Rude cabbies in Shanghai face US$30 fine as city looks to smarten up its taxi industry
Drivers will also be fined for smoking inside the cab, not wearing a uniform or failing to maintain their vehicle
Shanghai taxi drivers could be fined up to 200 yuan (US$30) for being impolite under new rules designed to clean up the industry, a news website reported.
Being rude is just one of a series of misdemeanours for which cabbies could be fined between 50 and 200 yuan, Thepaper.cn reported on Wednesday.
The rules were set by the city’s public transport department and published on its official WeChat account. Their aim was to “improve service quality” and “strengthen law enforcement”, the report said.
Other offences in that category include having an untidy vehicle, smoking inside the taxi and not wearing a company uniform.
For more serious offences, such as not having a roadworthy vehicle or a properly functioning fare meter, drivers could be fined between 200 and 2,000 yuan, the report said.
The detailed guidelines also stipulate that all drivers must clearly display their employer’s contact details.
The new rules came in after the city government promised in June to do more to regulate the highly competitive taxi industry.
Shanghai has more than 60,000 registered taxis and dozens of operating companies.
