TRANSPORT MINISTRY INVESTIGATING 10,600+ COMPLAINTS ABOUT TAXIS
ministry has received over 10,600 complaints from taxi passengers. In response, officials say they plan to introduce measures to improve taxi services
TRANSPORT MINISTRY INVESTIGATING 10,600+ COMPLAINTS ABOUT TAXIS
Thailand’s Transport Ministry says it’s considering new measures to address a raft of complaints about taxis after a huge number of complaints in a 6 month period.
According to a Nation Thailand report, the ministry has received over 10,600 complaints from taxi passengers. In response, officials say they plan to introduce measures to improve taxi services to ensure they are “convenient, safe, and reasonably priced”.
It’s understood 10,687 complaints received via the Passenger Protection Centre 1584 helpline between October 2023 and February 2024 related to taxis.
Of those, the top 10 related to a refusal to pick up passengers, rude behaviour or language, reckless driving, refusing to turn on the meter, not taking passengers to the agreed destinations, overcharging, deliberately taking longer routes, meter reading discrepancies, incorrect licence plates, and illegal parking or blocking traffic or bus stops.
In response, the Transport Ministry has asked the Department of Land Transport to investigate the reasons why taxi drivers might reject passengers and to address the issue. The ministry is also working with the Thailand Development Research Institute to improve the quality of taxi services, including researching appropriate fares in line with the current cost of living.
Taxi drivers who refuse to pick up passengers face a fine of up to 1,000 baht and mandatory participation in a 3-hour training programme. Repeat offenders could have their licence suspended for 1 – 6 months.
The ministry has urged taxi passengers to report offenders, saying there are incentives in place to encourage more people to do so.
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