Recognising good taxi vs bad taxi in Melbourne...
Of the many things I love about Melbourne, our taxis are one of them. I love that they are all yellow. I love that I can walk out of my apartment and not have to wait longer than 5 minutes for a cab to drive past. I love that they are nice to you when you are nice to them. As a city girl without wheels who is always running late, taxis (and, at times, my darling friends) are my savoir for getting around our big ole town.
Don't get me wrong - as with any service delivery, there have been moments... On my own at 3am and refused journey four times (four!) only because I was traveling to the other side of the city. A case of a 'broken meter' so 'cash only on this ride, please'. The old story of booking a taxi for an early flight but getting a no show in the morning. Sure, it happens. But many times the experience has been different - so when there's a lot of the bad, I want to recognise some of the good.
I once managed to get to a wedding in Prahran, via the city, in peak hour traffic, in 25 minutes. The amount of times I've been reassured on the way to the airport that I'm not going to miss my flight, are too many to count. And a driver recently gave me tips, unprompted, on how to ID and report any dodgy taxi drivers, which inspired this post.
After witnessing a mugging over the weekend and a chase that ensued by several strangers which saw the victim getting his phone back, I figure we all have to stick together. The same goes with taxi drivers. They are just trying to a job and we are just trying to get our destination safe and on time. Maybe the best way to help them do a good job (apart from being fabulous passengers) is reporting those who do the wrong thing and encouraging the ones who are great.
SO this is what I've picked up thus far:
So kudos to you, our good Melbourne taxi drivers. Thank you for getting me to my meetings on time. Thank you for being polite even when you're having a bad day. Thank you for always helping me with my overweight luggage, and keeping your 'office' clean and smelling fresh. Love your work.
Yours,
Little Miss Melbourne xoxo
Got a Melbourne taxi story? Tell it!
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| image source: http://www.prosper.org.au/ |
Don't get me wrong - as with any service delivery, there have been moments... On my own at 3am and refused journey four times (four!) only because I was traveling to the other side of the city. A case of a 'broken meter' so 'cash only on this ride, please'. The old story of booking a taxi for an early flight but getting a no show in the morning. Sure, it happens. But many times the experience has been different - so when there's a lot of the bad, I want to recognise some of the good.
I once managed to get to a wedding in Prahran, via the city, in peak hour traffic, in 25 minutes. The amount of times I've been reassured on the way to the airport that I'm not going to miss my flight, are too many to count. And a driver recently gave me tips, unprompted, on how to ID and report any dodgy taxi drivers, which inspired this post.
After witnessing a mugging over the weekend and a chase that ensued by several strangers which saw the victim getting his phone back, I figure we all have to stick together. The same goes with taxi drivers. They are just trying to a job and we are just trying to get our destination safe and on time. Maybe the best way to help them do a good job (apart from being fabulous passengers) is reporting those who do the wrong thing and encouraging the ones who are great.
SO this is what I've picked up thus far:
- if the meter is "broken" the taxi is not considered roadworthy and thus not permitted to take passengers - get out and grab another
- drivers must always have their photo ID on show - you may want to check this before you get in
- the driver's details are always printed out on the receipt - the receipt which must be provided to you on request with all the deets of the journey
- adorable fluffy blind dogs - or 'assistance animals' - are always, always allowed.
So kudos to you, our good Melbourne taxi drivers. Thank you for getting me to my meetings on time. Thank you for being polite even when you're having a bad day. Thank you for always helping me with my overweight luggage, and keeping your 'office' clean and smelling fresh. Love your work.
Yours,
Little Miss Melbourne xoxo
Got a Melbourne taxi story? Tell it!