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Where are the most miserable cab drivers?

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Old Sep 2, 2010, 7:49 am
  #1  
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Where are the most miserable cab drivers?

Tampa International airport takes some beating for me. No talk, just grunts and they never never crack a smile. Is this typical or have I just been unlucky?

Edit; Sorry mods, meant to put this in Travel Buzz!
indianwells is offline  
Old Sep 2, 2010, 8:24 am
  #2  
 
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No problem, thread moved

NYC does have a fair amount of grumpy cab drivers around. Occasionally I run into some hilarious drivers though.

Paris has a fair share of less friendly drivers too

M%€&E! F#s de P&/! etc... I once saw a guy give the finger to a cab driver in the Port Malliott roundabout. The cabbie jumped out and wanted to settle with his fists. Quite normal apparently
Petrus is offline  
Old Sep 2, 2010, 12:17 pm
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No contest: Miami. I'll be there in a few weeks, so have probably just made myself some enemies!
acunningham is offline  
Old Sep 2, 2010, 1:25 pm
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Ahhh, you meant most miserable acting...not the ones with the most miserable life... That's a different answer.
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Old Sep 2, 2010, 1:29 pm
  #5  
 
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San Pedro Sula
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Old Sep 2, 2010, 2:51 pm
  #6  
 
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Burbank Airport seems to have contracted with a cab company that hires from only one national origin. Never mind what it is; my intent is not to bash the ethnic group. I should have been more concerned, though, when I told the driver I wanted to go to a particular Marriott and he asked if I had directions. He got on the road and called the dispatcher; they had several lengthy discussions in their native language and I wasn't even sure if we were on the right road as I watched the toll mount up. Finally, in desperation, I pulled out my newly-issued Blackberry to see if it had a GPS. It had enough technology to list directions from BUR to the hotel and I determined that we were on the right road and told him what exit to take.

Shortly after that he stopped at a gas station to ask directions and we got to the hotel soon after that.

How in the heck do companies get a contract when their drivers don't know where the hotels are and they're more comfortable dealing in a language other than English? I probably don't want to know.
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Old Sep 2, 2010, 3:36 pm
  #7  
 
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Egypt

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Cairo
Cairo
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Cairo
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CaliforniasCentralCoast is offline  
Old Sep 2, 2010, 4:00 pm
  #8  
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Originally Posted by Petrus
Paris has a fair share of less friendly drivers too
In my experience, Paris cab drivers are les miserables.





Skyman65 is offline  
Old Sep 2, 2010, 4:52 pm
  #9  
 
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Originally Posted by Athena53
Burbank Airport seems to have contracted with a cab company that hires from only one national origin. Never mind what it is; my intent is not to bash the ethnic group. I should have been more concerned, though, when I told the driver I wanted to go to a particular Marriott and he asked if I had directions. He got on the road and called the dispatcher; they had several lengthy discussions in their native language and I wasn't even sure if we were on the right road as I watched the toll mount up. Finally, in desperation, I pulled out my newly-issued Blackberry to see if it had a GPS. It had enough technology to list directions from BUR to the hotel and I determined that we were on the right road and told him what exit to take.

Shortly after that he stopped at a gas station to ask directions and we got to the hotel soon after that.

How in the heck do companies get a contract when their drivers don't know where the hotels are and they're more comfortable dealing in a language other than English? I probably don't want to know.
Welcome to my world! These guys are a particular breed and it's not just the language. One time my flight out of BUR was delayed and I decided to hop down to LAX to make my International connection in SFO. The cab driver insisted on going on the 101 to the 405 instead of going over the hill even though it was morning rush hour. So we're in the fast lane on the 405 when all of a sudden he pulled onto the middle divider and slammed on the brakes. Then he proceeded to BACK UP on the divider of the freeway for what seemed like a quarter mile and then stopped and got out of the taxi. It turned out that he spotted an abandoned hubcap and wanted to pick it up!
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Old Sep 2, 2010, 6:55 pm
  #10  
 
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Rome, Chicago...and..

...i've run into some pretty onerous tuk tuk drivers in BKK.
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Old Sep 2, 2010, 7:02 pm
  #11  
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Delhi.

$5 prepaid from airport for an hour of driving... no wonder they try a scam at every corner....
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Old Sep 2, 2010, 8:37 pm
  #12  
 
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Chicago cabbies must lead the world in "I am sorry, I can't take your credit card now - my terminal is down".
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Old Sep 3, 2010, 12:04 am
  #13  
 
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LCY - the airport is half an hour's drive out of the city so most drivers who take people there end up waiting for a fare back. Trouble is, it takes an hour of queuing to get a fare and most of the fares are pretty local - just to Canary Wharf or suchlike. Then the choice is to wait in one of the giant queues at Canary Wharf or resign yourself to the long journey back into the city centre. You seldom get into a taxi at LCY to find a happy driver.
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Old Sep 3, 2010, 3:15 pm
  #14  
 
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Chicago. Biggest primadonnas alive.

I asked one cab driver to turn down the radio. The cab driver stops the car in the middle of the road, pretends his cab just broke down and tells me to leave. then drives away right after.
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Old Sep 3, 2010, 6:04 pm
  #15  
 
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Athens , Greece - surly, grumpy....
neuron is offline  


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