The never ending Malaysian taxi saga.............

I am revisiting the article which I wrote earlier, because
1. Now I have to use taxis to go to some places for work.
2. At KLIA they are fighting hard to get rid of tout for private taxis at the airport.

To go to visits some of my customers in KL I have to use taxis. The traffic is too congested in KL for me to drive around the City to visit my customers, especially in areas where I need to visit them monthly. So what I did originally was I made arrangement with certain taxi drivers to come and pick me up at my house. I found this unreliable as they do not normally come on the exact time when you want them. So I have stopped that arrangement. Now I go over to the nearest LRT station near where I live and pick a taxi from there. This is where the fun starts. When I say that I want to hire a taxi for about ½ a day, many look at me as if I am stupid. "What for?" they ask. "To go to work" I say. Many turn me down on the excuse that they may need to pick up their children from school or their wives from the market. Very unprofessional of them I thought. Anyway some will agree, provided I pay them extra. I have no alternative but to agree, on the condition that they use their taxi meter and I will pay them on top of that as my work entails them to wait for me at the customers premises while I do my work. On the agreement then we go..

There are a few facts I found about taxis in KL. Some are self owned, probably they are ex-Servicemen so they are given the licence to drive and own a taxi. Some may drive their parents taxis, they themselves have the taxi driving licence. Most I find out hire the taxi over a period and they normally go on shift, each day finishing their shift at 3.0 pm, when either another driver takes over or the vehicle owner may want to drive their own taxis. And these taxi drivers, when they hire a taxi vehicle, pay for the petrol or gas, whatever fuel they use, pay for the taxi breakdown maintenance, if occurs during their shift, and pay a daily rental. RM 40.00 per day I get the answer mostly from them. Some pay as high as RM 42.00 to RM 45.00 per day. And there are also taxis (mostly I think) owned by Companies. Its an easy business but made complicated. by the inability of individual to easily getting licence for a taxi, inability for individual to buy a taxi unless he is sure of getting a licence and of course the inability of a taxi owner making sure that he can make a living by just driving a taxi. I once had a ride on a taxi driven a pensioner (I wonder though how he got the taxi licence) and he says he only work whenever he feels like it, once he has enough from the day's taking he just goes home and sleep. Cant blame him, he was an old man. Then I went once into a taxi which was self owned. He was happy that he need not change shift at 3.00 pm, and so I hired him almost the whole day, and I got more job done. And once I went into a taxi which was hired two brothers and they change shift. But the taxi driver said that the shift was flexible as they were brothers. Without prejudice, many of the people who turn me down for the ½ day hire are Malays, though I must confess that other Malays who own taxis are easy to hire as they say that it is their livelihood. They have already taken care of the children school going and the wife shopping programme. I though that these guys must be real professional. And I have this Indian fellow, very friendly and very talkative and very easy going who drove me a couple of times.

Taxi drivers are cross section of the population. They almost live in their own world. Some are in it for the need of money, some as a normal job like going to office but of course they need the money as well. Some just to keep busy and at the same time earning money. Some are educated enough to understand world and current affairs, some refuse to talk about the current affairs (too political they say) and some are very knowledgeable on local and foreign film stars and singers and very up to date in those areas. But the uneducated ones, who have been willing to take me, I found them very professional but unfortunately cannot really read or write. I know about this when I ask for receipt when I pay the fare for the trip. They will give me a blank receipt and would ask me to write. Most of them are of the old generation, Chinese especially as they can write Chinese but not Malay or English. But of most taxis have printed receipt, printed off their fare machine, so in most cases I get the receipt properly printed. But when I have to top the fare up due to the waiting time at my place of work, some do not know how to operate the machine to top up above the fare stated. On a number of occasions I have to teach them, its not that difficult as the machine is very easy to operate. Do these taxi drivers cheat me?. They don't fortunately, they are honest folks, at least those I have hired, but the bargaining at the beginning can be quite trying.

