the sanctity of his cab (I'm greatful) , 200 metre later he says no metre, I say stop, He say no metre, I say jort, jort, jort, he finally pulls over and tells me I have to pay the 35baht on the metre, I laugh and tell him chung mun!!!!! and get out...........

Next taxi, older guy no problem, no hassles, I'm satisfied.

Are there many that will do the job they are paid for without doing all the usual antics I mentioned in my 4th paragraph? Yes 10%

Are there many that will do the job they are paid for but do some or all of the antics mentioned in Paragraph 4? Yes 80%

Are there many that will do far better than you expected and might even match the quality and standard you would expect in say,SYD, LON, NYC? Yes 5%

Are there any that need their throats slit from ear to ear ? Yes 5%

Edited April 27, 2010 by barky

[tonititan]

It seems to me that the mere fact of having to start (yet another) a thread to espouse the merrits of taxi drivers that the OP thinks the taxi "service" is worthy of praise. If the Taxi service was indeed worthy it wouldn't need to be trumpeted. It would be self-evident, obvious and therfore not newsworthy.

This is actually the first thread I've ever seen that was created to talk about how good the taxi drivers are. I'm not saying that they don't exist. But I've seen so many threads talking about how BAD the taxi situation is around Thailand....not threads like this. I thought it was a refreshing change from all the taxi-bashing threads.

[Spee]

Never had an issue with a taxi driver or baht bus driver anywhere in Thailand. I did have a samlor driver take advantage of me for a few baht for some petrol, but that was my very first time in Thailand. Sometimes the driver isn't interested in talking, but that's about as bad as it gets. More often than not, the driver is very friendly and more than willing to engage in some polite conversation. I consider the taxi service in Thailand, London and Japan to be superior to those anywhere else in the world, and certainly superior to those in my native land.

[phetaroi]

I can only remember one time that I have gotten ripped off in a taxi. And I didn't know the protocol. 4 of us together and the taxi driver said there was extra fee since there were more than 3. I hesitated, but it didn't sound totally far-fetched, so I agreed. I was just suspicious enough that I didn't pay my usual tip, with which I'm a bit on the generous side. Later, my Thai friend told me I had been had. Ah well.

Now, there were times back in the no-meter days when I would know I was cheated -- once when my mom was visiting and to transfer from one hotel to another they wanted a ridiculous fare. Of course, that was one of those taxis that sit outside a hotel waiting, waiting, waiting...and then offer me sexy pictures and a massage. Grrrrr. My mom thought it was rather funny.

[dddave]

I also had a taxi driver go out of his way to return to me a wallet containing a large sum of money. He also refused a personal reward. We finally agreed to go to a nearby temple together where I made a donation to the "poor box".

[MisterBeetle]

I agree, there are good and bad taxi drivers. WHo knows what the ratio of good to bad is!!

I have had many helpful drivers, assist with shopping bags, luggage. Even had one driver once help carry suitcase up flight of steps to our apartment!!

My problem with taxi drivers is in their actual driving style as another poster commented!

I have had so many taxi rides and literally been hanging on to anything fixed to the car as hard as I could! Closed my eyes as we entered intersections and nearly told the driver to stop! Thinking back, I actually should have a few times.

Once caught a Taxi from Bangkrapi to Ekkamai and collided with a Motorbike coming over the bridge onto Soi Ekkamai. Motorbike rider limped to the curb in obvious pain. I jumped in another cab for the last bit of the journey.

Big reason why now with a 3 month old baby, we only use taxi's in emergencies.