Taxi

Two Nigerians accused of stealing RMB11k from Foshan taxi drivers

Posted: 06/22/2012 2:43 pm

African expats – and Nigerians in particular – seem to be dominating PRD news this week. Only days after Nigerians staged a large scale protest against Chinese police in Guangzhou and called for a Nigerian consulate in the city, two Nigerians have been arrested for robbery in Foshan.

Sina is reporting there were six robberies last week targeting taxi drivers in Foshan’s Nanhai District, all of which were alleged to have been committed by Nigerian expatriates. The robberies totaled RMB11,000 in value, according to the Guangzhou Daily. So far one of the suspects, a 33-year old Nigerian man, has been arrested.

It’s believed the spree of robberies began on June 12. In the early morning that day, a taxi driver, Ah Long, drove two African passengers to Guangfo Trade Mart. After they arrived at the destination, the two passengers asked Ah Long to help them open the trunk to retrieve their luggage. When he did so, one passenger grabbed him by the neck while the other threatened him with a knife, ordering Ah Long to turn over his belongings. They are alleged to have taken RMB4,020 worth of property from Ah Long before fleeing.

Just one week later, local police received reports of several robberies from taxi drivers who described a similar scene, with losses adding up to RMB11,000 in total.

According to captured surveillance video, the police identified the suspects as two tall black men who spoke fluent Mandarin, probably between the ages of 25 and 30. They tended to act late at night, often getting taxis from around Huangqi Road and alighting near Dali Lingnan crossroad.

Police finally had a breakthrough on June 18, when a taxi carrying two black passengers caught the attention of policemen who were staking out the targeted area. After following the taxi all the way to its destination, the police spotted one passenger getting out of the car and looking around. The police the swarmed and took the man down, seizing a sizable blade the man was carrying. Unfortunately for police, the other man was able to run away.

The man who was caught, Onwuatu, was identified as one of the two suspects by Ah Long. Police are still looking for the second suspect.

Tagged: FoshanGuangdongNigeriaNigeriansRobberyTaxi

Shenzhen electric taxi may have caught fire due to leaking battery

Posted: 06/8/2012 11:11 am

A few weeks ago, we told you about three Shenzhen residents who were killed when their electric taxi was struck by a speeding Nissan GT-R. Within seconds of the impact, the taxi caught fire, incinerating the driver and his two female passengers. The accident raised questions over the safety of Shenzhen’s electric taxis, which are manufactured by locally-based BYD. According to a report in Reuters, it now appears that the fire may have been caused by a leaky battery.

Stella Li, Senior Vice President of BYD, said there is a “big chance” that liquid electrolyte, one of the three main battery components, may have leaked after the crash and caught fire. Although police are still investigating the accident, evidence of a faulty battery would be a huge blow to BYD. On the first day of trading following the accident, the Warren Buffett-backed company watched as its stock fell to a seven-month low. And while BYD has already sold close to 500 e6 electric cars throughout China, more bad news regarding the safety of its batteries could be disastrous not only to BYD, but to the future of the electric car business in general.

While Li admits a leaky battery may have caused the fire, she maintains that BYD’s batteries are inherently safe: “No car company could design an electric car or a gasoline-fueled car that could withstand a 180-kph crash, especially from being slammed from the backside” Li said. Whether or not that is true, according to a chief engineer at Toyota, the damage has already been done: “I am not sure if calm and measured attitudes toward electric cars would prevail in the market… It worries me.” Whether the Chinese market will truly take to electric vehicles remains to be seen; needless to say, however, restoring faith will not be easy.

Tagged: BYDCrashElectric CarsElectric TaxiShenzhenStella LiTaxi

Canton Fair has Guangzhou transportation enforcement officers on watch

Posted: 04/27/2012 8:04 am

With the 111^th China Import and Export Fair underway, and a strong international presence as a result, one would hope taxis are doing their part to accommodate the influx of tourists. According to Guangzhou’s transportation enforcement bureau, however, that hasn’t exactly been the case. Over the last few days, enforcement officers have issued 82 transportation violations, including refusal of service.

