Thai Transport Min: All taxis may need to be equipped with closed-circuit cameras

[dogeatdog]

So lets say they adopted this idea. What would they choose to record??

A. The driver? This may reveal that the driver is not the one who holds the licence.

B. The meter? This may reveal the security tags have been tampered with or the taxi is traveling without the meter on.

C. General forward area? This may reveal any hidden prohibited items the driver may have.

D. The passenger area? This may reveal intoxicated passengers or passangers that have no legal right to be in thailand.

E. General compartment area? This may reveal doggie money transaction.

How many camera will be needed?

Will there be room for the passengers?

Would the fare need to increase because of all the extra weight the taxi is now carrying.

Or maybe just make it law that all passengers have to wear a helmet cam apon entering the taxi?

[alfalfa19]

1. Is he referring to real cameras?

2. If so, they can just hang an amulet or charm over the lens.

[belg]

so next time u go into a cab :

is the meter on ?

is the camera on ?

[drdoom6996]

Just another headline. They haven't done anything, are not really thinking about doing anything, and won't do anything. Mull over, suggest, think about, have a 9 million baht committee, just headlines.

[drdoom6996]

so next time u go into a cab :

is the meter on ?

is the camera on ?

When do you ever get into a cab and the meter is on?

[pilm]

How about just fitting them with seatbelts.

[bander]

Who's gone watch the guy who watching the video footage from the taxi's?

[jacko45k]

Trouble being, when you need them they will of course be out of service!

[cup-O-coffee]

Judging by the way they deal with criminal offenders when they do apprehend them, I do not see the advantage here for the customer; only more tea money for the guy with his finger over the add/edit/delete button.

But I'll stick with my initial thought; What do you do with the criminals you do apprehend at present?

Answer: Not much.

Hence, this is another waste of human energy.

[realenglish1]

It would be nice to make sure Taxis are required to use meters After 10 Pm in front of Paragon it is almost impossible to get a Metered Taxi Most dont want to use it

Its like vultures and their carrion.

I hope they bring in laws that have teeth This is the only modern county I know where Flagging is serious

[lemoncake]

Welcome to 21 century

Not sure about other countries but in Oz not only all cabs have camera's but also sat nav and credit card machines

[jpeg]

You lot in Bangkok have it made, why all the complaining about the taxis? Try here on Phuket, that'll burst a blood vessel or several.

I was in Bangkok just a week ago, it was like Taxi Paradise after this place. If a cab says he can't take me somewhere, who cares, there're several more right behind him. As to not turning on the meter, I've had this maybe once or twice, no more. I just get out of the cab. At least the overwhelming majority have meters and use them. Unlike here where a meter cab is as rare as hen's teeth and NEVER turn it on, if they actually have one.

This isn't the first stupid idea from this particular minister is it.

[phitsanulokjohn]

Good idea.

[razer]

Regulations can solve problems ONLY if they are enforced. The government has NO power over the police.

[mayday49]

• I will only ride in a Pub version Cab , you know the one that gets ALL the Ball games and has at least 3 class Pint pulls and clean glass dispensers ....

[biplanebluey]

and put in a gps and tom tom or something like that so they know where everything is

make it also record taxi fares , km travelled ,speed and acceleration information as well as driving times

and offcourse make random checks if the device is working and turned on , and put very heavy fines if tampered with or not turned on

Wow that would be a few jobs for some of the boys!!!!!!! [and a bigger rake off]

[simonseze34]

Typical for the Gov. to come up with a short term solution or a Half Ass Solution ...or better known as THAI Management solution...more ways to mess with the Tax payers $$$$.....more ways to try and put $$$ into their own pockets (note:Fire trucks / Emergency vehicals) .... more lies........more debts.......more excuses.....more blames........just more Thai......

[MaxLee]

Installed-ripped apart with the taxi-drivers' bare hands, no more surveillance, case closed, let the disaster business as usual begin again, nobody cares

[simonseze34]

Now...here is the problem!!! You sir....are Thinking again!! ......... Thais...Thinking?? MultiTasking??!!!....Management??!!.....u give wayyyyy2much credits....

