Council warns taxi firms over job-picking

Auckland Transport Committee chairman Mike Lee. Photo / Steven McNicholl

Auckland's top transport politician says he will act against cab drivers who don't stop "cherry-picking" passengers based on their profitability.

The Herald yesterday received more than 80 emails from people with similar stories - most of them about the difficulty of getting drivers to take them on short-distance rides from the Viaduct and Ponsonby or to or from the Vector Arena.

Refusing passengers based on distance is illegal, although drivers can refuse service if a person is too drunk or if they fear for their safety.

Auckland Transport Committee chairman Mike Lee yesterday called for companies to resolve the situation, but said if problems persisted, the council would intervene.

"If the problem's not fixed, we're going to step in one way or another ... we won't be sitting on our hands.

"If necessary we'll have to call them in and talk to them about this problem.

"This is not the Kiwi way. Everyone has a job to do and we shouldn't just cherry-pick what are the best jobs.

"Taxis are in a rank and one would expect them to take the customers as they come, whether they're going to the airport, to Hamilton or whether they're going half a kilometre away.

"This is a real worry, young women are particularly vulnerable late at night in these environments and we put a lot of trust ... in the taxi industry to get these people home safely - not to turn them away. It's not acceptable."

Mr Lee was surprised to learn such behaviour had been going on.

"The Herald has blown the whistle on what appears to be a fairly widespread problem. It's a bad look for the respective companies and the taxi sector. They have responsibilities too and we want them to honour those responsibilities to our people.

"If there isn't action, then the council will have to examine its options ... not just for the Rugby World Cup - our first concerns are our citizens here."

Readers responding to the Herald noted tactics that seemed to make taxi drivers behave better.

Several, including Sheridan Smith said they found threatening to report the driver's action was enough.

"Take out your phone to record their registration," he said.

"It is amazing how quickly they leapfrog on their decisions. Once when I did this the driver was so worried he gave me a free ride."

Other taxi users said they went against cabbie etiquette by engaging the driver at the back of the rank, who had been waiting the least amount of time and was therefore less likely to object to a short fare.

The New Zealand Transport Agency said yesterday it had not received any complaints from taxi users about the issue.

It advises passengers to try to resolve problems with the company and report incidents to the NZTA if that could not be done.

ALL FARES FOR THIS DRIVER

Taxi driver Mark Hendry, who drives cab 887 as a contractor for Alert Taxis, says he welcomes any fare.

"We don't charge the cents. That's what they told me in the training."

He even tried to discount a $4.40 fare this week, asking for $4 for a 600m ride, although the woman offered him $10 and ended up paying him $5.

"I fully support people's right to call my cab for a short ride and don't expect them to apologise for it," he said.

"But I can understand the dilemma of someone who has waited possibly for hours on a rank waiting for the fare that makes it all worth while, and for them at least to be able to pay their $400 petrol bill this week."

Mr Hendry said he encouraged customers to take the business cards of good drivers, use them as much as possible and refer them to their friends.

Driver Garry Hubble reminds drivers of an old cabbie saying: "He who ranks never banks, and he who cruises never loses."

"Unless it's very quiet, there's no excuse for sitting on a rank for four hours," he said.