ACMA crackdown on Melbourne taxi drivers with GPS jammers

[Simo]

In BNE i take the train to Eagle Junction then get a cab from there as you don't have to pay airport surcharge. But yes I do know that QR then charge somethng but cheaper than a taxi

 

[Mal]

In BNE i take the train to Eagle Junction then get a cab from there as you don't have to pay airport surcharge. But yes I do know that QR then charge somethng but cheaper than a taxi

Surely this isn't cheaper than the through fare to the airport. Or alternatively using go card to eagle junction,. Tapping off. Waiting about a minute and tapping on again?

 

[toowongman]

Interesting.

Excuse my ignorance, why do they need GPS jammers?

Without GPS tracking the speed and location of the car can't be verified. Thus they can speed about, not be tracked if they get tempted to do something they really shouldn't be doing, take cash fares "off the meter" etc.

 

[markis10]

Surely this isn't cheaper than the through fare to the airport. Or alternatively using go card to eagle junction,. Tapping off. Waiting about a minute and tapping on again?

I wonder how many people buy the through fares from the airport??

Airport to Nambour $36
Airport to Eagle Junction $16
Eagle Junction to Nambour $13.81

 

[medhead]

Without GPS tracking the speed and location of the car can't be verified. Thus they can speed about, not be tracked if they get tempted to do something they really shouldn't be doing, take cash fares "off the meter" etc.

You don't need GPS tracking to check if cash jobs are being done. You can get that info from the odometer and the data recorded in the meter.

 

[markis10]

You don't need GPS tracking to check if cash jobs are being done. You can get that info from the odometer and the data recorded in the meter.

Not quite, a GPS would show the taxi doing a drop off at the departures level for a cash job that was passed off as a positioning job while a meter would not, distance to holding bay at Tulla via Melrose drive would be the same as up the freeway, to arrivals then to holding area.

 

[medhead]

Not quite, a GPS would show the taxi doing a drop off at the departures level for a cash job that was passed off as a positioning job while a meter would not, distance to holding bay at Tulla via Melrose drive would be the same as up the freeway, to arrivals then to holding area.

A single job is irrelevant. The meter records a number of key metrics that can be used to determine if a driver is ripping you off. For example cents per km, if that is too low then there is a fair chance they are doing cash jobs - driving km without getting a fare. When doing my pay in, I was required to record 4 or 5 of the data points from the meter. As I said GPS is not needed to know what's going on with the cab in this regard, even if it might make life a bit easier.

Then there is also the question of what the pay in shows. The driver might very well put the cash jobs into their pay in. I certainly did for jobs done on a quote, ie out of the taxi zone like the Gold Coast.

 

[Toddkurnski]

I've turned to chauffeur service to and from the airport in Melbourne. $60 in a taxi or $75 by chauffeur. For the extra I get a clean car, clean driver, always on time, no waiting in a queue at the airport, luggage taken for me. Why would I bother with a taxi?

 

[markis10]

A single job is irrelevant. The meter records a number of key metrics that can be used to determine if a driver is ripping you off. For example cents per km, if that is too low then there is a fair chance they are doing cash jobs - driving km without getting a fare. When doing my pay in, I was required to record 4 or 5 of the data points from the meter. As I said GPS is not needed to know what's going on with the cab in this regard, even if it might make life a bit easier.

Then there is also the question of what the pay in shows. The driver might very well put the cash jobs into their pay in. I certainly did for jobs done on a quote, ie out of the taxi zone like the Gold Coast.

I am taking in the context where the driver is not the owner and passing off a deadhead to the airport as the purpose instead of reporting a fare, agree GPS vs meter is irrelevant when the meter is on. in that case I am not sure why ACMA would really care, then again could be a case of a foreman looking for a fire.

 

[Mal]

I am taking in the context where the driver is not the owner and passing off a deadhead to the airport as the purpose instead of reporting a fare, agree GPS vs meter is irrelevant when the meter is on. in that case I am not sure why ACMA would really care, then again could be a case of a foreman looking for a fire.

ACMA would be concerned about interference from the blocker causing other issues (for example, potentially affecting Sat Nav or other systems on emergency vehicles etc).

 

[Paddy55]

I've turned to chauffeur service to and from the airport in Melbourne. $60 in a taxi or $75 by chauffeur. For the extra I get a clean car, clean driver, always on time, no waiting in a queue at the airport, luggage taken for me. Why would I bother with a taxi?

Ditto in Sydney for the same reasons.

Avoiding the queue for cabs at SYD on the way home is a big bonus to me!

 

[medhead]

I am taking in the context where the driver is not the owner

So am I. The driver can be required to include certain information with their pay in. Any half knowledgable owner is going to require that information and if it is consistently not included should no longer contract the driver.

This is also going to be dependant on the driver's contractor arrangement. If the taxi is leased then it doesn't matter if they do cash jobs at all. I have been able to find a break down of leasing arrangements versus other sub contracting arrangements.

Maybe this is something peculiar to the Victorian taxi industry. What about the GPS security tracking?