2985 taxi alert in Buenos Aires for tourists
Date: Mon, 15 Nov 2004 12:46:41 -0300
From: Janis Kenyon <jantango@FEEDBACK.NET.AR>
Subject: taxi alert in Buenos Aires for tourists
This information is to alert tourists who plan to visit Buenos Aires. This
subject was important enough to appear on the front page of La Nacion. If
you are going to Buenos Aires, please save this information for future
reference and pass it on to anyone you know who plans to go. Add it to
your web site.
A group of individuals are devising new ways to rob passengers. They are
using vehicles which are made to look like taxis. They steal the
closed-circuit radio from taxis and then are able to intercept calls for
taxis. Passengers don't know that they are riding with someone who is going
to rob them at gunpoint.
Police advise people to do the following upon entering a taxi: roll up all
windows, lock all doors, and then tell the driver the route you want him to
take to your destination. If he has any problem with this, get out and take
another taxi. It is for your safety and his.
Call a reputable agency when you need a taxi. Stay on the line while the
dispatcher puts out a call for a taxi and wait for him to give you the
number of the taxi that will be going to your address. If you don't speak
Spanish, ask someone to call a taxi for you.
Only use radio taxis, especially at night. Years ago all taxis were
independent drivers. Today the majority are connected with an agency and
have radios in the cab. The agency I use requires the driver to notify them
when he has the passenger on board. Do not use independent drivers.
How to identify an official radio taxi. The radio taxi is identified in at
least three places by the company--the passenger doors, the trunk, and a
light on the roof of the auto. All taxis must display the city license
number on the front doors of the taxi on both sides. The driver has his
license displayed inside the taxi with his name, photo and license number.
This official identification should be in full view on the back of the
driver's seat or on the dashboard. The agency number of each taxi is
displayed on the front bumper. Upon entering a taxi, you can make a note of
the taxi number and the name of the agency and telephone in case you leave
something behind or need to report a problem. Don't use a taxi that isn't
identified in this manner.
At night, ask the driver to turn on the overhead light before you pay him
the fare. This will avoid any money switching tricks and you will be
charged the fare posted in the fare box. Check to be sure you haven't left
anything behind before closing the door.
It is important to always have small bills and change to pay the taxi fare.
This avoids having to find change to pay the fare or having the driver pass
counterfeit bills. They know you won't recognize the difference. If you
don't have change, share a taxi with a friend who does.
Avoid conversation with the driver or speaking in English with friends in
the taxi. You don't need to draw attention to the fact that you are a
tourist. Check a map and have a general idea of the route you should be
traveling to your destination.
I usually walk or take a bus, but when I want a taxi, I use Radio Taxi Paris
(4308-0001) because the dispatcher office is one block from my apartment.
They have me listed in their computer (name, address and telephone). When I
call them, I simply give them my telephone number, they confirm that I am
the person at the address in their computer, and they dispatch a taxi to my
door within a few minutes. The driver confirms that I am the person he was
sent to pick up and then immediately calls the dispatcher on the radio to
confirm that he has the passenger on board. I then tell the driver the
route I want him to take to my destination.
The purpose in sharing this information is not to scare you; it's to make
you more alert when using a taxi early in the morning after dancing all
night long. Women should share a taxi with a good friend rather than
someone you just met in the milonga.