As for the tout at the KLIA, yes I have encountered quite a few. Once upon a time they were able to meet the passengers as they came out of the arrival "tunnel" where they start asking. Now the 'tunnel' have been fenced up untill it reaches almost to the counter where you can buy the ticket from the official KLIA taxis. Even then I can see the tout 'fly by' at the counter muttering something, mostly not in Malay as many understand the language. They may mutter something in Chinese, and some Chinese will take the bait. I am sure some Malays or Indians or others may do so as well but in my trips to date I have not seen any. I have seen some Chinese (for whatever reason, probably the understand what have been muttered by the 'fly by') taking the bait. These tout are either from the illegal (in the real sense) taxis or from legal taxis but not allowed by the authority to pick up passengers at KLIA. And they probably get commission from the 'illegal' taxis (some these taxis are legal in the normal sense of the word but they are not allowed to take passengers from KLIA but they came to KLIA with passengers from the City or the surrounding areas). I have been told that these town taxis may charge less than the KLIA taxis but there are cases where they fleece the passengers, especially those not familiar with Malaysia.. The KLIA taxis sell coupons which are prepaid at the coupon purchase counter but the town taxis do not use such coupons, they probably get he passengers to bargain and for the foreign passengers they may cheat them by not using their taxi meters or by going about around and around or they cheat on the taxi meter readings. Such happenings have been known. There are also cases where some taxi drivers (real or bogus) rob their passengers, and in some cases even rape the women passenger. Those may be the reason why the Malaysian Government is so concerned, other than of course keeping a standard of good taxi service at the country's premier airport. I agree that the Airport taxi service must be protected, to maintain the good name of the country.

However in the past we have had some problem with our taxi drivers. My write up below was done about 6 months ago,. Some may still be applicable.

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YW: The Petekma president is entitled to his opinion about the minister
being "biadap"... but what is his opinion about some of the taxi drivers who
terrorise others on the roads? Those who go down one way roads the wrong
way... shoot through red lights... brake suddenly without warning to pick up
passengers... not to mention "heroes" like the one I saw recently crossing
the double lines in the middle of Jalan Maarof in Bangsar, and speeding
downhill without a care for the horning and flashing headlights of the
on-coming motorists going uphill [in their proper lanes]...
____________________________________

http://www.mmail.com.my/Saturday/National/20040117104930

Cabbies demand apology from Minister
Hasnita Shaari JAN 17, 2004 SAT

KUALA LUMPUR: Entrepreneur Development Minister Datuk Mohamed Nazri Aziz has
been taken to task by Taxi/Limousine and Rental Car Association (Petekma)
president Yusoff Lahir.

"Menteri itu biadap (The Minister was rude)," said Yusoff when describing a
recent statement by Nazri.

"If he cannot be responsible for the cabbies' well-being, he should step
down as a Minister," said Yusoff, who was riled by Nazri's statement in a
Bahasa daily recently.

On Jan 9, Nazri was quoted in the daily as accusing cabbies, who did not use
the meter, as robbers (perompak).

"That was an unfair statement made by a Minister who is supposed to be
taking care of the cabbies' welfare," said Yusoff.

"He is robbing the cabbies of their income when he said that the public,
especially foreign tourists, are sceptical and afraid to take taxis because
they believe what the Minister said." Yusoff demanded that Nazri retract the
statement and apologise to taxi drivers.

"Does he know what is causing cabbies to stop using meters?" he asked.

Yusoff cited four main reasons.

"One, because of the high number of new permits approved by the Ministry
through the Commercial Vehicle Licensing Board (CVLB)." He said the number
of permits approved in the Klang Valley, Johor Baru and Penang was huge.

"How does one expect cabbies to get a decent income when there are too many
cabs around?" he asked.

Yusoff also pointed out that the taxi fares have not been increased for six
years now.

"Petrol prices were raised several times over these years but the fare is
still at the same rate." He said the government should consider raising the
rate as cabbies were struggling to make ends meet.

"How much can they get a day if they not only have to pay for petrol, but
also the taxi companies (rent)?" Yusoff said cabbies who got permits from
companies or consortiums have to rent the cabs for RM40 daily. Cabbies, he
claimed, have to pay the rent even when they are not working.

Yusoff, who had clashed with Nazri several times, claimed that the Ministry
and CVLB, in a way, were "encouraging" cabbies to shortchange the public.

"Taxis already have meters but yet, the authorities introduced the coupon
system that causes passengers to pay double or triple the taxi fare if they
take cabs that use meters."

Yusoff said the coupon system is being implemented at the KL Sentral, Kuala
Lumpur City Centre (KLCC), KL Tower and Bukit Bintang. Giving an example,
Yusoff said the fare from KL Tower to Bukit Bintang is about RM3.

"But using the coupon system, passengers have to pay RM7 for that short
distance. Where is the logic? He said companies who handle the coupon system
at these four places were awarded the contract by the CVLB.

"This is daylight robbery, but why didn't the Minister think it was so?"
Yusoff said the authorities have been "encouraging" cabbies to cheat by
introducing such an illogical system when all taxis have installed meters.

"Most even have receipt machines installed to satisfy customers." Yusof said
Nazri, by making the irresponsible statement had "marred the image of
cabbies as a whole."

"Take those words back or we, cabbies would regard him as being rude," he
added.


