Dubai: Following a number of reader complaints about taxi services in Dubai, two Gulf News reporters recently took a dozen random taxi rides for a first-hand experience. The trips were rated on a five-star scale on taxi cleanliness and driver hygiene; ease of hiring; driver’s knowledge of Dubai roads and addresses; their conduct; and driving habits. Here is an account of the experiences:
Faisal Masudi, Staff Reporter
Most of the trips over two days were incident-free. The taxis were spotless and the drivers were presentable and courteous. A majority knew the areas and locations very well.
However, a common hurdle was that some drivers refused to go to congested areas — Naif in Deira or Meena Bazaar in Bur Dubai — if it was close to the time of their shift change. Some drivers said they had to hand over the taxi to the next driver in the next shift, which was 4pm-4am in their case.
“If I’m late by a few minutes in handing over the taxi to the next driver, I’ll be fined. Sorry, I can’t take you,” said one driver. He had been asked to go to the densely populated heart of Deira, around Naif Road.
“There’s no way I’ll make it back to my [company headquarters in Al Muhaisnah]. Please don’t file a complaint.”
Another driver said “it’s not worth it” and also apologised. A third one said he could make it in the nick of time and finally the taxi was hired.
Also, with regard to crowded parts of town, some drivers were reluctant to go to the exact address, especially if it was located along an inner, one-way road.
“I’ll get stuck there, can’t you walk it? It’s just a two-minute walk from here,” one driver said.
“I’ll take you all the way if you insist, but I really prefer to drop you off here instead.”
Meanwhile, in a broad sense, the drivers’ road and traffic habits were satisfactory. Only in two of the trips were there instances of rash driving. That usually comprised braking hard, only to speed off again.
“Some pedestrians think they own the road, they don’t look while crossing,” one driver said after avoiding a man at a zebra crossing.
Another contentious issue was what route to take. Again, in the overwhelming majority of the cases, things went smoothly. However, two drivers were particularly adamant on their route choice.
In one incident, the driver insisted on passing a Salik road toll gate. “My friend, the Salik money won’t go towards me. You will spend more fare money trying to avoid it, going in zigzag ways and getting stuck in traffic,” he said.
The only other problem was that not all drivers were willing to go to Sharjah in the evening rush hour. “What’s the point? It takes more than an hour to go a short distance. I can make more money doing more trips in Dubai itself,” one driver said.
“Also, I’ll have to return empty [without a passenger] as that’s the rule. Dubai cabbies can’t pick up passengers in Sharjah.”
SCORE CARD (5 stars highest, 1 star lowest)
Cleanliness – 5 stars
Knowledge of Dubai – 5 stars
Driving etiquette – 4 stars
Driver’s Attitude – 4.5 stars
Availability – 4 stars
Janice Ponce de Leon, Staff Reporter
Knowledge of the city remains the biggest challenge cabbies have with Dubai’s constantly changing landscape. But with the help of technology and some friends, some figure their way out pretty easily.
Three of the four cabs this reporter hailed for this assignment knew the area where I was supposed to go, but not the exact location. When asked to go to Christ Church in Jebel Ali, a South Asian driver refused to take the trip because he didn’t know where it was.
“I’m new here. Do you know the way? Better if you take another cab — better for you and for me. Sorry,” he said, adding Jebel Ali was quite far away.
However, when the next passenger asked to take him to a building nearby, he declined for the second time, giving the same excuse.
Iranian driver Eisa didn’t know exactly where Christ Church was but the mere mention of “church compound in Jebel Ali” was a giveaway for him. Having been in Dubai for 37 years, this driver knew how to get there and get there fast.
It took a few turns before he spotted the place, but he was courteous and patient enough to wait. He knew he wouldn’t have a passenger on his way back, but that didn’t bother him at all. He drove safely, changed lanes only when needed, used his signal lights properly, and stopped at the proper place. He ticked all the boxes for an exemplary cabbie.
The next destination was Jumeirah Village Triangle (JVT) but the pick-up point was the Sikh temple in Jebel Ali. A Hala phone operator couldn’t figure out the location of the temple. But the taxi driver got there anyway.
Going around JVT — the maze that it is since it has no road signs — was easy for the next driver. But when told to go to a building instead of the usual districts, the driver got some help. He pulled out his smartphone and switched on his GPS to guide him.
When asked if it was company-issued, the driver said it was his personal phone. “We need to know how to get there because here in JVT there are no road signs; it’s complicated.”
Overall, the drive around Dubai was smooth, except for the last driver who drove madly at interchanges. The taxi interiors were clean, so were the drivers. They weren’t overfamiliar and only spoke when prompted. One out of four drivers wasn’t wearing a seat belt properly.
SCORE CARD (5 stars highest, 1 star lowest)
Cleanliness – 5 stars
Knowledge of Dubai – 3.5 stars
Driving etiquette – 4 stars
Driver’s Attitude – 4.5 stars
Availability – 4 stars
JOINT RUN
Janice Ponce de Leon and Faisal Masudi, Staff Reporters
There was no difference in the drivers’ demeanour when we hired taxis together as opposed to separately.
Picking up and dropping passengers at undesignated areas was a common blunder Gulf News spotted during a two-day taxi run last week.
Although not every taxi driver did it during our random survey, it was still a traffic hurdle, especially when cabbies did it at busy places like the World Trade Centre.
Rash driving came in second. One driver behaved as if he was a race car driver on a crowded street, speeding and braking roughly. Another cut in and out of lanes in a bid to overtake other cars.
Regarding the taxis, all the cabs were squeaky clean, smelt fine, and had proper air-conditioning.
Drivers were polite and only spoke when prompted to have a conversation. One cabbie was particularly friendly, even skipping past a person waiting ahead of us in line to pick us up instead.
He pulled over all smiles.
“I stopped for you because you look like my brother,” he said. A few seconds into the trip he insisted we buckle up.
“It’s not just for safety, you’ll be fined Dh400 if you don’t wear a seat belt. I won’t get the fine. I am asking for your sake.”
Another driver said some cabbies are “nice to you” because mystery shoppers and undercover taxi company inspectors hire trips to assess drivers’ attitude.
