Thai military security unit instructs taxis not to refuse passengers

[webfact]

Thai Junta Instructs Taxis Not to Refuse Passengers
By Khaosod English


Taxi drivers placed stickers that said "Go Anywhere, No Rejection" on the windows of their cars after taking a pledge in a ceremony organized by the Armed Forces for Maintaining Peace and Order, 13 March 2015.

BANGKOK – The Thai military junta’s security unit organized a ceremony today in which more than 100 taxi drivers pledged to accept passengers regardless of their nationalities or intended destinations.

Lt.Gen. Kampanart Ruddith, commander of the First Region Army and the Armed Forces for Maintaining Peace and Order (AFMPO), presided over the event at an army headquarters in Bangkok.

As an evidence of their oath, taxi drivers placed stickers that said "Go anywhere, no rejection," on the windows of their cars.

Bangkok taxi drivers are notorious for refusing passengers, either because their destinations are "too far" or because the passengers demand using a fare meter. Many Thais complain that it is difficult to hail a taxi in downtown Bangkok, because drivers prefer to pick up foreign tourists who may be duped into paying a higher fare.

Lt.Gen. Kampanart said that today's campaign will expand to include other taxi drivers in Bangkok. He said the AFMPO, which is the security wing of the military junta that seized power on 22 May 2014, has been working closely with agencies such as the Department of Land Transport and Ministry of Transport to solve issues related to taxi service over the past year.

The campaign does not only urge taxi drivers to accept all passengers, but also to dress neatly, regularly check their vehicles, and be polite, Lt.Gen. Kampanart told reporters.

"Overall, the majority of taxis cooperate with us. There's only a minority that don’t understand, so it has led to problems and complaints. Therefore, we organized lectures and courses about taxi services, which are jointly overseen by the AFMPO, the Department of Land Transport, and the taxi federation,” said Lt.Gen. Kampanart.

Full story: http://www.khaosodenglish.com/detail.php?newsid=1426232004


-- Khaosod English 2015-03-13

[draftvader]

One of my pet peeves is being hailed by a cab whilst I walk down the road!

[Strangebrew]

I can get 100% compliance in a week Simple little trick drivers who refuse and obey the rules get horse whip in the buff in public. second offence shot.

[webfact]

'No rejection' sign to be put on taxis
By Coconuts Bangkok


Photos: Wassana Nanuam

Seriously, why did nobody ever think of this?

BANGKOK: -- What better way to prevent taxis from rudely rejecting passengers on sight or as soon as they mention their destination than to post a sign indicating they won’t do that.

Signs reading "Go everywhere, no rejection! (Network of Thai Taxi Drivers with the Heart of Development" also doubles as a pink sunshade and will be distributed via different taxi driver communities in a move to encourage taxis to not reject passengers, the action which is technically illegal yet very common.

Full story: http://bangkok.coconuts.co/2015/03/13/no-rejection-sign-be-put-taxis

-- Coconuts Bangkok 2015-03-13

[Thian]

Just punish them harder. The taxi who cheated that Japanese man got 500 baht fine, that's not enough! They should loose their license.

[kotsak]

So let me understand this correctly.. Taxi drivers attend a ceremony and they agree to place those stickers which automatically (or by divine intervention) makes them change attitude..Right..

How about doing something similar for all the malaise plaguing this country?

[h90]

I can get 100% compliance in a week Simple little trick drivers who refuse and obey the rules get horse whip in the buff in public. second offence shot.

How to handle these thousands of corps.

Make it 5000 Baht fee for the first time, 10.000 for the second time. Of course the taxi will be hold till the fee is paid, no matter who is the owner.

[Mango Bob]

I wonder what my chance of getting one of those 100 taxis who pledged to to not reject my request. That is 100 out of how many thousands of taxis in Bangkok. A start but only a drop in the bucket.

[a1falang]

Typical Thaiglish. We would say "No Fare Refused" not "No Rejection" which sounds like a jilted lover.

[FireMedic]

100 taxis down......1 million to go.

[yellowboat]

Just punish them harder. The taxi who cheated that Japanese man got 500 baht fine, that's not enough! They should loose their license.

Yes, those who are terrible should be dealt with more severely, but their shoud be perks for those who do a good job as well.

Experienced few problems taking taxis in Bangkok. Sometimes had to ask 3-4 taxis late at night before one agreed to take me.

[NE1]

How is the run of the mill tourist going to know what that sticker says ?

[steveyinasia]

100 in all those taxis, good luck at finding ne of those on the street...whats the beat if I visit Sukhumvit Soi 11 outside the hotels, not one of them will have the sticker.

[Lupatria]

Military orders taxi drivers not to refuse passengers

A slightly more realistic headline would be:

Military orders taxi drivers to provide them with their secret code of conduct list, including the top 100 acceptable/negotiable reasons to refuse passengers.

Makes it easier to handle future complaints.

[thhMan]

Quite pathetic that Taxis have to be told what to do...

Perhaps the Taxis people should get together and report unscrupulous drivers who dont abide by what Taxis are supposed to do...

No need to slap your own face and put stickers up on your car ...

[ALLSEEINGEYE]

so why are these signs not in English?

If the military is serious about this then first order of business should be to go after the taxi's that park themselves in front of hotels to extort the newbies that are guests there. They should then go after the police that are paid to save these priority spots for these extortion taxi's!!

If you're going to do something then do it right!!!

The police don't own the streets and the sidewalks. If you want to clean this up it's easy!!! Start with the BIB!!!

