Dubai - Dispatched taxis centre have varying fares: RTA
Published: Sat 3 Sep 2016, 12:00 AM
Last updated: Sat 3 Sep 2016, 7:19 PM
Even taxis you hail from the streets in Dubai can be a 'booked' taxi - which has a higher flag fall - Khaleej Times can reveal. While normal taxis have a flag fall of Dh5 during daytime, one must be ready to spend three extra dirhams to hire 'booked taxis' plying on the roads, as the flag fall starts at Dh8.
Dispatched taxis centre have varying fares: RTAIn a statement sent to Khaleej Times, Abdulla Yousef Al Ali, CEO of Public Transport Agency of the RTA, said: "The taxis that display 'booked' are those that are dispatched by RTA in case (they are) ordered by the mall or an individual. The rates for the taxis ordered through dispatch are different from on street pick-up taxis.
"The fare for taxis that are hailed on the street starts at Dh5, but from 10pm to 6am it will start at Dh5.50. However, taxis that are dispatched from the dispatch centre have varying fares. The meter for a taxi dispatched from the dispatch centre starts at Dh8 and during peak hours (7am to 10am and from 4pm to 8pm), it starts at Dh12. The taxi meter starts at Dh9 if booked between 10pm to 6am.
"Many times, the passenger who books the taxi may not wait till the dispatched taxi arrives, and hence when the taxi reaches the requested station or point, the meter will display the applicable dispatched rates. The taxi driver in this case must contact the OCC and cancel the booking, informing about the unavailability of the requestor.
"Should customers face such issues as mentioned above, they are requested to call the RTA on 8009090 and mention the taxi number."
nazeem@khaleejtimes.com
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Clarifying this point, Abdulla Yousef Al Ali, CEO of Public Transport Agency of the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), told Khaleej Times in a statement: "Many times, the passenger who books the taxi may not wait till the dispatched taxi arrives, and hence when the taxi reaches the requested station or point, the meter will display the applicable dispatched rates. The taxi driver in this case must contact the OCC (RTA call centre) and cancel the booking, informing about the unavailability of the requestor."
A resident, who commutes daily between Sharjah and Dubai, told Khaleej Times that she was surprised to see a 'booked' taxi on the Dubai-Sharjah border near the Sahara Centre.
R.B.S, a banking professional, who did not want to reveal her name, said: "As usual, I was waiting for a taxi to reach the nearest Dubai Metro station. A cab displaying a 'booked' sign stopped before me. When I told him I didn't book the taxi, he insisted it was the normal street pick-up taxi. When I found that the meter was not switched on, he said he would start it after some time as the minimum rate starts at Dh8."
Verifying the resident's experience, an Ethiopian taxi driver, who wished to remain anonymous, told Khaleej Times that the RTA sends messages to cabbies to run as 'booked' taxis.
He said: "If we do not follow the RTA's instruction, we will be fined. For the first violation, it will be Dh300, then Dh500 and Dh800. We also fall into trouble because of this system as sometimes riders consider us as thieves when we start the flag fall rate at Dh8."
Following a report published by Khaleej Times on taxis hired by residents from shopping malls charging a flag fall of Dh10 and more after 10pm, the RTA had clarified that the flag fall rate of taxis remain the same except for booked taxis, which are dispatched by its call centres. The RTA had also clarified that it is not the authority but the shopping malls that arrange the booked taxis for shoppers during peak hours.
(with inputs from Angel Tesorero)
nazeem@khaleejtimes.com
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