During the recently concluded GOAFEST
2011 held at Zuri, one participant was charged 4000/- for a short
trip by a local taxi driver. Another nail, in Goa’s tourism
coffin? The humble taxi driver is the first line of contact for
tourists in Goa’s tourism industry, yet he is the least trained.
The taxi drivers are usually school drops outs with fair ability to
converse.
Have you ever wondered why hotels can
charge a tariff according to the level of service, yet taxis are
governed by a tariff card. So a clean taxi that runs smoothly with a
driver who is knowledgeable and drives safely has to charge the same
as a badly maintained taxi with an uncouth driver. Is it fair?
Taxi driving is the easiest profession
to get into. Buy a car, register it as a public carrier and you are
in business. What if there was a certificate that one had to obtain
before he was awarded “TAXI DRIVER” badge? The certificate could
cover courses like safe driving, basic maintenance, knowledge of
local roads, prominent places(a la guides) etc. Apart from a test on
the subjected mentioned, a prospective driver could be tested for
endurance as that is a key part of the job. To be a taxi driver in
England you need such training and certification.
Another characteristic of this
profession is the fact that it is usually seasonal, ie Sept to Feb.
Therefore it puts pressure on the taxi driver to earn enough for a
year, while driving for just six months. Since the taxi driver cannot
expect too many loyal customers, as they are mainly tourists, he has
no incentive to behave, drive safely or charge a reasonable fare.
Then the taxi driver, if he is from
south Goa has to deal with an additional fact. If it is Monday the
tourists will be taking a taxi, Tuesday is for buses or something to
that effect . If this is not enough, we have the turf rules. A taxi
from the North can only drop passengers in South but cannot pick a
passenger. It is sure is not easy to be a taxi driver and earn a
decent living. The only way a cabbie will remember directions to a
particular hotel or store, is if he has been suitably tipped on the
previous visit. This is now institutionalized with rates being fixed
irrespective of the fact that the tourist spent money.
Talking about earning, there is yet
another complication, every driver has a taken a loan to buy his taxi
and therefore he has the right to ensure he can pay back the loan. So
overcharging is acceptable as how else can an honest cabbie pay his
installment. The above scenario, makes it appears that the CABBIE is
a lost cause. That while we sit and grumble, while the cabbie drives
himself to oblivion.
Given the MERU TAXI model which is a
success in India, there has to be a better way for Goan taxi drivers.
There is a huge market for taxi drivers which till date they have
ignored. A market which is available year round. A market which will
pay reasonably for service . A market which will ensure that the taxi
driver has an incentive to offer better services.
This market is sitting under our nose,
it is the local population of Goa. Go to any city, Mumbai, Bangalore
or Delhi and locals there take a taxi without batting an eyelid. How
taxi drivers can tap the local market and therefore reduce dependence
on tourists. Can the readers suggest ways that taxi drivers can tap
the local market so that we have an efficient public transport
alternative and taxi drivers earn with dignity. If we can achieve
this then driving the tourist will be additional source of income.
Then Goa’s brand image will be safe. Two birds with one stone,
tempting. Come up with ideas and be a part of the solution? Await
your comments.
Demand/Supply gaps and human/corporate greed are facts of life - can't be changed. So don't even try to!
ReplyDeleteEven if a cabbie makes good money thru local demand (will it be adequate?), he is likely to overcharge should an opportunity arise. So the trick is really to reduce the possible chances for this to happen.
Govt. regulations do prevent excesses to some extent. Pre-paid taxis, rate per km etc. can be mentioned on cab seats,along with typical distances between various points.
Now also blame the ignorant 1st time visitor who paid Rs.4000 for a particular trip (the 2nd time round he/she wont get fooled). Some basic homework is required, even if its only to ask the expected rate/distance.
This is global - gullible persons get ripped (and I can vouch for that). Utopia doesn't exist, as yet!
Now, a few suggestions
1) Free call-centre no. displayed prominently at back seats encouraging passengers to enquire expected rate for the trip
2) Compulsory receipt for every trip (mentioning Taxi no., distance and time) - if not thru the meter, even the manual receipts can be checked
3)Facility to dispute the charge, even at a later date (upto 1 month) if the passenger wishes to
4) Black point system for drivers - with a certain level set before they get debarred.
Now, this can be expanded - black points based on charges, interaction with passengers, cab quality ...etc. Usually only really pissed off passengers will report it - but it should be facilitated thru the call-centre no.
However, there needs to be the carrot too - if the cabbie doesn't get negative remarks, say, over a year, then he/she can get get some incentive (funded by Goa Tourism)
Practical in Goa - I don't know, but worth a try, maybe!
Mr Costabir, When I was with the GTDC, we had contacted the taxi union and had a meeting with them. You will not believe that they were extremely forthcoming to change. Some of the solutions proposed were:
ReplyDelete1) A call centre
2) Meters to be installed
3) Tariff to be charged as per mutually decided rates
4) Installation of swiping machines
5) Electronic feedback pad
6) Dustbin in taxis
7) Training of the drivers through Ministry of tourism and IHM
8) Taxis moving along bus routes with shared seats during off season
9) Taxis for neighbors (Pooling the car to reach the office destination in the morning from a specific point.)
You will also be pleased to know that the GITIC along with CMC already have a solution for the taxi operators and it will be better than Meru.But i doubt that the politicians down South want this change.If you want to spearhead this movement, i will fully back you.
Ashton Souza,
Director, Goa IT Innovation Centre
As Blaise rightly pointed out the Taxi driver is often the first point of contact, and the first impression is often hard to erase.
ReplyDeleteThere are plenty of good cabbies and I'm sure an equal no that will not think before cheating a gullible passenger.
Train. Monitor. & Reward a 3 pronged system to success is what I believe in.
Aston if there is a solution I suggest you make it public some one is sure to see opportunity in the enterprise
In Goa where tourism is an industry the need for trained people in the all sections of the industry is the crying need of the hour.
Politicians will always benefit from dependent and uneducated masses so there is little incentive for them to support any such initiatives. What we need is a strong lobby within the tourism industry to initiate and push for change.