Although most patrons have a story or two of a taxi refusing to pick them up, it’s rare that the driver in question is ever fined. One such driver, identified as Wu, wasn’t so lucky. After dropping off a passenger, Wu’s taxi was approached by four visitors form Thailand. The group handed Wu a direction card to Huangshi Road. Wu explained that he couldn’t take them, as it was the end of his shift, and he was heading to Haizhu. Unfortunately for Wu, an enforcement officer had witnessed the event and fined him 1000RMB for refusing service.

Incidentally, taxi drivers can only refuse service for the following reasons: the taxi is already in service, is on its way to pick-up another passenger, or is in need of maintenance.

Source: xkb.com.cn

Tagged: Canton FairEnforcementExport FairGuangzhouImportRefusal of ServiceTaxi

Spotted in Shenzhen: one of the new BYD-built electric cabs

Posted: 12/15/2011 10:47 am

The E6 in Shenzhen (Courtesy: China Briefing)

Shenzhen doesn’t quite have a pollution problem as bad as it’s northern brethren, but it’s already taking action to clear the air.

The city is rolling out electric taxis manufactured by BYD, the electric car company that drew a $230 million investment from Warren Buffett. There are already about 300 of these things on the road in Shenzhen, so you might have already seen one (or been in one). China Briefing reports this is just the beginning:

Named the E6, the vehicle offers enough space for five passengers and has a range of some 160 kilometers. Plans are currently being put into place to convert all of Shenzhen’s public vehicular transport to electric – including buses and all taxis – over the next five years.

All existing gas (petrol) fuel stations in the city and its suburbs are currently being upgraded to include rapid electric charging systems.

This large-scale roll out of electric vehicles puts Shenzhen on the cutting edge globally, and will no doubt contribute to cleaner air.

Tagged: AirBusBYDElectric TaxiEnvironmentPollutionPublic TransportTaxiWarren Buffett

Guangzhou looking at raising taxi fares

Posted: 05/10/2011 2:37 pm

Guangzhou authorities are toying with the idea of increasing taxi fares in the city. Right now, when you get into a taxi, the meter starts at RMB 7 for the first 2.3 kilometres. After that, it is 1 kuai for every kilometre thereafter, plus an RMB 2 fuel surchage once the final fare is known. This actually makes Guangzhou taxis among the cheapest in big, modern Chinese cities: the rate starts at RMB 10 in Beijing and RMB 12 in Shanghai for the first three kilometres, and each city charges 2 kuai per kilometre fee after that. It gets worse though… Beijing moves to an RMB 11 starting fee after 11pm, while Shanghai moves to RMB 16 at night. And authorities there are thinking of raising it further.

Shenzhen’s taxi fares also start at RMB 10, but is subject to a three kuai fuel surcharge – the highest in China. Perhaps somebody at the Guangzhou Bureau of Commodity Prices (yes, they are the ones that set taxi fares) noticed this pricing chasm. They are considering setting the initial fare at RMB 10, which is a steep 30% increase on current prices. However, the 2 kuai surcharge would be abolished. Even though that would make Guangzhou’s fares competitive on a national level, people, understandably, still don’t like coughing up the extra fen:

The result of a March survey by the Guangzhou Public Opinion Research Center revealed recently that 57.9 percent of the surveyors consider this price unreasonable and 57.1 percent will reduce use of taxis if the starting price increases.

In the survey, 40 percent of the citizens “accept” the price of the taxi fee, 7.8 percent lower than that in 2008. 48.5 percent of the citizens “reluctantly accept” and another 11.5 percent say they can’t afford it.

The Guangzhou Bureau of Commodity Price said that they will hold a hearing before they increase the starting price of taxi. The adjustment will be in accordance to the prices of LPG gas. Some drivers worry that the hike will affect their business, “passengers may not accept the price psychologically even though the price is increased only 1 Yuan. The metro and bus in the city is more and more convenient.”

The bottom line: with inflation surging in China, it just isn’t as cheap to live here as it once was.