Cabbies who refuse fares face dismissal
Print Edition
ONE of Shanghai’s leading taxi companies has introduced a “two strikes and you’re out” rule for drivers found guilty of cherry-picking fares.
Shanghai Dazhong Taxi Co said yesterday it has recruited 100 members of the public to work as “service supervisors” in a bid to crack down on choosy cabbies.
“If a driver is reported to have refused a fare, he or she will be fined 200 yuan (US$32) and suspended for 15 days,” said Lin Yi, general manager of the company’s Pudong branch.
“If they are caught a second time, they will be sacked,” he said.
The supervisors will flag down taxis at random and ask to be taken to various locations, Lin said.
“As well as rooting out cabbies who refuse fares, they will assess the quality of the service provided, including things like the cleanliness of the vehicle and how the driver is dressed,” he said.
Members of the public are also encouraged to report their experiences of bad service to Dazhong, he said.
One of the reasons for the dip in service standards is that fewer people these days want to work as cabbies, Lin said.
“Driving a taxi is no longer such an attractive occupation. We have been steadily losing drivers,” he said.
“Many new recruits lack experience, so we have to spend a lot of time training them in customer service,” he said.
As well as Dazhong, several other taxi firms, including Jinjiang and Qiangsheng, have introduced new rules in a bid to combat cherry-picking by drivers.
Meanwhile, Yang Guoping, general manager of Dazhong, said yesterday that the company is working with the Shanghai Transport Commission to develop a new zhuanche (“special car”) option for the city’s taxi users.
The service will be similar to those provided by Didi, Kuaidi and Uber, with customers paying a premium for a higher quality service and a nicer car, he said.
“The new service will be market-oriented and run by the taxi companies, but the commission will play the role of supervisor,” said Ma Fei, deputy director of the transport authority’s management office.
Details of the new service are still being discussed, but more information is expected to be released before the end of the first half of the year, he said.
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