Reading the above, I find it very interesting. The Malaysian blaming culture has surfaced at its best location. There is always two side of the story if we care to look a situation like the above. But Malaysian blaming culture per say will see to it that everyone blames everyone else. Only the first person is right, the second, third, fourth, fifth and the umpteenth person is always wrong. Anyway I do not want to dwell into that, I just wish to delve into taxi per say in Malaysia. I am not familiar with taxis in other countries, but I have ridden on quite a no. of Malaysian taxis. Admittedly I have ridden on very few occasions taxis in London, Tokyo, Peking, Seoul, and some part of Europe but they are not as interesting to relate such stories as compared to taxis in Malaysia.

Do I praise taxis in Malaysia. Generally I don't, until lately. I hold a view that taxis in Malaysia has got this attitude that "I am the tuan" and "you passengers rely on me. Without me you all suffer". Do I support that Minister? In a way I do, but before I commit myself to that, a global perspective has to be considered.

Let me go back into my earlier encounters with Malaysia (Malaya then) taxis. When I was a young boy, going to school in town away from home, I sometimes had to take a taxi ride for my long journey if I missed my normal passenger bus. These taxis used to be dirty, dilapidated, windows always open to nature (in those days there was no air-conditioned taxis), the driver always very rough, swore a lot and looked at women as if they have not seen a women in all their lives. They probably were married, with one or two wives and many children. I remember then I had to carry my own language to put those in the taxi boot, the taxi driver pretended not to see me doing it, they talking (shouting more likely) to their friends. And I thought then my luggage were quite heavy. In those days they were mostly Sikh, Indian or Chinese taxi drivers. I am not being racially prejudiced here, and but later on in life when more Malays got taxi permits, they are no better and at times they can be worse.

Anyway, the taxis then were supposed to be for a long journey, for short journeys they used to have trishaws, ( sometimes I wish that there are trishaws now like in Melaka) so they filled the taxi to capacity. I being quite small then had been squeezed among sweaty labourer looking men, who almost occupied the whole the taxi seat to themselves. Malaysian men in those days were rather oppressive lot. We reached our destination always safely though on some occasion I feared greatly for my safety seeing how the taxi driver drove the taxi. When I arrived at the destination, these taxi drivers always seemed to be in a hurry to get rid of you as they wish to fill up their taxi as fast as possible to make the return journey. There were more shouting and arguing. Can't blame them really, the more trip they make the more money they make to feed their children and wife (wives most likely for Malays and mistresses for others).

I got used to this rough habits of Malaysian taxi drivers. I was away from the country for a while. But in London I found that the taxi drivers were friendly (more of condescending than friendly I suppose) but they always seemed to be hungry for tips, as if with the taxi fare alone they could not make ends meet.. And being a young foreigner I did not know how much tip to give, I always used to compare 'our' money with 'their' money. I found that I always seemed to give so little tip that the taxi driver in London always seemed very unhappy. But being Mat Salleh they always seemed to hide their true feelings to us 'foreigners. "They are bloody foreigners trying to live in white man's country" they thought I thought then. But in those days they could have easily said that but today if ever they say that they can be brought to the Race Relation Board and face Court action. Anyway I never crossed these guys so I would not have known what they said or could do to me.

Then back in Malaysia, time have progressed but the taxi drivers were no better than when I left. In fact I think as we progressed they became more rude. I avoided them. I was then able to afford a car so I need not take a ride on a taxi. Then again I have to go to England. Now I found that many taxis were then driven by Pakistanis or Indians who did not seemed to be happy to see us 'foreigners' with the same skin colour as theirs . There were also a couple of Sikh drivers. But in London I still saw mostly Mat Salleh taxi drivers. Expolating the events, I suppose in London now there are many more Pakistani, Indian and Sikh taxi drivers than Mat Salleh.. And with their money had then changed into 10s and I was more confused on what to give as tips.. I managed somehow without getting into any embarrassed situation.

In Malaysia I encountered more airport taxi drivers than at any other locations, the few times I met them originally and later more frequent as I had to go overseas often. Taxi drivers at Malaysian airport is a special breed of people. They are hungry for passengers but at the same time most undisciplined and probably very greedy. So the Govt. decided to have the coupon system where they cannot cheat passengers anymore. At first, as usual, there was a lot of resistance but when really enforced by the Govt. for them to use the coupon system they complied. But still there are the greedy ones. I remember once I got a taxi at the Subang Airport and when I told them I was going to a place probably just a few hundred yards from their assigned invisible taxi 'border' the driver said, "En, you have to pay an extra RM......." I said "Why"?'. He said, "We have now crossed the border of the fare that you paid" I felt embarrassed and angry ( I was very tired then as I had just arrived by plane from an overseas trip) and at the same time very disturbed. How was I to know that I had to pay more than what was charged in the coupon? I had bought my taxi coupon at the airport, and had already paid the amount asked for, when I told the clerk who sold the coupon to me where I was going. I could not possibly counter check with the taxi driver who was awaiting in the Q outside. I did pay up to this 'greedy' taxi driver. I took down his taxi no. and made a written complain to higher Authority. Later on when I went to get a taxi again from the Airport, I was specifically ask where I was going and I had to pay the correct fare, though this time a bit more than I paid earlier.

