I haven’t got a taxi in a long time, but I know who I have in the past I have seen signs that say there is a surcharge for more than 4 passengers. On the rare occasion I have taken a taxi with more people I don’t mind paying a bit extra, as it cost more on fuel etc.
In the uk there is a surcharge also for over 4 passengers
“more than four passengers use the taxi – £1.00 for each extra passenger”
I’m asking about Taiwan, and more specifically 6-passenger yellow taxis you can flag down in Kaohsiung.
Not to threadjack, but on a similar note, does Taiwan have robust disability laws? My mom finds it almost impossible to hail a taxi if she’s taking my wheelchair-bound 97 year old grandma.
Also, I know that in the US you can’t even charge extra for persons with disabilities (including expensive wheelchair accessible vans/WAVs), but does Taiwan have a similar stipulation? I found a WAV and took the driver’s number, but my mom said she was quoted almost double what it’d cost for a regular taxi driver to just load/unload a wheelchair in the trunk.
It is illegal for a taxi to refuse passengers in Taiwan.
I can’t speak for the whole country, but in my city (Kaohsiung) there is currently no surcharge for putting a wheelchair or any other item in the trunk.
I know that part about the trunk, I’m referring to one of these vans (obligatory not my grandma, just a Google Image search):
This part is about Kaohsiung
If your mother called a reputable national taxi number such as 55688 to book a wheelchair taxi and was quoted a higher fare by the telephone operator, then it was probably legit. The telephone operator has no reason to scam you. The driver, on the other hand, might.
According to 55178’s website, they offer wheelchair taxis but there is no mention of a surcharge. The same website, however, does mention a $50 surcharge if the driver is requested to assist in pushing the wheelchair user in or out of the destination building.
You could do the same to see if there is a surcharge for a 6 seat taxi (with 6 passengers).
To be honest with you, unless it was a huge amount I think you was being picky, 40% seams reasonable to me for the 50% increase in occupancy and still 60% cheaper than getting 2 taxis. The driver is providing you with the opportunity to all travel together and he has paid the additional cost for it, you could have chosen to use it as a 4 passenger taxi and not paid the extra, then let the other 2 walk.
Yellow universal taxis may get subsidy from government, and its fee may be the same with usual yellow taxi. Uber-like universal taxis are for reservations only, and they can set their own fee. The same taxi company could have both of yellow and Uber-like taxis.
The taxi driver can choose to be a Uber-like taxi for reservation only, that can take some extra fees. Yellow taxi cannot take extra fees except for specifically allowed ones.
It seems I already have my answer, and there does not appear to be a surcharge according to @tando. Still, it’s a good idea to confirm with the operator, so I’ll do that next time I call a taxi.
I mean, a 40% surcharge isn’t very reasonable if the alternative is no surcharge.
Besides, I wasn’t upset about the money. I was upset that the driver took me for a fool. Or worse, a tourist.
Our driver was already reaping the benefit of our business by driving a high-capacity taxi. The alternative was for him to sit and wait in line on the side of the road with all the other 4-passenger taxis.
If driving 6 passengers is causing disadvantages to the drivers, then I’m sure the law would allow a surcharge.
The disadvantage is extra fuel, higher running cost and higher public liability insurance for the extra capacity.
https://www.tbkc.gov.tw/Service/PublicTransport/Taxis?ID=c8f17830-2ef6-411f-9f1d-58639ce807ca
This is the website Kaohsiung taxi rates, it has no mention of additional fares for people but has for nighttime (my shity translation).
But saying this there is also no mention of additional fees for soiling the car, causing damage etc, these are normally displayed in the car also.
If you really think you have been hard done by there is a link below for the complaints procedure, you can phone and ask if its acceptable and report back.
https://www.tbkc.gov.tw/Service/PublicTransport/Taxis?ID=228dddda-6ef1-4a8c-ab11-21eaaa399be2
I meant if the disadvantages outweigh the extra business they get.
Thanks.
To the OP: did you ask how much the surcharge was and did you end up taking the taxi or refusing it? If it were me, I wouldn’t worry about a surcharge as long as it seemed reasonable. Live and let live.
interesting, so are taxis different in that they display 乘客人數（不含駕駛人)? I was under the understanding the top line of the front sides are always total…?
Reasonable, that just a nice grey area. any excuse would work, it’s a get out of jail free card. but it was dumb of that taxi driver to say for money can take you…as if taxi drivers arent fully aware of the ease of recording devices and courts hahaha
yes, what should be displayed depends on categories of cars. 乘客四人 on taxi is displayed just for passengers convenience.
第 3 條
汽車依其使用性質，分為下列各類：
一、客車：
（一）大客車：座位在十座以上或總重量逾三千五百公斤之客車、座位在二十五座以上或總重量逾三千五百公斤之幼童專用車。其座位之計算包括駕駛人、幼童管理人及營業車之服務員在內。
（二）小客車：座位在九座以下之客車或座位在二十四座以下之幼童專用車。其座位之計算包括駕駛人及幼童管理人在內。
第 42 條
…
二、大客車應於門旁標示牌照號碼及乘客人數，營業大客車應於車門旁標示出廠年份及依附件六之一標示大客車分類，並應於乘客人數下標示載重量及於車內駕駛座旁或上下車門顯明處標示駕駛人姓名、公司服務電話及該管公路主管機關申訴電話， …
三、計程車應於兩側後門或後葉子板標示牌照號碼及公司行號、運輸合作社或個人名稱，後窗玻璃標示牌照號碼。但多元化計程車不在此限。…
第 78 條
客車之載運，應依下列規定：
一、載運乘客[含駕駛人]不得超過[行車執照]核定之人數。…
As always, thanks for your time to find this stuff for those of us with poor reading/typing skills!
So it seems it should be written clearly on the door/panel. Curious now to look, never noticed before. I wonder if this iscomoney with taxi/uber style now, as we have seen this on say busses.
Also curious, what does this vehicle/business class mean?
多元化計程車
is uber considered this as well?
edit. quoted wrong post.
I ended up taking it, but during the ride I called out his BS about being able to legally refuse service. He gave me some more BS which I called out again (about the surcharge).
When I mentioned the law (which I wasn’t actually 100% sure about at the time), then he relented so I didn’t have to pay extra.
It wasn’t about the money. Agreeing to pay hustlers is how they are enabled, and why Taiwan is still seen by many as a backwater country.
I was in that taxi with a group of people who were born and raised in Taiwan, and I couldn’t believe they almost believed the driver’s scam. I’m from Hong Kong and I can tell you exactly what the surcharges and taxi laws there are.
Yeah it’s a general term for Ubers and similar unmarked taxis.
Cheers. by unmarked, I assume no company registration, still private? They are marked now by their [red] license plates. but otherwise not like normal commercial vehicles. What other types of business might fall into this? Perhaps tour groups (vans/cars) ?
Unmarked as in not yellow, no rooftop light, not metered, and no decals. Otherwise looks like a regular taxi on the inside, with driver’s info. Registered as legal taxis, and driven by professional taxi drivers.
May be owned by a fleet, or independently owned.