Taxi drivers fined for rejecting passengers at Bangkok's MBK Center (again)

[andygunther]

1000 B Fine, it stings probably a bit.... Good work

[Lobber]

Had one from the airport the other night, started off moaning ..

only 1 passenger

traffic bad

farang have big money

I have no money

traffic bad

traffic bad

farang give big tip 200 baht

traffic bad....

and on he went ....

so it goes

I felt like telling him it was is job and he chose to be a taxi driver ... IF he didn't like it Phuck off n pick rice in Issan........everyone would be very happy

[andygunther]

The wife and I went to Bangkok using the BTS from the airport (we get a taxi to the airport from Rayong, won't use minibuses anymore) and we needed a taxi from Phaya Thai station. We were pleasantly surprised that at ground level there is a manned taxi service (with girls) who log all fares and there was no discussion about the meter it was automatically used and even though the traffic was horrendous the taxi driver was pleasant chatting to us in Thai & English. As somebody posted earlier because it was a good service we tipped the driver so maybe some of them are getting switched on about being rewarded for using the meter. Our return journey was the opposite with having to haggle for price.

Rayong city now has metered taxis and I never have been able to get them to use the meter so it's generally 300 baht to Ban Phe although people on Phuket would probably view this as cheap compared to what they have. If not in a hurry the songthaews are 20 baht ........

It's the same in Pattaya, taxis refuse to use their meters...

[andygunther]

This is so sad that the military has to do the work for the police. How many did they catch ?

I hope many ....

l also hope they learned from this, but are doubtful.

[Jonmarleesco]

You would think a B1,000 fine would work wonders, even with the densest of rogue drivers. Either different taxis are sitting there, each and every day, or the same drivers are unable to connect the dots.

[pomchop]

Perhaps the good general might want to send his boys down to the Laem Chabang port which is completely, totally, and openly run by a taxi mafia.

Cruise ships with thousands of passengers arrive there to be met with the taxi mafia that PROUDLY displays big banners with fares to bangkok one way at $140 usd and one way to Pattaya for $50....NO meters, no negotiation, no exceptions.......the gate is a two/three mile walk and so most of the older passengers have no other choice for public transport....the last two times i was there a lot of the passengers got so disgusted with the taxi mafia that they just stayed on the ship spending ZERO money in Thailand.....i even watched as a thai girl and her farang husband and she tried to hire a local motorbike guy to take them to the gate but the guy said they would beat him if he did so he refused.

It would take about five minutes to find out who is MR BIG that controls this port and shut him down , assuming the good general wanted to do so. . As it is this guy rakes in some SERIOUS baht when a 2000 passenger ship pulls into port. Meantime it goes on year after year and while cruise port calls are growing by leaps and bounds across asia Thailand continues to get bad passenger reviews because of the MAFIA.

The taxi mafia sounds like they might be a little too much for the good general.

One MIGHT think that the largest port in Thailand, which no doubt was/is funded by the THAI GOVERNMENT might at least have a few administrators that would know exactly who Mr Big is and who he pays off to be allowed to run the port. A big fish that would be very very easy for the General to identify and arrest....it makes one wonder if perhaps Mr Big might not be a General himself....or perhaps the mafia is stronger than the military??

[mikiea]

Those pesky passengers are to blame for this, expecting to be dropped here and there, what do they think this is?

yea i think this whole problem is bushe's fault :-)

[mango66]

Good done Gen Prayouth and soldiers,

But therefore thai people ask to go back quick to " Democracy "" -

which means the corrupt RTP take over again,

and everything back as usual;

[p_brownstone]

great they do something and it actually gets some public attention (which means that a dishonest Cabbier will think twice doing the same thing next time), but I have to say this is just the tip of the iceberg and this iceberg will never ever melt......

but even near MBK you can actually get a proper Cab if you just walk a few Meters away from it and hail down a moving Cab.

The Taxi-line at Paragon is actually good too as you get some assistance by Paragon staff and if a destination is inconvenient to a driver (for example if his shift ends soon and he is asked to go to the opposite direction of town during rush-hour), then the Staff at the Taxi desk will ask the net driver to go there. Seen this many times and there was never a problem

I must vehemently disagree here; the Taxi Staff at Paragon really tick me off.

Many times I have been in the queue and seen the person / people at the front of the queue tell the Security chappie where they want to go, he then asks the next Taxi in the lane, if the Taxi says "No" because the proposed destination is not convenient, the Guard simply waves the Taxi away, empty, and waits for the next one to ask if he will take that particular passenger to that particular destination.

A truly dumb arrangement : if the proposed destination for the first person in line is not convenient for the Taxi driver anyone with sense would enquire from other passengers in line to match up passenger with Taxi rather than send an empty Taxi away and prolong the queue.