[Bignose]

No doubt there will still be a number of belligerent, greedy and rude drivers but a start had to be made somewhere!

If this is followed up (and I believe it will be) by reinforcement of the rules and regulations pertaining to taxis, then lasting change will be made.

For too long some unacceptable behavior has been the "norm" for far too great a number of drivers, as standards improve they should gradually leave the industry by choice, they will be more suited to hiring out jet ski's or conducting tours...

[Guest]

You know, it took a long time for this taxi situation to get to where it is.

It will take more than one day to fix it.

This is one small step, on a very long pathway.

Just once, could a few Thai Visa folks chime in and say "Good on ya'" for taking some action?

I know if were monitoring this site, over time I would just reach the conclusion that nothing can make the Foreigner happy, so we may as well make it a "self fulfilling prophecy" ... turn them upside down, gather up the money, kick them in the rump and send them on their way.

I know i have jumped on a few folks (Costas for example) for a bit of too much "Rah Rah" ... but there are times to say OK, let's get behind this and root for the good guys.

For me, what I think the Foreigner can do is when you DO get a taxi with this sign on it, and they provide the kind of service promised by it ... and very hefty "Thank You Tip" would go a long way.

When you want to change behavior, there are two ways ...

(1) Punish bad behavior

(2) Reward good behavior.

The second yields the fastest results because it is a "run TO" solution ... instead of a "Run AWAY" solution.

So TV readers ... tip these guys and let the news spread .. "Foreigners are not cheap, they will pay for great service."

I personally will wait an extra five minutes to get a yellow and green Taxi in BKK.

Always clean, professional and very rarely a disappointment. I tip them heavily, and so do my friends ... and guess what? Like bees to the honey, now our soi seems to have LOTS of them ! Go figure, right? 555

[rebelplatoon]

A thorn in the side of every honest tourist. Partially removed....

[FloridaExport]

The reason drivers refuse to go to high traffic areas isn't the time it takes, it is because they are working without getting paid the same hourly rate. Imagine if you boss walked in every 30 minutes or so with a task that didn't pay as much as your normal rate despite taking nearly identical effort. That's what everyone in Thailand asks taxi drivers to do when they want to go to destinations in high traffic areas. It's a stupid entitled notion that seems to be universally shared by the public.

I've been saying for a long time that taxis need a better calculated meter that actually goes up when they are stuck in traffic. It also needs a setting that will make it so that if the taxi goes over, say, 100 kilometers per hour, they start start to lose money (it doesn't run backwards, it just gets capped or gives fewer baht per kilometer). This might actually promote safer driving.

If you even out the incentives to go to all locations, the drivers will magically take people where they want to go.

[steven100]

seems many drivers haven't been instructed yet .... just walked past a farang couple trying to get a taxi on Sukhumvit near Soi 25 ...

three taxis stopped ... window down .... drive off ....

[steven100]

Quite pathetic that Taxis have to be told what to do...

Perhaps the Taxis people should get together and report unscrupulous drivers who dont abide by what Taxis are supposed to do...

No need to slap your own face and put stickers up on your car ...

Totally agree .... absolutely ridiculous that measures have to be applied to make a taxi comply ...

They are a service that is required to take passengers from point A to B ...

THAT IS THEIR ROLE AND RESPONSIBILITY.

Any those who don't , should get a kick up the ass and be fired.

[MrJohnson]

If Grab taxi and other clones of this idea take off then that may go some way to solving the problem. The whole system needs re-working. There are no shortages of cabs in Bangkok but you have a 'system' where 90% of them are just driving around in circles looking for business. This not only wastes fuel it adds to traffic congestion. The flag fall needs to be increased and the fares to go as well. Part of the reason most taxis refuse to pick up passengers is that they know they will be stuck in traffic for hours for no reasonable fare. Just a start perhaps.

[mike324]

There is probably a market for starting a taxi company where you train your staff to be polite and not refuse customers. I'm sure if the service is good and your taxi color stands out, people will take notice and try to use your taxi all the time. I know in Indonesia, Blue Bird taxi offers a similar service where drivers are trained, based on an article I read in Forbes Asia, Blue Bird taxi dominates the taxi service in Indonesia.

Just like there is a market for training and providing restaurant staff in Thailand, as you all know staff performance and attitude is poor in Thailand, not to mention the retention rate for restaurants.

Thais need a serious attitude adjustment, they are falling behind in their manners and social etiquette. Back in the 80s and 90s, they were known to be nice and polite, nowadays I sometimes wonder who is the customer...

[balo]

I can't find a taxi with the sticker, where are they ?

[evadgib]

One of my pet peeves is being hailed by a cab whilst I walk down the road!

Me too, another is being thrown in to a pub!

[Alwyn]

Just punish them harder. The taxi who cheated that Japanese man got 500 baht fine, that's not enough! They should loose their license.

that's assuming they have a license to start

[ldiablo]

So what about the foreigners who don't read Thai. How are they to interpret this sign.

[Nickhick]

So let me understand this correctly.. Taxi drivers attend a ceremony and they agree to place those stickers which automatically (or by divine intervention) makes them change attitude..Right..

How about doing something similar for all the malaise plaguing this country? . Mmy sixth time coming here and I am beginning to understand all the rip off that goes on over here....making Vietnam look like a better place to retire..

[Toany]

Yet another problem in Thailand being address by the military Junta. They have made progress in so many areas that the elected governments have allowed to get worse over many years. Nothing is ever perfect. I just see many problems being addressed.