Move to hike taxi fare gets huge thumbs down: poll

[webfact]

Move to hike taxi fare gets huge thumbs down: poll

By The Nation

 

 

A Nida Poll has reported that 81 per cent of respondents are unhappy with the new taxi fare that raises the immobile rate from Bt2 per minute to Bt3 per minute.

 

The poll conducted by the National Institute of Development Administration reveals the results of a survey on “Transport Minister Gives Green Light for Taxi Fare Increase”. The survey on August 8-9 surveyed 1,505 residents of Bangkok and its perimeter. The respondents came from a wide spectrum of society.

 

According to the poll, 62.52 per cent of participants disagreed with the raising of the taxi fare from the second to the 10th kilometre from Bt6 to Bt6.50 per km, arguing that the old rate was already high, the prices of NGV/gasoline had not gone up substantially, and the service quality did not merit the hike.

 

Of the respondents, 35.02 per cent agreed with the hike, reasoning that it could reduce the problem of taxi drivers refusing customers, while 2.46 per cent answered “do not know/are not sure”.

 

The great majority who disagreed with the immobile rate hike argued that driving in a traffic jam was inevitable and should be considered a part of the service. However, 18.07 per cent of respondents backed the raise, citing the same reasons, while 0.93 per cent were unsure.

 

The poll also explored public opinions on the hike in airport taxi surcharge from Bt50 to Bt70 for small vehicles and Bt90 for large vehicles. Some 76 per cent disagreed with the raise, saying airport taxis had already monopolised the service and passengers were not allowed to call taxis from outside the airport. They also said that the service quality did not merit a price raise.

 

Around 22 per cent agreed with the raise, saying it was reasonable and affordable for most airport users. About 1.51 per cent of respondents were unsure.

 

Source: https://www.nationthailand.com/news/30374595

 

-- © Copyright The Nation Thailand 2019-08-12

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[RichardColeman]

No taxi should ever be by 'the minute' it should always be by the KM, as it seems the best way for taxi driver under these regulations to guarantee a large fare is just to drive into the middle of a traffic jam !

[gunderhill]

Oh yeah so theyve stopped the "cannot" when you tell them where you want to go then, especially when its raining, the 33%   hike lets them carry  on AS USUAL!

[leeneeds]

3 hours ago, webfact said:

They also said that the service quality did not merit a price raise.

For the many bad ones there are more good ones just trying to make an honest living,

Sanctioning those bad ones from holding a taxi licence ( ever ) would go some way to lifting the standard that gets tarnished by the few. Lifting the airport fee, I don't have a problem with,  as a wait for the drivers can be long but the benefit to the environment is a trade off , by not driving around looking for a fare, as so many do in BKK,  

[Matzzon]

In my opinion they are entitled to a raise. They should only be given half, though. The rest of the raise should be granted when they, and they see to that their colleagues, are following the laws and rules. Like abolish the no use of meter, no ripp offs and well mannered behaviour.

[Benmart]

In Pattaya, the taxis refuse to use the meter as required by law. The "usual fare" uttered by the miscreant drivers is "200 baht", or the alternative "300 baht", or more.

[Chang_paarp]

The fares on BKK taxis are very low, there has been a justifiable push to give them a price rise for some years. The drivers have had to put up with increases in costs without an similar increase in fares. No one likes a price increase but this is modest given how long since the last time there was an increase in fares.

That there are some drivers who want to freelance is a lack of enforcement, maybe put the inspectors on a "bonus" system to ensure they actually do their jobs. I know this is pie in the sky stuff, but it will do more to improve the quality of the taxi fleet than the current reactive only do something when there is a fuss in the media.

[mikebell]

1 hour ago, leeneeds said:

For the many bad ones there are more good ones just trying to make an honest living,

Not in my experience but then I only travel in tourist areas.

[Sonhia]

Pay more for what? Vehicles unsafe. Extortion.

 

The service as a whole is rubbish, and I dont like the idea the taxi driver may have fire arms and potential killer!

 

 

[AhFarangJa]

4 hours ago, RichardColeman said:

No taxi should ever be by 'the minute' it should always be by the KM, as it seems the best way for taxi driver under these regulations to guarantee a large fare is just to drive into the middle of a traffic jam !

A very easy task to perform in Bangkok.....

[RotBenz8888]

 

5 hours ago, webfact said:

They also said that the service quality did not merit a price raise.

Sometimes when i arrive at my destination with taxi, I have an awkward feeling, paying someone who just put my life in serious danger.