[stoli]

Where do you guys hang out in BKK ? . Ive used taxis for years in Bangkok and never had a driver that wouldnt automatically turn on the meter.

You will have far more trouble with violent cab drivers in Australia where the flagfall is more than a long trip in Bangkok. Cabs are cheap here and theyre mostly late models.

I'd rather put cctv in politicans benzs including the quack transport pollie himself.

I agree with your second statement that other countries do have more confrontational taxi drivers, Las Vegas included, but I have had 100 taxi drivers in Bangkok not want to turn on their meter's, and heck, I live in Pattaya. It is very frequent to have it happen in Bangkok. You have really been lucky. Maybe the 100 baht tip before they even start driving?

[stoli]

Where do you guys hang out in BKK ? . Ive used taxis for years in Bangkok and never had a driver that wouldnt automatically turn on the meter.

You will have far more trouble with violent cab drivers in Australia where the flagfall is more than a long trip in Bangkok. Cabs are cheap here and theyre mostly late models.

I'd rather put cctv in politicans benzs including the quack transport pollie himself.

True, but I think that cabs in Bangkok are too cheap. Correct me if I'm wrong, as I drive when in Bangkok (so I rarely catch cabs) but last time I caught a cab in Bangkok the flagfall was just 35 Baht and even at night it was still the same? Apparently it has gone up to 45 Baht during the day and no idea how much at night, but that's still too cheap. It should be at least 50 during the day and say 60 at night, and even then it would still be cheap. No wonder Bangkok cabs have such a bad reputation - the drivers are desperate to make some money but with such ridiculously low fares they often go to desperate measures to try and bring in some extra cash - the cost of living in Bangkok has really caught on and it's almost impossible to find a really cheap meal anymore unless you go to a food court or eat out on the streets, so why shouldn't cab drivers also make some more money, so more of them could be more honest and less deceptive? This is however NOT an excuse for violence, to not pick up passengers, fare rigging etc. BUT it does help to explain WHY it happens.

You are always allowed to pay more. The cabs here are running LPG, which is very cheap. Just because a cab costs less than one in your home country does not mean that these cabs are unprofitable. Please don't condone bad service with "well, they have a good reason for trying to screw people". Doesn't fly with me. Not making money? Throw up roadblocks like the rubber producers, don't try to cheat people.

[InsideOut]

Awesome, I am getting REALLY tired of all these taxi drivers refusing to pick me up.

[outsider]

Good idea on its own. It is not the installation of the cameras itself. It is not even a question of who is going to watch the feed. The biggest problem is enforcement. If the authorities can't enforce anything to start with, the cameras will just be another avenue for someone to line his/her pockets.

[Wat dee]

Bangkok cab's are just beautiful!!

Late model, clean cars.Excellent avaiability and extremely low prices.

Over all very professional drivers.

They should increase fares and new "can not refuse law" is ridiculous.

[FangFerang]

I think much of what has been going on has slowly festered since tourists could take the BTS straight from the airport. All those hackneyed pile drivers moved into other territories after the appropriate fees were coughed up, and the competition is making the edge even sharper all around. A square kilometer can only sustain a set number of these highwayman engineers in town. They can count. The slow decrease of projected tourists due to a large number of shady factors is coming home to roost. Nothing will be done until the tourist numbers decline and larger players are affected. But they know the mindless perrenial amnesia of the western vacationing public. A line will be drawn. Everyone will toe the line, and things will cool just long enough for the numbers to rise again. Then back to the etch-a-sketch being used as a drawing board and sit tight until it needs shaken again. Ad infinitum nauseum.

Nothing going on here at all. Another profound breaking of wind from the intake sphincter. I always tip a good driver because I know some are bad. that really ticks off the rip off drivers to no end.

It's nice to make a baht make a pirate belch.

Edited September 17, 2013 by FangFerang