I think what you're doing is great. It was helpful to know that it is useless to complain to the cab company directly. It also helped me reel in from the shock from my experience knowing that there are others who have been through these situations before.I take cabs regularly for the past 10+ years and have met my fair share of excellent and shitty drivers. Today I met the worst, a psycho "Ah Beng" driver who prompted me to take action for the first time.Here is a copy of my complaint.
Subject Violent Outburst from Taxi Driver Message At approximately 3pm today, My boyfriend and I was picked up by (what we believe was Trans Cab) SHD9202J at Haji Lane, destined for --------. Other than noticing he was driving more aggresively than most, the trip was quite uneventful until we reached the vicinity of Newton Circus where he chose a different route than usual.
Commenting on this unfamilliar route, I calmly mentioned that I thought this was a longer route compared to what I was familliar with. While I was expecting a simple and cordial reply, we were met with a barrage of verbal abuses and accusations. Among these he shouted that I was accusing him of purposely taking a longer route with the intention of lodging a complaint against him. He taunted me several times to lodge a complaint. While shocked, I tried to calm him down and explain that was not my intent. I said I was just stating my opinion, that he actions are uncalled for. I am perfectly certain that I did not speak to him in a way that would result in this sort of manic behavior in a normal person.
What was a trivial misunderstanding turned into a violent and unpleasant trip as he started to drive more haphazardly, going faster and breaking harder. His voice grew louder and more menacing. He taunted my boyfriend to make me shut up and while he quietly observed the situation all this time, that broke his silence. My boyfriend retorted that he should calm down and shut up. At this point, he hit the brake hard and his hands were hitting the steering wheel as he shouted at us to get out. After doing so, he put his vehicle on N and revved it hard for some time as we walked away. All this took place in less than 3 minutes.
The video of the Ferrari car crash showed that some cabs are equipped with video and voice recording device. If this cab has that capacity, it is evidence for my claim. I was left in tears from fear and thankfulness, that my boyfriend was there to stand up for me as I would have otherwise been rendered helpless to this violent man. This man is a bully
with no self control. His taunts seems to show that he has no fear of complaints which is the reason why I decided to speak directly to the LTA. I understand this is his lifelihood and do not wish him to suffer. However, I trust you will take fair and meaningful action to protect other customers from this man's violent inclinations.
Indeed, it is precisely for this purpose - that our collective experiences can serve to inform and direct our concerted efforts against these ruthless rogues on our roads - that this blog exists. Together, we can force these idiots into behaving or off our roads once and for all. By giving the benefit of the doubt we are merely handing over the power to them to treat us like subservient beings.
sometimes do read the advisory pasted at the back of all taxis!give ur preferred destination to avoid misunderstanding.if not don't complain afterwards he using longer or not to ur liking routes!taxi drivers can't read ur mind!
ReplyDeleteFair enough. But the problem is the reaction and behaviour of these drivers. Do they need to be asinine about it?
ReplyDeletei ever had this decent lady on my cab, as per normal ask her any preferred route and she said u decide, cant recall the 1st time why she scolded me but i politely ask her in a very soft voice which way she usually takes to the destination or she likes me to me to go by which road. same scolding i got from almost all turns and she again will say i decide ,myself. it repeated more than 5 times ok
ReplyDeletei can only remember lastly i go from redhill i think cos peak hr if passby eu tong seng will hit 2 gantry n i did ask her before turning towards CTE outrM exiting cleamenceau which is a shortcut n cheaper n i observe the traffic before going even jam i can use chin swee juz before cte therefore i got 2 alternatives and i even told her before doin it that it might be 200m more by this way but when i go in she scold me why come expressway u are trying to travel long distance right she accuse me of goin wrong way 4 to 5 times during the not long journey and i dont even know why i was picked by her when we dont have eyes or even words communication before the 1st scolding starts. i told myslf cool down she had a worst day than me, after i told her i was trying to save her money by avoiding the clarke quay gantry from 6-8pm and its only 1 expressway exit what is there to cheat n she turn her head ard n observe then she kept quiet after tat, guess she saw the gantry n realise i save her $2 or $3 and it wasnt a longer route at all to liang courts from i cant remember lol