[leeneeds]

53 minutes ago, mikebell said:

Not in my experience but then I only travel in tourist areas.

I have taken many a taxi from Bkk to Korat when I have short time and just want to get home quickly, out of all those trips I have had two bad ones, but now more experienced I look for a younger driver and a cab that is in good condition, I refuse a  taxi if it does not meet that standard, at the airport, and wait to find the one I think will be ok, so far it has eliminated a bad one.

[Artisi]

4 hours ago, RichardColeman said:

No taxi should ever be by 'the minute' it should always be by the KM, as it seems the best way for taxi driver under these regulations to guarantee a large fare is just to drive into the middle of a traffic jam !

that's sounds like a load of BS... 

[Artisi]

22 minutes ago, RotBenz8888 said:

 

Sometimes when i arrive at my destination with taxi, I have an awkward feeling, paying someone who just put my life in serious danger.

don't use cabs - solves your problem.

[DLock]

In a competitive situation where Grab Taxi is cleaner, safer, cheaper and better service, you want to raise the taxi price by 50%?

 

If it came with some sort of improvements it might get some support, but pay more for the same surly attitude, poor condition taxi's, dodgy drivers and scams...?

 

...computer says no.

[VincentRJ]

4 hours ago, Chang_paarp said:

The fares on BKK taxis are very low, there has been a justifiable push to give them a price rise for some years. The drivers have had to put up with increases in costs without an similar increase in fares. No one likes a price increase but this is modest given how long since the last time there was an increase in fares.

That there are some drivers who want to freelance is a lack of enforcement, maybe put the inspectors on a "bonus" system to ensure they actually do their jobs. I know this is pie in the sky stuff, but it will do more to improve the quality of the taxi fleet than the current reactive only do something when there is a fuss in the media.

I recently returned from a short trip to Bangkok, on my way to and from Siem Reap from Australia, during the month of July this year. I spent a few days in 3 different hotels in Bangkok, travelling by taxi from and to the airport and by taxi between each hotel, plus a couple of other sites I visited.

 

Whenever the hotel called a taxi for me, I insisted on a metered taxi. On one occasion the taxi driver refused to use the meter and wanted 500 Baht to take me to my destination, on the basis that the way would be congested and would take a long time. 

 

I rejected his offer and waited for another taxi to arrive at the hotel. As I sat in the taxi, I watched the meter very gradually rise from the initial 35 Baht. I was amazed how slowly it rose. The traffic was fairly congested but not nearly as bad as 'rush hour'. When I arrived at my destination, well over an hour later, the total fare was 290 Baht, approximately A$14.

 

I couldn't help thinking, 'what a bargain'. In Australia, such a trip would have cost me between $50 and $70 AUD.

 

From visits to Thailand many years ago, I had received a rough impression that the general cost of living in Thailand was about one third of the cost of a similar lifestyle in Australia. On this trip, it became apparent that this was no longer the case. Hotels in Bangkok, even during the off-peak period of July, seemed just as expensive as similar quality hotels in Australia.

 

The only item that still seemed to be 1/3rd of the cost, or even less, was metered taxi fares. I can understand why there's a move to increase taxi fares. Seems perfectly fair in view of the general increased cost of living in Thailand (or at least in Bangkok).

[Srikcir]

8 hours ago, webfact said:

arguing that the old rate was already high, the prices of NGV/gasoline had not gone up substantially

Comparison to NGV/gasoline prices is invalid as the government controls those prices, especially to counter consumer inflation.

Whereas taxi operators are not protected against inflation. If the "old rate" didn't keep pace with inflation, a higher rate would be justified.

I don't expect the public to understand such economic nuances.

[natway09]

And all this is a waste of time if they will not use the meter,

Phuket mafia just laugh at this 

[Artisi]

3 hours ago, VincentRJ said:

I recently returned from a short trip to Bangkok, on my way to and from Siem Reap from Australia, during the month of July this year. I spent a few days in 3 different hotels in Bangkok, travelling by taxi from and to the airport and by taxi between each hotel, plus a couple of other sites I visited.

 

Whenever the hotel called a taxi for me, I insisted on a metered taxi. On one occasion the taxi driver refused to use the meter and wanted 500 Baht to take me to my destination, on the basis that the way would be congested and would take a long time. 

 

I rejected his offer and waited for another taxi to arrive at the hotel. As I sat in the taxi, I watched the meter very gradually rise from the initial 35 Baht. I was amazed how slowly it rose. The traffic was fairly congested but not nearly as bad as 'rush hour'. When I arrived at my destination, well over an hour later, the total fare was 290 Baht, approximately A$14.

