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10 years 4 months ago #128921 by Roderick Smith
Replied by Roderick Smith on topic Re: Taxis
700419Su. Brunswick St at Victoria Pde, Fitzroy (Melbourne, Vic.): Holden HT taxi. R Smith.

Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor


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10 years 4 months ago - 10 years 4 months ago #128922 by Roderick Smith
Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor

Women-only pink taxis on the way.
November 14, 2013 Melbourne 'Age', with an image of a pink taxi.
Pink taxis driven by women and available only to female passengers could be on Melbourne's streets soon.
TaxiLink's Harry Katsiabanis hopes to recruit 50 women to drive a new fleet of pink cabs to serve women exclusively.
Mr Katsiabanis said he was pushing the initiative, dubbed Taxi Link Pink, in response to a series of articles in The Age about lone women being sexually assaulted by taxi drivers at night.
Victoria's taxi authority has been receiving about three complaints a month from female passengers, ranging from sexually intimidating behaviour to assault.
"Taxi Link Pink will be a fleet of pink taxis for women only, driven by women only," Mr Katsiabanis said. "But I can't launch the product if I don't have the drivers."
Women would be trained as drivers and then hired under a conventional bailment agreement, under which they would earn 50 per cent of the fare box, rising to 55 per cent once the state government's taxi industry reforms take effect.
The drivers would be assigned work from a call centre and could pick up female customers on the street.
Mr Katsiabanis said Victoria's taxi industry was male-dominated, yet 58 per cent of his company's customers were women. The few female drivers already at TaxiLink could not keep up with demand.
"We need to change the perception," he said. "I've only got a handful [of female drivers] and they are fantastic. They can't keep up with the demand."
An exemption from Victoria's equal opportunity laws would be required before the scheme could start.
Veterinary nurse Brook Trott, 18, said a women-only taxi service would make her feel more comfortable about catching cabs.
"I would feel more safe if I was to get in a taxi with another girl, as a driver or just a passenger," Ms Trott said.
Recruitment consultant Tatjana Grgic, 42, said women-only cabs would make little difference during the day but would be welcome at night.
"I've had all kinds of different male taxi drivers with the intention to get something out of you, not just money, and if I had a choice and was calling up Silver Top or any other taxi services and they were asking the option, 'Would you like a male or a female?', my response would be 'female'," Ms Grgic said.
The taxi industry inquiry, led by Professor Allan Fels, made no specific recommendations for improving women's safety in cabs, but noted it was an issue.
Taxi Services Commissioner Graeme Samuel said the push for women-only taxis was an example of the kind of innovation that the government's industry reforms were designed to foster.
"There will be innovators who see there are some great opportunities now to create a different service, and it's a service that will attract customers and differentiate itself from the current incumbents, the two major networks," Mr Samuel said.
The commission would have to approve the change of taxi colour from yellow to pink. Mr Samuel said Victoria's uniformly yellow taxis were "anti-competitive and disempowered consumers".
The Napthine government will introduce tough new fines for companies that do not comply with its decision to slash the credit card surcharge for taxi payments by 50 per cent.
The existing 10 per cent surcharge will drop to 5 per cent next year, in one of the key reforms to the industry.
Companies that do not reduce the surcharge face civil fines of up to $5 million, and individuals face fines of up to $1 million.
"We are serious about taxi reform, and serious about halving the cost of using your card to pay for your trip," Public Transport Minister Terry Mulder said.
www.theage.com.au/victoria/womenonly-pin...-20131114-2xj2i.html

Also at:
www.heraldsun.com.au/news/victoria/plans...it3-1226759992010#mm
Last edit: 10 years 4 months ago by Roderick Smith.

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10 years 4 months ago #128923 by Roderick Smith
Replied by Roderick Smith on topic Re: Taxis
This one has been in a different thread, but belongs here too.
Even though I had been in tuktuks in Thailand, it had full-size taxis too. Then I reached Sri Lanka, and thought that a country using Morris Minors as taxis is nationally not wealthy.

