Taxi woes not difficult to solve

I MUST begin my letter with “what else is new”. I am, of course, referring to the letter complaining about the horrendous state of our taxis (“Taxi drivers in Penang have let the nation down” – The Star, March 20).

“It leaves a sour taste in the mouth when all the taxis have a meter which drivers refuse to use and we are charged arbitrary rates that would not be out of place in many UK cities,” said Julian Wilford of Rickmansworth, UK.

As someone who had lived near Ricksmanworth for many years before returning to Malaysia, I would like to apologise to Wilford for the shabby state of our taxi service.

We all know that no country can claim that it is a developed country unless it has a good public transport system including taxi service.

When Wilford arrives at Heathrow (airport in London) he will simply join the queue at the taxi rank, get into one, state where he wants to go and the driver will put down the flag on his meter and off they go.

On reaching his house he will pay according to the meter plus luggage charges, a bit of tip and say good bye.

If he lands at Gatwick or Stanstead, Wilford can simply catch the train, and then change to the tube for the rest of his journey to Ricksmanworth. No hassle.

But in Malaysia, the hassle and hustling of tourists begins at the airport itself.

If you fly Airasia or even MAS, taxi fares can easily match, or cost more than, air fares. If you can claim from the company you work for, the company may up the prices of its products or services to cater for employees’ claims for taxi fares.

So it goes round and round, the last round being that these taxi companies are owned or co-owned by people who just sit in the house or go play golf, waiting for rental to roll in.

If we have the will, this problem can be solved quite easily. In many countries like UK and Germany, taxi services come under the police department.

And yet we feel smug when people praise our country.

SAAD HASHIM, Ampang.