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Crackdown on cherry-picking taxi drivers
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LAW enforcement officers, including those in plainclothes, will be posted in Lujiazui financial district to look out for errant taxi drivers cherry-picking passengers, authorities said yesterday.
The latest campaign follows regular complaints from the media and citizens about cabbies overcharging passengers in the area, particularly after 8pm.
“I wanted to travel from Lujiazui to Jing’an Temple and the taxi driver wanted 200 yuan for the ride,” a man surnamed Wang told Shanghai Daily yesterday. The roughly 7-kilometer trip actually costs about 30 yuan.
Wang said he pointed it out to an officer standing nearby who instead told him to avoid taxis in the area.
Officials from the Lujiazui General Management Office told Shanghai Daily that it was difficult to gather evidence against the drivers while also admitting that there was a shortage of taxis in Lujiazui.
“Complaints from passengers alone are not enough. It is not easy getting proof against them and neither will taxi drivers admit to refusing passengers,” an official named Zhang Haitao said.
“Passengers will also need to provide evidences of bargaining like pictures, videos and the car plate numbers.”
Currently, there are 9 enforcement officials posted on duty in the locality but only three of them are qualified to carry out undercover operation.
“Taxi drivers can easily spot the officers and immediately warn the others,” Zhang said.
Since January, only 45 taxis were penalized for cherry picking. Usually drivers are fined 200 yuan and forced to sit out of business for 15 days. If they are caught again, their business license is revoked.
Authorities have installed 12 cameras and another 10 will be added by October 1. Drivers caught on video will be warned for the first time and fined 200 yuan if caught again.
Lujiazui has about 84 office buildings and 250,000 white-collar workers working there.
Pudong New Area also receives about 33 million tourists a year, as Lujiazui alone, with its scenic spots and shopping malls, receiving about 20 million.
This is also the group that hails taxis rather than use other means of transport as they are not familiar with the area.
Because of its location, taxis avoid the area unless they have to drop off passengers in the district.
Another officer Wang Qiwei told Shanghai Daily that they plan to put up informations boards about other modes of transport in the area like Metro and buses and also sign posts about taxi fares.
“The Metro station is close by and People’s Square is just one station away. It makes more sense taking the Metro. It is very likely that if you take a taxi you will end up sitting in a traffic jam,” an official surnamed Cai told Shanghai Daily.
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