The Taxi Mafia

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I have sat in silence for too long. I have ignored the heart palpitations, the high blood pressure, and the severe case of anxiety. It’s time for me to speak out. Time for us all to speak out. Time for us to stand up, demand to be counted, and demand to be shown some damned respect. For far too long taxi drivers in Australia have had the monopoly on a market that deserves to be overthrown.

Let me begin by outlining the responsibilities of a taxi driver:

> pick up passengers and take them to a desired location

That’s it. Simple. However some of them (and I say some though I suspect and point my damned finger at every damned one of them), seem to forget the first part of that directive: “pick up passengers”. I have lost track of the amount of times I have waited on the side of a road and waved furiously at taxis (with their lights on – which in this country indicates they don’t have any passengers) and they have either not stopped, or pulled over, asked where I’m off to and then sped off! Sorry am I missing something here? You, Mr Taxi Driver man don’t have the option of being picky. Your job is to stop and pick up passengers. It’s like a Doctor walking into an operating theatre and saying “And what is your problem today sir?” and the patient replying (through painful tears) “To have my appendix removed” and the Dr turning around and walking out. It just doesn’t happen! So why do taxi drivers feel they can be oh so high and mighty and refuse people. Do they think they are better than doctors? Get outta my face!

Then there is the second part of their job description to “take [people] to a desired location”. I can’t count on one hand (mostly because I lost three of my fingers in a butcher’s shop) the amount of times I have gotten into a taxi only to be told by the driver “Would you be able to direct me there?”. What? You are a taxi driver employed to drive people to places they want to go. As a prerequisite for the job you need to know locations. If I worked on a newsagent and someone comes in and says “Can I have a copy of ‘Railroad Enthusiasts’?” and I reply “Sure can you show me where in the store it might be?” I am going to be laughed at. So why in hell do we let taxi drivers get away with it? Most of these guys even have sat-nav systems now and they still don’t use them!

Then! Oh boy! Then, we have the drivers that won’t pick you up because it’s “almost knock-off” time. Huh?? So no working back and doing some extra cash on the side overtime for these guys? Shift change is a constant, across the board, time of 3pm and 3am. So if you are basically within an hour before that time, or an hour after, you can expect not to be picked up? Why are we dictated to by these drivers about when they will and won’t pick us up? It’s their JOB to pick people up! Simple as that! It’s 2.30pm and I want to go on a full-fare paying trip that is likely to take an hour and earn them extra pocket money to feed their starving family? Then work OVERTIME! Sheesh I know it’s a startling revelation for taxi drivers that the notion of working 5 minutes past their bedtime could be considered but come on! I work back at the office every so often – not because I really want to, or that I’m getting paid overtime, but because it’s expected that I finish the work I am allocated that day. Simple.
I have given great consideration to starting my own rival taxi company built on the simple notion of shift change being at 6am and 6pm. That way, when all those other suckers are heading back to their mummies at 3am I just cruise along and pick up all those poor sods that have been left for dead by the side of the road.
Me and my taxi drivers (oh yes, I’d have a whole fleet) would be quite happy to work overtime too. If they get a fare on the way back to base, I suggest they take it. We’d be a hard working fleet that sticks to our job description “pick up passengers and take them to a desired location” and we’d do it damned well.

These guys, the taxi mafia as I have called them, have had it it too easy for too long. It’s time we stood up and demanded that these guys do their job.

- Posted by Mason Hell-Cat (www.masonhellcat.wordpress.com)

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Filed under Bureaucracy

Tags: cab, Sydney Taxi, taxi, taxi driver