News Forum - Phuket taxis fined for yet another fight in front of customers

[Thaiger]

The battle between traditional taxis and ride-hailing app drivers seems to have reached a boiling point. Yet another fight between taxi drivers in front of customers took place in Phuket. It resulted in charges against both of the drivers and highlights the continuing problem Phuket and other tourist destinations in Thailand face with taxis. This incident took place at a popular Kamala area nightlife hotspot where a queue of taxi drivers line up to pick up club-goers and bar patrons. A customer thought that the alleged 400 baht fare quoted by the traditional taxis waiting for customers was too high. […]

The story Phuket taxis fined for yet another fight in front of customers as seen on Thaiger News.

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[Fanta]

The real issue here is the taxi drivers taking the law into their own hands. 

[Shade_Wilder]

"After the female driver picked them up and made a U-turn to leave, a local taxi driver and several of his friends blocked them from leaving. With the customer seated inside, they pummeled the car, leaving scratches and dents on the body.

The area is marked as off-limits for car ride-hailing apps to pick up customers allegedly for the safety and security of passengers. But many outraged people online dispute that logic and argue that it’s all about money, with private deals being made in what could be attributed as a taxi mafia."

"...'Off-Limits' for car hailing Apps... allegedly for the safety and security of passengers..."

What a load of crap.

It most definitely is a Taxi- Mafia operation designed to rip off people. Period.

Social media gets a lot of flak these days, much of it earned, but I would guess that Phuket Taxi Mafia stories are and will continue to be prominent subjects of discussion; Thailand- tourists are usually quite happy to come here and spend money, but when you try to steal too much, they go elsewhere.

You should take note of that.

The days when people don't share information are over.

[Janneman]

News like this will surely attract a lot of wealthy foreigners. They all want to experience the well-known friendliness in the Land of Smiles

[TheDirtyDurian]

Good luck getting the car fixed up for 5000 baht ...

[Grumpish]

So popular areas are blocked for ride hailing apps "for the safety and security of passengers". Yet again the taxi mafias and the authorities (including the police) are shown to be in each others pockets.

[palooka]

UFC has nothing on these shenanigans.  Should promote it -  best real time video wins.

Heck you could even stage a few to promote tourism, pick pockets would have a field day.

New skills needed for that 'lady boys', so educational too. 

[Pinga]

None of it is for safety or security or benefit of the passengers. It's designed to rip passengers off and is only about money. As said above the days where people don't share information are over - you get enough such incidents in Phuket, and tourists will stop coming. Good luck ripping them off then!