Sussex wrote:
AA warns tourists of 'appalling' taxi services abroad
Tourists heading overseas this summer may have to contend with an unacceptable standard of taxi service, according to a survey published by the AA. Travellers are paying over the odds, being taken on "long routes" and are having to contend with journeys at breakneck speeds, it suggests.
Eurotest, a consumer testing programme based in Belgium, carried out test rides in 22 large European cities, covering five routes per location. In only six of the cities were drivers rated acceptable, leading the AA to conclude: "The standard of driving and customer care was often appalling. "Not one of 22 major cities on the continent provided a taxi service that could be described as 'very good'."
According to the EuroTest survey, a third of the taxis wouldn’t accept credit cards. In Rotterdam, a driver swore loudly when the inspector asked to pay with a credit card, braked suddenly to do a U-turn and drove back to the airport to find a cashpoint. Other drivers ignored speed limits and red lights, while one pulled out his mobile phone and sent a text while waiting at traffic lights. In Amsterdam, a second passenger was picked up unannounced which led to a detour that increased the journey by a third.
The research cites other examples such as a driver in Rome, who lost his way twice between the station and an exhibition centre. He then reportedly demanded €69 - €19 more than the journey should have cost. Meanwhile, a trip from the airport to the railway station in Madrid covered more than twice the mileage it should have.
The most alarming findings were in Ljubljana where the driver rating was "very poor", while the vehicle was "poor" and the route chosen also "poor". Madrid and Barcelona provided the best quality vehicles. In contrast, one of the taxis in Rotterdam had 400,000 kilometres (almost 250,000 miles) on the clock, as well as broken windows and holes in the seats.
Edmund King, AA President, said: "Many people making city trips prefer taxis to the mystery of unfamiliar public transport. "However the research showed a taxi journey can sometimes be just as daunting. Don't get in a taxi if it looks unsafe: bald tyres are normally a tell-tale sign."
He added that most taxi trips passed without incident, but urged tourists to wear their seatbelts.
This will be the end result in England and Wales once the LC and government have finished tinkering with the law.
Why would drivers drive like lunatics if they could earn enough driving in a sensible fashion?
Most of Europe is derestricted, so it's obvious to me why those drivers have to travel at those break-neck speeds, so they can try to earn a living.
And of course they rip-off, because robbing the punter becomes the only way to 'earn' reasonable money as opposed to being on the bread-line.
And how often do you think the driver will be caught?
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