cocotrees Posted August 18, 2006 Report Share Posted August 18, 2006 In your opinion, which city/country has the worst taxi drivers? :?: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Punisher Posted August 18, 2006 Report Share Posted August 18, 2006 Nowadays... Bangkok, London, New York... take your pick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 18, 2006 Report Share Posted August 18, 2006 Brazil. The one we got didnt stop at red lights at night in Sau Paulo in case you got robbed, he just floored it. Got out of the cab shaking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
superskater Posted August 18, 2006 Report Share Posted August 18, 2006 Italy is the worst for trying to overcharge tourists One taxi driver camped out in front of Termina station in Rome wanted about 200 dollars US to drive me 10 minutes to the Spanish Steps so I went by train Japanese taxi drivers are the best They never refuse a customer, will drive you even a short distance, they never get lost, they always take the most direct route, keep their mouths shut, and only charge the proper amount Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
macca_tirana Posted August 18, 2006 Report Share Posted August 18, 2006 Albania 11 years ago the only cars were for government and militiray. Now its a free for all and they still dont understand that cars can kill. Highest crash ratio in the world and with no medical service its not a great plan. Had to take a 2 hour drive to northern city. He collected 2 friends and their screaming child for the journey. Of course the cost was shared, NOT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
biachung Posted August 18, 2006 Report Share Posted August 18, 2006 Nowadays... Bangkok, London, New York... take your pick. yeah, it's not the country, it's the taxi drivers themselves, i know of one that used to spend his down time at the pub, but that don't mean the whole country was like that Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
i_love_som_tam Posted August 18, 2006 Report Share Posted August 18, 2006 baghdad, definitely baghdad. no traffic laws, no driver's licenses, no experienced drivers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 18, 2006 Report Share Posted August 18, 2006 baghdad, definitely baghdad. no traffic laws, no driver's licenses, no experienced drivers. You win. Another years free membership for you :wink: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
711_Dimsum Posted August 18, 2006 Report Share Posted August 18, 2006 I guess Im in the minority here, but I dont think BKK taxi drivers are really that bad at all.Sure,some guys wil try to rip u off, take you to a different hotel, but Ive never had anyone be rude to me, offensive.Iif they happen to go the wrong way, I point that out and it all is well. I had bad experences with taxis in Spain, I ran into some rude MF'ers there..and I was ejected from a cab one time, i caught the guy trying to rip me off, he wouldnt have that, so i was out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thaibel Posted August 18, 2006 Report Share Posted August 18, 2006 baghdad, definitely baghdad. no traffic laws, no driver's licenses, no experienced drivers. No roads? 8) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
superskater Posted August 18, 2006 Report Share Posted August 18, 2006 I've taken a cab in Bangkok maybe 500 times and only had a bad experience a few times but nothing really, really terrible like what I experienced in Italy or what macca experienced in Albania. I think the drivers in BKK are much better than 10 years ago. They are friendlier, more knowledgeable, and speak better English. They may try to make an extra 20 or 30 baht by missing a turn here and there but I don't really care. I get there soon enough and it's cheap enough. I've very comfortable taking a cab in BKK Only problem is sometimes they don't want to go to certain areas or drive on certain streets because of traffic or because of a shift change. But overall the experience is good in BKK. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cocotrees Posted August 18, 2006 Author Report Share Posted August 18, 2006 Nowadays... Bangkok, London, New York... take your pick. Wow, i thought that London has one of the best taxi drivers, i was told by an English friend that the drivers in London has to take some kind of route test to make sure they know the routes very well? :roll: Any English to voice out? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cocotrees Posted August 18, 2006 Author Report Share Posted August 18, 2006 baghdad, definitely baghdad. no traffic laws, no driver's licenses, no experienced drivers. I guess its harder to implement any kind of rules in Baghdad. :roll: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cocotrees Posted August 18, 2006 Author Report Share Posted August 18, 2006 Brazil.The one we got didnt stop at red lights at night in Sau Paulo in case you got robbed, he just floored it. Got out of the cab shaking. Yeah , it's the same all over the country. You don't have to stop at red lights after midnight due to the carjackings. wow, this is something new to me, carjacking in Brazil. So far, i had only read about this in Malaysia. Taxi drivers fear for their lives too, no wonder they don't want to stop at red lights. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cocotrees Posted August 18, 2006 Author Report Share Posted August 18, 2006 London cabbies have to pass 'The Knowledge'.