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Saturday 24 October 2009
Harsh crackdown on illegal cabs backfires
The government could arrest every illegal taxi driver in the city tomorrow, but it would not do any good unless they remove the reason they exist in the first place.
Ten days ago, Sun Zhongjie was an anonymous driver of a small delivery van in one of Shanghai’s many suburbs. Today, he is virtually a household name in the city and sits in the eye of a storm over the city’s campaign to stamp out illegal taxis.
On October 14, according to Sun, he was driving along a backstreet in Pudong when he was flagged down by a man he described as “desperate for a lift”. A few minutes later his van was pulled over and his passenger jumped out, tossing a 10 yuan note (HK$11) into Sun’s lap.
He had been caught in a sting operation designed to hunt down unlicensed drivers - so-called black cars - and now faces a fine of up to 10,000 yuan.
Sun is crying foul, and he is not the first van driver to claim he was the victim of entrapment. The issue has been simmering for a couple of months, with similar stories emerging every few weeks. But Sun’s tale took a bizarre twist when he decided to prove his innocence by hacking off part of his little finger.
Crude though his tactic might be, it seems to have been successful. His case has been the top news topic all week, bringing a blaze of publicity. It was the subject of Central China Television’s flagship half-hour investigative reporting show.
City authorities have insisted up to now that sending out undercover passengers is a legitimate way to “fish” for lawbreakers, as they try to clean up the city ahead of next year’s Expo. But in the glare of scrutiny, Pudong authorities have blinked and announced a full investigation into methods used in the crackdown.
If nothing else, this row demonstrates the tightrope authorities have to walk as they try to tighten their lackadaisical enforcement of the rules in the face of an increasingly sceptical public. Even those who believe Sun is not completely innocent do not need a lot of convincing that his prosecutors were up to something dodgy.
But it also raises the question of just how hard the authorities are trying. You do not have to go far to find illegal transport in Shanghai. The city has tens of thousands of registered taxis. In the city centre, you would be forgiven for thinking there was one for every five of Shanghai’s 18 million inhabitants. But trying to find an empty one during rush hour or once the tiniest drop of rain falls is like panning for gold in a dried-up creek.
That is when the black-market riders creep out of the woodwork. After a few minutes of flailing uselessly for a taxi, the chances are a rusted, spluttering motorbike will sidle up to the kerb.
“You’ll never catch a cab here,” the scruffily dressed rider invariably urges. “Why don’t you hop on?”
This reporter must confess he has never had the guts to take up such an offer.
Shanghai’s roads can be chaotic enough at the best of times, viewed from the relative safety of a metal box on four solid wheels; a two-wheeled perspective with no more protection than a flimsy plastic hard hat is not a particularly enticing prospect.
It is a very different story away from the heart of the city, as well.
Taxi drivers incessantly complain about their small profit margins and the need to work 22-hour days (alternating with a colleague) just to keep their heads above water. Little wonder they are drawn like wasps to the city centre’s potentially lucrative honeypot.
But in Shanghai’s sprawling periphery - part industrial, part suburban and part crumbling slum - taxis are a rare sight. The bus services on the outskirts also tend to be slow, crowded and unreliable, and the Metro is spread thin.
This is the real growth market for black cars. Around transport hubs minivans abound, touting for trade in pretty open contravention of the law. Known colloquially as “bread vans”, these vehicles are part of everyday life on the outskirts.
Much as the government might not like them, much as they can be a source of traffic hazards, they plug a gap in the transport system.
The city government’s portal, Eastday.com, has been running a poll on the controversy all week. These things are never particularly scientific and cannot be considered statistically representative even when they get a big response. This one had about 11,000 votes on some of its questions yesterday. But occasionally they do throw up something interesting.
On the topic of how to combat the problem of illegal taxis, internet users sent a very clear message. Six of the seven options - including tougher penalties, firmer legislation and investigations - received a negligible number of votes, with only one breaching the 5 per cent mark. More than 77 per cent of respondents said the government should sort out the urban transport system so there was no need for black cars.
People do not just take these illegal cabs simply because they are cheaper, or even because they are slightly more convenient. In many places, there are few alternatives.
The government could arrest every illegal taxi driver in the city tomorrow, but it would not do any good unless they remove the reason they exist in the first place.
