Passengers using government-regulated taxis have added a new issue to their complaint list: being refused rides due to their short travel distance, Gulf Times is reporting.
Switched-off meters and drivers’ lack of general road knowledge also continue to be a problem, as reported last month.
Amid regular complaints about a lack of available taxis, national transport regulator Mowasalat has increased the number of Karwa cars and added two additional taxi operators – Al Million and Al Ijarah.
The combined taxi fleet from the three operators is nearing 3,000. But even a cursory search turns up numerous complains on social media:
Oh Taxi Driver, the old ‘my meter is broken’ and my fare is now triple. Sure it is. #karwa #mowasalat
This is ridiculous, all taxis are busy? AlMillion all booked, Karwa (as usual) and AlIjara no answer!
@dohanews @omarc @moispokesman AliJarah cab driver points to GPS that is locked, says company only gives em a map when they arrive, “drive”
Yesterday’s Gulf Times report adds refused fares to the mix, citing a number of examples from residents saying taxis won’t accept them for going too short a distance in congested areas, or refusing to turn on the meter and haggling over prices instead.
Obviously there isn’t one set of practices all taxi drivers practice – just two days ago, a Karwa taxi driver from Kenya told me he “tries to play a little game” in Dafna, ping-ponging from City Center Mall to Ezdan Towers, the W Hotel etc., collecting QR10 a trip with little traffic to struggle through.
Another Karwa user told Doha News their driver declined to switch on the meter and they were asked to pay QR15 for a similarly short trip.
What to do you think – have the increased cars helped, or do transport woes remain unchanged?
Credit: Photo by Omar Chatriwala