The country has advanced a lot, partly helped by Japan having a forced-life rule for vehicles, and also being a right-hand drive country: Sri Lanka picks up a lot of modern vehicles ex Japan.

771227Tu Colombo (Sri Lanka): Maradana station,taxi. (Roderick Smith)

Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor

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10 years 4 months ago #128924 by Roderick Smith
Replied by Roderick Smith on topic Re: Taxis
There are lots of these. The front seat is removed; passengers use the rear seat, but with easy access. I have only ever used one solo, with a suitcase, and it was placed where the front seat would have been.

891231Su. Mexico City, Mexico. VW taxi. R Smith

Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor


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10 years 2 months ago #128925 by Tatra
Replied by Tatra on topic Re: Taxis
Bumping this to the top with a taxi row in Tel Aviv, Israel, sometime in the 30s (from the David B. Keidan collection on the Harvard U archives)

http://ids.lib.harvard.edu/ids/view/view/15601406?viewheight=394&height=394&width=600&viewwidth=600

A few years later (1980s) this was very typical (everywhere from Hamburg to Mombasa actually). Also from Harvard U.

http://ids.lib.harvard.edu/ids/view/view/9541658?viewheight=592&height=592&width=600&viewwidth=600

Not the case for the VW 411 below, these not having a diesel engine option (pic: I. Haramaty).

http://ids.lib.harvard.edu/ids/view/view/9208185?viewheight=600&height=600&width=567&viewwidth=567

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10 years 2 months ago #128926 by Roderick Smith
Replied by Roderick Smith on topic Re: Taxis
Great additions. Are the 1920s ones Chevrolets?

I was too slow with the trigger to shoot a BMW taxi in Germany in recent days.
Years ago, I was in a Mercedes taxi cross country in Austria.
One memorable ride was in a Fiat or Seat [ Spanish clone] in Switzerland doing 100 km/h on icy roads with no chains: I wouldn't drive at 20 on such roads at home. The driver kept turning around to gloat at his passengers 'Quelle bella automotrice'.

Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor

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10 years 2 weeks ago #128927 by Roderick Smith
Replied by Roderick Smith on topic Re: Taxis
Have a modern taxi, which could be any make. I leave it the passionate to identify it.

Big yellow taxi, Joni Mitchell:
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131204W Westgarth St at Brunswick St, Fitzroy (Melbourne, Vic.). Yellow taxi passing East-West Link protesters. Jeff Bounds.

Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor


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10 years 2 weeks ago - 10 years 2 weeks ago #128928 by
Replied by on topic Re: Taxis
...g'day Rodders .. i still own a yellow EL Falcon taxi wagon version in that horrid yellow with those wonderful grey bumpers they had back in the day ::) ::) ::) ::)

...she has all the beaut options...bench seats, column shift, clunky auto (my kids called it a ''slam shifter'' 8-) 8-)), and about 1,085,000 K's on the clock!!...

....and with all the running around, guess what they called it?....''Dads Taxi'' :) :)

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10 years 2 weeks ago #128929 by Mrsmackpaul
Replied by Mrsmackpaul on topic Re: Taxis
detective reminds me of the last time I bought a new car strolled into the Ford dealer at sunny Kerang northern Vic with the princess in tow and told them I wanted to buy a new taxi the sales man looks at me like this :o and the Princess is going like this ::) . The sales man asks why I say its practical no power windows column shift vinyle seats rubber floor mats bench seat in the front anyway he breacks the news that Ford had only just stopped making Taxis my face went :'( and the Princess well she's still happy lol :D :D :D

Paul

Your better to die trying than live on your knees begging

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10 years 2 weeks ago #128930 by
Replied by on topic Re: Taxis
...i can definitely relate to the ''rolly eyes''...i got that a lot ;D ;D ;D

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