2 comments:
Harsh crackdown on illegal cabs backfires
Will Clem in Shanghai
24 October 2009
Ten days ago, Sun Zhongjie was an anonymous driver of a small delivery van in one of Shanghai’s many suburbs. Today, he is virtually a household name in the city and sits in the eye of a storm over the city’s campaign to stamp out illegal taxis.
On October 14, according to Sun, he was driving along a backstreet in Pudong when he was flagged down by a man he described as “desperate for a lift”. A few minutes later his van was pulled over and his passenger jumped out, tossing a 10 yuan note (HK$11) into Sun’s lap.
He had been caught in a sting operation designed to hunt down unlicensed drivers - so-called black cars - and now faces a fine of up to 10,000 yuan.
Sun is crying foul, and he is not the first van driver to claim he was the victim of entrapment. The issue has been simmering for a couple of months, with similar stories emerging every few weeks. But Sun’s tale took a bizarre twist when he decided to prove his innocence by hacking off part of his little finger.
Crude though his tactic might be, it seems to have been successful. His case has been the top news topic all week, bringing a blaze of publicity. It was the subject of Central China Television’s flagship half-hour investigative reporting show.
City authorities have insisted up to now that sending out undercover passengers is a legitimate way to “fish” for lawbreakers, as they try to clean up the city ahead of next year’s Expo. But in the glare of scrutiny, Pudong authorities have blinked and announced a full investigation into methods used in the crackdown.
If nothing else, this row demonstrates the tightrope authorities have to walk as they try to tighten their lackadaisical enforcement of the rules in the face of an increasingly sceptical public. Even those who believe Sun is not completely innocent do not need a lot of convincing that his prosecutors were up to something dodgy.
But it also raises the question of just how hard the authorities are trying. You do not have to go far to find illegal transport in Shanghai. The city has tens of thousands of registered taxis. In the city centre, you would be forgiven for thinking there was one for every five of Shanghai’s 18 million inhabitants. But trying to find an empty one during rush hour or once the tiniest drop of rain falls is like panning for gold in a dried-up creek.
That is when the black-market riders creep out of the woodwork. After a few minutes of flailing uselessly for a taxi, the chances are a rusted, spluttering motorbike will sidle up to the kerb.
“You’ll never catch a cab here,” the scruffily dressed rider invariably urges. “Why don’t you hop on?”
This reporter must confess he has never had the guts to take up such an offer.
Shanghai’s roads can be chaotic enough at the best of times, viewed from the relative safety of a metal box on four solid wheels; a two-wheeled perspective with no more protection than a flimsy plastic hard hat is not a particularly enticing prospect.
It is a very different story away from the heart of the city, as well.
Taxi drivers incessantly complain about their small profit margins and the need to work 22-hour days (alternating with a colleague) just to keep their heads above water. Little wonder they are drawn like wasps to the city centre’s potentially lucrative honeypot.
But in Shanghai’s sprawling periphery - part industrial, part suburban and part crumbling slum - taxis are a rare sight. The bus services on the outskirts also tend to be slow, crowded and unreliable, and the Metro is spread thin.
This is the real growth market for black cars. Around transport hubs minivans abound, touting for trade in pretty open contravention of the law. Known colloquially as “bread vans”, these vehicles are part of everyday life on the outskirts.
Much as the government might not like them, much as they can be a source of traffic hazards, they plug a gap in the transport system.
The city government’s portal, Eastday.com, has been running a poll on the controversy all week. These things are never particularly scientific and cannot be considered statistically representative even when they get a big response. This one had about 11,000 votes on some of its questions yesterday. But occasionally they do throw up something interesting.
On the topic of how to combat the problem of illegal taxis, internet users sent a very clear message. Six of the seven options - including tougher penalties, firmer legislation and investigations - received a negligible number of votes, with only one breaching the 5 per cent mark. More than 77 per cent of respondents said the government should sort out the urban transport system so there was no need for black cars.
People do not just take these illegal cabs simply because they are cheaper, or even because they are slightly more convenient. In many places, there are few alternatives.
The government could arrest every illegal taxi driver in the city tomorrow, but it would not do any good unless they remove the reason they exist in the first place.
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