Patrick

Quite the opposite - your approach would reward the errant taxi driver behaviour by letting them pick and choose - the approach being taken reinforces the requirement to be prepared to take the first fare to their required destination, the consequence being no fare and wasted time. Omeletttes and eggs I am afraid.

Nonsense!

The Security Guard at the Taxi Stand in front of Siam Paragon is not paid to be an arbiter of Taxi Driver compliance with rules and regulations - he is paid - by Siam Paragon I guess - to ensure swift and efficient transportation service to shoppers leaving the Store.

If a Taxi cannot accept the first person in the queue, for whatever reason, then the Security Guard should be trained to enquire of other waiting passengers as to their destination and match it up with the available Taxi.

Why inconvenience dozens of waiting passengers in a pathetic - and unauthorised - attempt to penalise a random Taxi driver?

Patrick

[cyborgx]

Great pull them over. My wife and I where down from Khon Kaen at Pratunam markets, we stayed at the Indra Regent we wanted a taxi to take us to Don MUANG airport and 3 taxis refused. Which annoyed me. If I had seen a copper I would have reported the taxis.

And he'll likely do absolutely nothing, even though the government specifically told them to deal with taxis like this a year or so ago.

I once approached a policemen about a taqxi refusing to turn the meter on at the Siiom end of Patpong where the Tourist Police usually hang out. Yes I knew its mafia controlled, and that he would do nothing, but it was just after the government issued the directive to the police about bad taxi's, so I thought I'd test the water......

The lazy fat <deleted> started making excuses for the taxi driver! I got so pissed of and gave him such an ear bashing in Thai, a friend who was with me thought he was going to shoot me!

Bottom line is, don't expect much help from the police!

[robblok]

great they do something and it actually gets some public attention (which means that a dishonest Cabbier will think twice doing the same thing next time), but I have to say this is just the tip of the iceberg and this iceberg will never ever melt......

but even near MBK you can actually get a proper Cab if you just walk a few Meters away from it and hail down a moving Cab.

The Taxi-line at Paragon is actually good too as you get some assistance by Paragon staff and if a destination is inconvenient to a driver (for example if his shift ends soon and he is asked to go to the opposite direction of town during rush-hour), then the Staff at the Taxi desk will ask the net driver to go there. Seen this many times and there was never a problem

I must vehemently disagree here; the Taxi Staff at Paragon really tick me off.

Many times I have been in the queue and seen the person / people at the front of the queue tell the Security chappie where they want to go, he then asks the next Taxi in the lane, if the Taxi says "No" because the proposed destination is not convenient, the Guard simply waves the Taxi away, empty, and waits for the next one to ask if he will take that particular passenger to that particular destination.

A truly dumb arrangement : if the proposed destination for the first person in line is not convenient for the Taxi driver anyone with sense would enquire from other passengers in line to match up passenger with Taxi rather than send an empty Taxi away and prolong the queue.

Patrick

Quite the opposite - your approach would reward the errant taxi driver behaviour by letting them pick and choose - the approach being taken reinforces the requirement to be prepared to take the first fare to their required destination, the consequence being no fare and wasted time. Omeletttes and eggs I am afraid.

Nonsense!

The Security Guard at the Taxi Stand in front of Siam Paragon is not paid to be an arbiter of Taxi Driver compliance with rules and regulations - he is paid - by Siam Paragon I guess - to ensure swift and efficient transportation service to shoppers leaving the Store.

If a Taxi cannot accept the first person in the queue, for whatever reason, then the Security Guard should be trained to enquire of other waiting passengers as to their destination and match it up with the available Taxi.

Why inconvenience dozens of waiting passengers in a pathetic - and unauthorised - attempt to penalise a random Taxi driver?

Patrick

What a selfish remark.. and all the posters who said you are wrong are right.

If they would do it your way then people with far destinations would never get a ride, and they are customers too. Did you think of that.. probably not. It would only get worse then. This way the driver at least has to pick someone up.

I see the same thing happening at other malls and I and many others (you can see that by the likes and no likes on your post) agree this is the way to do it.

Guess most people see the merit and you don't.. or maybe you understand but are just real selfish.

[kkerry]

great they do something and it actually gets some public attention (which means that a dishonest Cabbier will think twice doing the same thing next time), but I have to say this is just the tip of the iceberg and this iceberg will never ever melt......

but even near MBK you can actually get a proper Cab if you just walk a few Meters away from it and hail down a moving Cab.

The Taxi-line at Paragon is actually good too as you get some assistance by Paragon staff and if a destination is inconvenient to a driver (for example if his shift ends soon and he is asked to go to the opposite direction of town during rush-hour), then the Staff at the Taxi desk will ask the net driver to go there. Seen this many times and there was never a problem

I must vehemently disagree here; the Taxi Staff at Paragon really tick me off.