That was a bad taste in my mouth. Now nearer my home, they had this Taxi Stand in the small new town just outside the boundary of KL. Originally they were very friendly and obliging lot. But some how there must be an internal strife in the association of taxi drivers who used that Stand. They refused to take short distance passengers. When you call them to book a taxi to go to a place which is a considerably very short distance, but far enough for you not to walk, they always said that they were busy. So I spied on them, I used to sit near the taxi stand to listen to their conversation. As I suspected, even if the taxi stand is full of taxis they still tell the phoning passenger that there was no taxi available. I wonder what kind of people these taxi drivers were? Looking at them they seemed to be a very nice bunch of people, oldish, pleasant smiles and talks of very innocent subjects such as politic and economy, and some wearing white skull cap showing that they were quite religious. Some I think were ex-Servicemen. After that I avid calling them anymore. But at out of desperation I called them when I wanted to go to the Airport. But on many occasions they failed to arrive on time so I stopped booking a taxi with them altogether even when I wanted to go to the Airport. I would rather call a Radio Cab, as from experience they are reliable. They may not be very friendly, they speak their mind to you even if you do not ask for their opinion. So in most occasions to please them I just say "mmm" to them whenever they expressed their opinion.

But later they were asked by the Govt. not to give too much opinion, so they became more silent. In this situation I find that their silent is disconcerted. And I dare not ask question to them, for all I know they could be from the SB and I may be saying something against the Govt.

In those days these taxi driver dressed in whatever way they pleased but nowadays they are more decently dressed, and their car quite well cleaned, showing their taxi licence and their ID as the taxi driver. I think situations have improved. But still there are black sheep in the community. There even be found 'false' taxi drivers - these are not the real taxi drivers but people driving taxis with the intention of harming the passengers, robbing them or even molesting the women passengers. There are taxi drivers cheating those not familiar with KL especially foreigners, taxi drivers who takes you a long way to reach your destination using their taxi meters, taxi drivers who refused to use their taxi meters (Penang had a tough time in trying to get taxis to use their taxi meters).

One thing which I found when I used to take a taxi, there always seemed to be short of taxis in town/city, but if you go on the outskirts of the town/city you may see many of them resting. I know why, they do that to avoid the city/town jam. But they are not being fair to the public. When you complain to the Authority that there is not enough taxis, the Authority will always give you the fact, there are enough numbers of taxis. And when you talk to taxi drivers, they always tell you that there are too many taxis on the road, so depriving them of decent income, the cake has to be shared with too many taxi drivers.

What sort of cars are used for these taxis. Originally there were many Mercedes cars, especially with diesel engines, and later there were a lot of Opel cars. Much later they imported old big cars from Japan, still mostly diesel engined, and these were mostly used at the old Subang Airport. But when Malaysia had its national car, these taxis are dominated by Saga, Wira, Waja and Perdana. The fuel? Mostly diesel then but later they turned to LPG. Unfortunately there are not many LPG (and now Natural Gas NG) stations in the country. These are only found in the Klang Valley.

To be fair to our Malaysia taxi drivers, time has changed. Many of our taxi drivers are now young and active and they are people who want to make a decent living. Old habit die hard. Some are still rude, some still very opinionated, some are of the silent kind and some old man who occasional come on the road to earn a few RM extra to supplement their meager pension. But old habit like smoking in the taxi (when there is no passenger), of speeding unnecessarily, of knowing the world more than the passengers (boring the passengers with their politic or hard life story) are still there.

Back to the above news with the Minister, I would say that in some cases these taxi drivers are right, they know best what is on the ground and the Minister for all one knows have not been riding on a taxi for a long time now.

But without taxi drivers life can be most uncomfortable even though nowadays we have the LRT, the monorail, the other trains plying in towns and cities and between big towns and to the new KLIA. And the service of the taxis in the KLIA have now greatly improved from those we used to get at the old Airport in Subang.

Our Malaysian taxis and their drivers sure has some character, and in our way of life today we cannot be like those taxi drivers in Tokyo where they even have white seat covers for their taxis and you can even pay your fare with credit card.

All in all, Malaysian taxi drivers do not ask for trips.

To shout back, e-mail: mylias@tm.net.my