 

I couldn't help thinking, 'what a bargain'. In Australia, such a trip would have cost me between $50 and $70 AUD.

 

From visits to Thailand many years ago, I had received a rough impression that the general cost of living in Thailand was about one third of the cost of a similar lifestyle in Australia. On this trip, it became apparent that this was no longer the case. Hotels in Bangkok, even during the off-peak period of July, seemed just as expensive as similar quality hotels in Australia.

 

The only item that still seemed to be 1/3rd of the cost, or even less, was metered taxi fares. I can understand why there's a move to increase taxi fares. Seems perfectly fair in view of the general increased cost of living in Thailand (or at least in Bangkok).

I agree about the cab fares - I've been saying for years - too cheap, they need  a review and tough luck for all the penny pinching cheap-charlies, the first ones to whinge about being ripped-off but are more than happy to rip-off the cabbies that use their meters.

 

Added: 1 hour in an Ausie cab at $50 - $70 would be cheap. 

[Artisi]

32 minutes ago, natway09 said:

And all this is a waste of time if they will not use the meter,

Phuket mafia just laugh at this 

not everyone lives in Phuket …. 

[Fred white]

11 hours ago, RichardColeman said:

No taxi should ever be by 'the minute' it should always be by the KM, as it seems the best way for taxi driver under these regulations to guarantee a large fare is just to drive into the middle of a traffic jam !

The only for a by the minute would be if a person asked them to wait for them

[DaRoadrunner]

They want to raise the "immobile" rate.... One can certainly spend a lot of time immobile.

 

How about coming down heavily on the Phuket and Pattaya Taxi Mafia and enforcing the use of meters?

[4675636b596f75]

11 hours ago, RichardColeman said:

No taxi should ever be by 'the minute' it should always be by the KM, as it seems the best way for taxi driver under these regulations to guarantee a large fare is just to drive into the middle of a traffic jam !

Earning 3 baht a minute?  I think not.

[new2here]

I don’t think you can really raise salaries (in this case, by raising fares) and expect that to effectively fix service and related issues long term.

I DO think that you must have a fair, market-driven salary scale because if you don’t, you will find some element of “self-help” to artificially (and improperly/illegally) increase salaries.... I don’t condone self-help, but recognize that it tends to be more of an issue when the average salary doesn’t match the market levels if you will.

To that end, I don’t think simply raising fares will remove all acts of self-help... it think it will reduce it.. but to truly get a handle on it, that to me must be done via enforcement.

I think to date the governments process or method of enforcement really isn’t working.. so I think it’s time to change tactic.

I would focus less on the non-compliant drivers themselves and more on the cooperatives who hire them or allow them to lease vehicles.

I’d start imposing fines on the cooperatives and impounding vehicles owned by the cooperatives for defined periods of time ... In essence, let the cooperatives do the “enforcement” of the underlying drivers for you... you hit the cooperatives with sanctions, I’ll bet they’ll turn around and hit the underlying driver with the same or worse...

Plus, I think it’s easier to report violations - vehicle colors and vehicle plates are easier to record safely from a given distance and don’t require the reporter/passenger to be IN the taxi.






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[FritsSikkink]

^{No wonder, if people claim to live of 200 thb a day, it will be a struggle.}

[Dogmatix]

Jakarta is more of a dump than Bangkok and used to have horrible taxis but they now have decent taxis you can call by phone and they arrive in a few minutes and always put on the meter. You can choose different types of car at different price points.

 

Why does Thailand have to keep the archaic system of unruly, beat up smelly and often unlicensed cars and drivers controlled by mafia owners paying off the useless Land Transport Dept and police? Id it because Thai people are sheep who never complain about outrageous inefficiency and accept corruption at all levels of society?

[Artisi]

1 hour ago, Dogmatix said:

Jakarta is more of a dump than Bangkok and used to have horrible taxis but they now have decent taxis you can call by phone and they arrive in a few minutes and always put on the meter. You can choose different types of car at different price points.

 

Why does Thailand have to keep the archaic system of unruly, beat up smelly and often unlicensed cars and drivers controlled by mafia owners paying off the useless Land Transport Dept and police? Id it because Thai people are sheep who never complain about outrageous inefficiency and accept corruption at all levels of society?

why do they keep the archaic system -- basically because they are unable to do anything about it, however, if you have any worthwhile plan in mind to overcome the current system (especially with the remnants of the junta in power) I'm sure there are many eager listeners just waiting on a fool-proof system to sort things out.