Many times I have been in the queue and seen the person / people at the front of the queue tell the Security chappie where they want to go, he then asks the next Taxi in the lane, if the Taxi says "No" because the proposed destination is not convenient, the Guard simply waves the Taxi away, empty, and waits for the next one to ask if he will take that particular passenger to that particular destination.

A truly dumb arrangement : if the proposed destination for the first person in line is not convenient for the Taxi driver anyone with sense would enquire from other passengers in line to match up passenger with Taxi rather than send an empty Taxi away and prolong the queue.

Patrick

Quite the opposite - your approach would reward the errant taxi driver behaviour by letting them pick and choose - the approach being taken reinforces the requirement to be prepared to take the first fare to their required destination, the consequence being no fare and wasted time. Omeletttes and eggs I am afraid.

Nonsense!

The Security Guard at the Taxi Stand in front of Siam Paragon is not paid to be an arbiter of Taxi Driver compliance with rules and regulations - he is paid - by Siam Paragon I guess - to ensure swift and efficient transportation service to shoppers leaving the Store.

If a Taxi cannot accept the first person in the queue, for whatever reason, then the Security Guard should be trained to enquire of other waiting passengers as to their destination and match it up with the available Taxi.

Why inconvenience dozens of waiting passengers in a pathetic - and unauthorised - attempt to penalise a random Taxi driver?

Patrick

And what if security has to quiz ten prospective passengers before they find one who meets the drivers expectations???

Either the driver takes the passenger next in line like they're meant to or they depart without a fare, then it's on to the next taxi who will. Have to take the good with the bad, no cherry picking prospective fares. Paragon security have got it right.

[spidermike007]

This is a very positive development. Only when discipline is imposed, and laws are enforced can Thailand expect to move ahead and become the place it desires to be. I am constantly hearing about Thailand's desire to be the beacon of light, heading ASEAN into a new era of prosperity. How is that going to happen when the country is run by a group of men children, who do not have the will nor the resolve to maintain law and order? What is the society without a semblance of law and order? A tropical jungle, with alot of concrete? A place of wishful thinking only?

They cannot fine nor punish these guys enough. If only they would do something about Phuket and Samui, the two most lawless places in the country, when it comes to the taxi mafia, it's hold on those areas, and the incredible scams the drivers are allowed to get away with. In Samui, I recently saw this sign posted. This is actually not frowned upon by the authorities. 20 KM. for 1000 baht. That is acceptable. Nathan to Lipa Noi is 4 km. For 400 baht. The mafia has such control that nobody challenges them. Even the big man will not touch them. Nobody. Utter and absolute lawlessness.

Edited March 19, 2015 by spidermike007

[cookee68]

Well if the taxi drivers stopped then they would have no reason to complain about the fine being to steep, the steeper the fine the better, then they will get the message, they are after all taxi drivers, that is their job, stop moaning and do what you get paid to do,

[brubakertx]

GREAT!!!!!!

I tired to get a taxi at MBK, and none of the drivers would use meters, or they refused to take me to where I wanted to go.

They tired to charge 400-500 baht, for a ride that should cost less than 200.

I hope they continue to crack down on these guys.

[Griffo63]

Let's give the taxi drivers a break. Taxi charges are dirt cheap and in most locations you can pick up a taxi at the 3rd or 4th attempt anyway. If the driver doesn't want the business or wants to work without a meter you can choose to use him or not. In most cases the difference between the meter price and the drivers demands is 50 - 100 baht. In UK term £1-£2. It's peanuts. Get over it !!!

Oh God...the ''fare converted to irrelevant foreign currency argument'' again.

And NO...let's NOT give the lazy bastards a break. There are plenty of decent taxi drivers around. Suspend the bad ones and those deserving of it will earn more money.

Well for me, I bring my money in from the UK to spend here - so the argument is very relevant. As I said you can choose or not to use the taxi without the meter - sometimes pigheadedness (not wanting to pay an extra few baht (£)) leads to frustration, anger, increased blood pressure, and losing or wasting time. Life too short (for me anyway)

[Griffo63]

Let's give the taxi drivers a break. Taxi charges are dirt cheap and in most locations you can pick up a taxi at the 3rd or 4th attempt anyway. If the driver doesn't want the business or wants to work without a meter you can choose to use him or not. In most cases the difference between the meter price and the drivers demands is 50 - 100 baht. In UK term £1-£2. It's peanuts. Get over it !!!

Take a look around, we are not in the UK.

