Taxi drivers who refuse to take passengers, drop them off mid-journey, or take a detour will be fined from 50 to 200 yuan ($7.9 to 31.7), according to a new regulation that will take effect on April 1, the Ministry of Transport announced Tuesday.
A new regulation on taxi drivers' qualification management has also been announced.
According to the regulation, drivers without qualification certificates will be fined 200 to 2,000 yuan, and the taxi operators who employs drivers without the certificate will be fined 1,000 to 3,000 yuan.
Furthermore, drivers who receive more than three complaints against them from passengers for refusing to pick them up will be dismissed from the company.
After an increasing number of complaints about taxi driver behavior, transportation authorities have taken several measures to improve service in Beijing.
For example, the transport authority will make casual inspections at the airport, train stations, CBD, and some commercial areas like Xidan and Wangfujing, where taxi drivers often refuse to stop for passengers.
In addition, Beijing Municipal Commission of Transport publicized two hotline numbers in November last year, for the public to call if they have problems.
"During the Spring Festival holiday, we send staff on duty undercover to some areas in which people always complain about difficulties getting a taxi," a employee, surnamed Jiang, at Beijing Beiqi Kowloon Taxi Company, one of the largest taxi operators in Beijing, told the Global Times Wednesday.
"Those people will supervise driver behavior and record the number of taxis to see whether it's fewer than normal," Jiang added.
"If they receive a complaint about a driver, they will put that driver on a blacklist. If the driver refuses to take passengers three times, we will terminate our contract with them," he added.
However, despite these regulations, taxi drivers continue to be selective over which passengers they pick up, while some choose to stop working during the holidays.
"I won't work during the holiday since that's the only holiday for me all year, although I still have to give the monthly commission to my company," a taxi driver surnamed Wang, told the Global Times Wednesday. "During a normal part of the year I won't work during rush hour sometimes as there are too many traffic jams."