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Knowledge Very impressive, i wonder which other countries bother to make their taxi drivers a professional job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluebell Posted August 21, 2006 Report Share Posted August 21, 2006 South African minibus taxis have to rank up there somewhere ..... cardboard for brake pads and and a bobejaan spanner in place of a steering wheel .... :? I'm not kidding. Oh, and they squash about 25 people, a couple goats and the odd chicken into a 12-seater ....If you go to SA, rent a car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikee_Moose Posted August 21, 2006 Report Share Posted August 21, 2006 South African minibus taxis have to rank up there somewhere ..... cardboard for brake pads and and a bobejaan spanner in place of a steering wheel .... :? I'm not kidding. Oh, and they squash about 25 people, a couple goats and the odd chicken into a 12-seater ....If you go to SA, rent a car. Aah yes, the infamous KT's. Woops, politcally correct alarm is sounding. Never mind. :oops: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marky12345 Posted August 21, 2006 Report Share Posted August 21, 2006 London is, i went under 2 mile to heathrow at 4am and it cost £22. With satnav who needs the knowledge . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angel_Master Posted August 21, 2006 Report Share Posted August 21, 2006 Some in Kuwait were absolute nutters.. top speed on the highway 2 meters off the bumper of the car infront trying to find a way past.. cornering too fast, breaking and excellerating hard.. complain and they just say.. inshalla (It's in God's hands.) and go that much faster! I might add that totally smash cars are a very common sight there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
i_love_som_tam Posted August 21, 2006 Report Share Posted August 21, 2006 Some in Kuwait were absolute nutters.. top speed on the highway 2 meters off the bumper of the car infront trying to find a way past.. cornering too fast, breaking and excellerating hard.. complain and they just say.. inshalla (It's in God's hands.) and go that much faster! I might add that totally smash cars are a very common sight there. yeah, that's pretty evident with the smashed up cars they just leave in the side of the highway. some good grinders :shock: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cocotrees Posted August 21, 2006 Author Report Share Posted August 21, 2006 how about birmingham, england.unmetered, dont speak english, some unlicenced, dont know where they are going, and take you the long way. also, u have to wait ages for one to come to your house. phoning up one they are rude,impossible to get one in the city centre on a weekend night. at least in bkk u can get taxi. thats luxury! I walked from one station to another station in Birmingham(can't remember the station names now, think its New moor ) to change train to go to manchester, just a short distance i felt pretty initmidated, gives me a chilly feeling. :? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cocotrees Posted August 21, 2006 Author Report Share Posted August 21, 2006 South African minibus taxis have to rank up there somewhere ..... cardboard for brake pads and and a bobejaan spanner in place of a steering wheel .... :? I'm not kidding. Oh, and they squash about 25 people, a couple goats and the odd chicken into a 12-seater ....If you go to SA, rent a car. cardboard for brake pads !!! :shock: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Princess Posted August 21, 2006 Report Share Posted August 21, 2006 India. Some places don't really have proper roads, forget about lanes and traffic rules. While taxis in Bangkok are comfortable and inexpensive, I absolutely hate it when a taxi driver tries to make small talk. I find that happens in Thailand more than any other country I've been in and I hate having to call a friend or read or pretend to be asleep just to get a chatty cabby off my back. Might seem rude but I'm paying him to drive, not to be my friend. :evil: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 22, 2006 Report Share Posted August 22, 2006 A friend had to go to work in a remote part of India, something to do with a major electrical plant. Every one of the expats on the project had their own car and driver. One morning he came out of the hotel and his car and driver was not waiting for him, he spotted the car further down the road so walked down to see what was going on, he found his driver humping one of the other expat's drivers. To be fair some of his stories re that trip actually put me off going to India, he came back a changed man, he believed that being driven round deli was one of the most frightening experiences of his life. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 22, 2006 Report Share Posted August 22, 2006 Brazil.The one we got didnt stop at red lights at night in Sau Paulo in case you got robbed, he just floored it. Got out of the cab shaking. Yeah , it's the same all over the country. You don't have to stop at red lights after midnight due to the carjackings. wow, this is something new to me, carjacking in Brazil. So far, i had only read about this in Malaysia. Taxi drivers fear for their lives too, no wonder they don't want to stop at red lights. Not sure if this is an urban legend but: Apparently Ronaldo got car-jacked in Sau Paulo, he is a God there, so they pull him at the lights get all excited because its Ronaldo, get his autograph etc, then robbed him blind car phone etc, all this of course whilst telling him he is there hero. The guy who relayed this set of events to us pointed out that they didn't kill him like it was a bonus. After hearing this we were getting the taxi's to go faster through the red's, Brazil can be a very naughty place. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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