Well for me, I bring my money in from the UK to spend here - so the argument is very relevant. As I said you can choose or not to use the taxi without the meter - sometimes pigheadedness (not wanting to pay an extra few baht (£)) leads to frustration, anger, increased blood pressure, and losing or wasting time. Life too short (for me anyway)

[scorecard]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

Let's give the taxi drivers a break. Taxi charges are dirt cheap and in most locations you can pick up a taxi at the 3rd or 4th attempt anyway. If the driver doesn't want the business or wants to work without a meter you can choose to use him or not. In most cases the difference between the meter price and the drivers demands is 50 - 100 baht. In UK term £1-£2. It's peanuts. Get over it !!!

Take a look around, we are not in the UK.

Well for me, I bring my money in from the UK to spend here - so the argument is very relevant. As I said you can choose or not to use the taxi without the meter - sometimes pigheadedness (not wanting to pay an extra few baht (£)) leads to frustration, anger, increased blood pressure, and losing or wasting time. Life too short (for me anyway)

Lost in transit are we?

[Griffo63]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

Let's give the taxi drivers a break. Taxi charges are dirt cheap and in most locations you can pick up a taxi at the 3rd or 4th attempt anyway. If the driver doesn't want the business or wants to work without a meter you can choose to use him or not. In most cases the difference between the meter price and the drivers demands is 50 - 100 baht. In UK term £1-£2. It's peanuts. Get over it !!!

Take a look around, we are not in the UK.

Well for me, I bring my money in from the UK to spend here - so the argument is very relevant. As I said you can choose or not to use the taxi without the meter - sometimes pigheadedness (not wanting to pay an extra few baht (£)) leads to frustration, anger, increased blood pressure, and losing or wasting time. Life too short (for me anyway)

Lost in transit are we?

Sorry - I'm missing your point.

[lockman]

Was at mbk yesterday. Witnessed our taxi driver refuse 4 Indians. We got in no problem. He told us then the reason was that where they wanted to go had huge traffic delays and they refused to pay the tolls.

That to me would seem to be a separate issue that if true, the drivers should address as to higher charges for time. I have no problem myself with paying tolls, but not just overcharging. My worst "area" is Marchit when the buses come in and cannot get into terminal area.

[MaxYakov]

Was at mbk yesterday. Witnessed our taxi driver refuse 4 Indians. We got in no problem. He told us then the reason was that where they wanted to go had huge traffic delays and they refused to pay the tolls.

Actually, I stopped taking all forms of motorized taxis long ago as I now use bicycle to get around Bangkok. I believe taxi drivers should have a right to turn down any fare for any reason. People have been spoiled by having taxis available in a matter of seconds. This model clogs the streets with excessive traffic, especially at peak times. Also, auto owners are abusing their privilege by driving relatively short distances to work and parking in the narrow sois and obstructing traffic. I would also ban motorbike taxis as being too dangerous and polluting. Motorbikes in general are abused in Bangkok by being used for frivolous trips and endangering both innocent children and adults as passengers. Thai people and tourists would like to have the luxuries of an affluent Western society, but they really can't pay for it and the infrastructure in the majority of Bangkok was not built to support that life style.

[steven100]

Foreign Tourists Allegedly Dumped on Tollway by Thai Taxi

By Khaosod Eng.

BANGKOK — The Expressway Authority of Thailand (EXAT) says it is investigating a claim that a taxi driver stranded a family of foreign tourists on a highway in Bangkok.

The allegation surfaced after a Facebook user named Surachai Hiranpraditthakul posted a photo that purported to show a foreign couple and toddler being forced to get out of a cab on the expressway because their taxi driver took a wrong turn.

According to Surachai, the family hailed the cab from Suvarnabhumi Airport and asked to go to Rama IX Road, but the driver missed the exit on the expressway and did not want to look for another U-Turn, so he simply forced the passengers to get out.

"Aren't Thai taxis bastards?" Surachai wrote, "A driver kicked foreigners out on the tollway. Friends, don't only read this post. You can freely curse the [driver]."

Read More: http://www.khaosoden...wsid=1426856475

[Malthus101]

I would love to see how much you guys love it if you had to eke out a living in BKK as a taxi driver, getting stuck in the same traffic jams every single day of your miserable lives...

[trainman34014]

I would love to see how much you guys love it if you had to eke out a living in BKK as a taxi driver, getting stuck in the same traffic jams every single day of your miserable lives...

Nobody 'has to be' a taxi driver. There's an old saying....'' If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen ''.

[2fishin2]

Was at MBK today and cruised by Siam status is: situation normal everywhere....taxis not taking people etc. But, took a taxi from DM couple days back, no questions asked meter came right on. Nice taxi, nice driver, no complaining. Driver got nice tip.