The Electric New Paper :
REMEMBER the old Batman television show? Whenever the Gotham City cops couldn't cope, they flashed the giant Bat-signal in the sky.
By Joanna Hughes
29 May 2007
REMEMBER the old Batman television show? Whenever the Gotham City cops couldn't cope, they flashed the giant Bat-signal in the sky.
Before you could say, 'Holy Comfort Cab, Batman', Batman and Robin would come screeching into town in the less-than-fuel-efficient Batmobile, sort the bad guys out and save the world again.
I wish I had something like that to summon MsTammy Tan, group corporate communications officer of Comfort Delgro.
She is the woman who replies sensibly to all the complaints about taxis that are published in the media.
And lately, I have felt the need for someone to sort out the bad guys.
Let me say this first. In my 13 years in Singapore, taxi service - particularly the call service - has become better. But there is a very dangerous trend occurring: Taxi drivers are passing up flag-downs for bookings.
It's not just that cabs with on-call signs are zooming past stranded customers doing what looks like aerobics with laptop cases. I don't mind that at all.
Let me tell you (and Ms Tan, I hope you are reading this) what I do mind.
One night last week, a colleague and I waved down a taxi. He slowed, put on his hazard lights and came almost to a complete halt.
We walked two steps towards the cab, but the driver spotted a call on the computer screen and, even as my colleague's hand grasped the door handle, the taxi took off.
Our reaction was completely visceral. We did a nutter in the middle of Tanjong Pagar Road at 6.45pm, waving our arms, shaking our fists and letting loose a volley of obscenities in the various languages at our command.
That was bad enough. But it happened again 15 minutes later - my fourth account in two weeks.
Call any taxi service to give your feedback and they will ask for the taxi number - which you can't always see.
I mean, have you ever tried to take down the number of a taxi that is going at an easy 70kmh down the road in the dark? Either that or you are too busy reverting to early primate behaviour to notice.
One driver even had a change of heart after I had waited for his passenger to fish out enough change from the bottom of her purse to pay him.
After he counted it all up, he saw the screen and waved me off. Actually, I think it was the rudeness of the wave-off that ticked me off as much as the drive-off.
Almost as bad are the 'shift changers'.
If you go off duty at 7pm, and you want to end up in Tampines, but it's 3.45pm in Chinatown and someone wants to go to Orchard Road, why can't you take her?
Why don't you have a shift-change sign up? And why does everyone have to change shift at the same time and not stagger it?
I know it's not this way in London, Tokyo or New York. But then, cabs are more expensive there. Do we get what we pay for?
WITCHING HOURS
Oh, don't get me started on the witching hours - the half hour to an hour before peak charges kick in.
While desperate for a taxi one morning, I saw one waiting in front of a convenience store, with its light on and engine running, so I approached.
The driver was reading the newspaper and ignored my pleading waves. Finally, I knocked on the window.
He waved me off. I kept knocking until he finally rolled down his window.
'Go away, I'm busy,' he said. 'Call a cab.'
I was so shocked that I was speechless. I stood in front of his taxi and dialled up his taxi company. The line was busy, so I tried again and got put in the call queue. 'All our operators are busy...'
I got out of the way just as this bad hat pulled off, still listening to 'Your call is important to us...'
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