Taxi fares to increase, drivers must 'behave'

[buksida]

Taxi fares are set to increase by December under government plans to help drivers cope with rising operating costs — on the proviso that drivers clean up their act.

Transport Minister Prajin Juntong said a new taxi fare structure will be finalised this week after the ministry gave the green light for the price hike yesterday.

The ministry will call a meeting with taxi drivers and operators to give them guidelines on the fare rise and a set of conditions for the fare increase, ACM Prajin said.

As part of the conditions, cab drivers will be ordered to brush up on their manners and repair vehicles to meet safety and hygiene standards, including air-conditioning systems.

Source: Bangkok Post

Thought: Their worst trait is refusing fares, they should have their taxi license revoked for this IMO.

[Name Taken]

My thoughts: Their worst trait is speeding and driving like a careless maniac. Learning some more English would also be a good thing.

[Spitfire]

....................— on the proviso that drivers clean up their act.

Yeah, right.....as if.

[Thistle]

Agree with your thought Buksida regarding refusing fares,however this is another great example how to inject a positive into the failing tourism industry,increase taxi fares at the beginning of the high season,,,,,,,,,,,,things can only get better!

[lindosfan1]

Name taken said

Learning some more English would also be a good thing.

I think the answer is to learn more Thai. When in a foreign country an effort should be made to learn the basics of the language.

[Takiap]

Name taken said

Learning some more English would also be a good thing.

I think the answer is to learn more Thai. When in a foreign country an effort should be made to learn the basics of the language.

Surely you can't expect a tourist who is planning on visiting Thailand for ten days to learn Thai.

Tourism is one of Thailand's biggest money spinners. If you work in a field that sees you dealing with tourists, then at the very least you should be able to talk some basic English.

I've visited a number of countries with their own languages, and I can't speak even a few words in those languages. I would imagine the same applies to millions of tourists around the world.

I'm not saying Thais must learn to speak English, but if they're involved in the tourist industry and they can't speak it, then they shouldn't complain if tourists hand their cash over to those who can speak it.

[lindosfan1]

Takiap Thailand has many different nations visiting. To expect them to learn enough of each language to understand basics they would have to be skilled linguists. When I have travelled to different countries I take a map a guide book and learn the basics like please thank you etc. Then you can point to what you want and they will find it for you. If you live there then yes you should learn more than the basics.

[Dannie Boy]

Takiap Thailand has many different nations visiting. To expect them to learn enough of each language to understand basics they would have to be skilled linguists. When I have travelled to different countries I take a map a guide book and learn the basics like please thank you etc. Then you can point to what you want and they will find it for you. If you live there then yes you should learn more than the basics.

It's a fact that English is the universal second language spoken by non-English speaking people, so learning to speak English would allow a lot of visitors to be able to communicate. Of course for those expats living here in Thailand then learning the Thai language to a reasonable standard is the right thing to do.

[crazy88]

How many London, Sydney, New York, Paris cabbies speak Japanese, Chinese, Swedish, Spanish, German? Not a lot I would imagine. As someone mentioned at least read the in flight magazine or a guidebook for the basics and collect some business cards from the hotel to get home and ask the receptionist to write down your destination if you are going out somewhere. Simple really for any destination.

Crazy 88

[hhinner]

Expecting Bangkok taxi drivers being able to read maps shouldn't be too far fetched.

[Name Taken]

Name taken said

Learning some more English would also be a good thing.

I think the answer is to learn more Thai. When in a foreign country an effort should be made to learn the basics of the language.

If a person were to leave Thailand permanently then what good would learning and becoming fluent in Thai do them? The only country I know of where Thai is the predominant language spoken is obviously Thailand.
I do speak a little bit of(basic) Thai.

[Name Taken]

Takiap Thailand has many different nations visiting. To expect them to learn enough of each language to understand basics they would have to be skilled linguists. When I have travelled to different countries I take a map a guide book and learn the basics like please thank you etc. Then you can point to what you want and they will find it for you. If you live there then yes you should learn more than the basics.

It's a fact that English is the universal second language spoken by non-English speaking people, so learning to speak English would allow a lot of visitors to be able to communicate. Of course for those expats living here in Thailand then learning the Thai language to a reasonable standard is the right thing to do.

[Pleng]

however this is another great example how to inject a positive into the failing tourism industry,increase taxi fares at the beginning of the high season

Really, I doubt this is going to be a noticeable increase for the average tourist.

Taxi fares in bangkok are *dirt* cheap and incredibly good value for money. Perhaps a modest increase to the fares will encourage the drivers to turn the meters on a bit more often.