Reluctance to implement adjusted transport fares
KATHMANDU Jan 23: Undercover Republica staff hires a taxi (Ba 1 Ja 8603) from Dhumbarahi to Balaju Buspark at 10:55 a.m. on January 1 in an experiment designed to check if the cabby charges legitimate fares.
The taxi meter shows Rs 140 upon arriving at Balaju Buspark.
The same staff member takes another taxi (Ba 1 Ja 4331) to cover the same distance. Upon arrival at Dhumbarahi, the taxi meter shows Rs 125.
In another case, Republica staff hires another taxi (Ba 1 Ja 6421) from Balaju Buspark at 12:40 p.m. on December 9, 2008, to check the fare the cabby charges.
Upon arrival at Dhumbarahi, the taxi displays Rs 202 on its meter.
The actual distance from Dhumbarahi to the Balaju Buspark is 4.4 kilometers.
According to fares set by the government; the flag charge for a taxi is Rs 10. And for each call (i.e. equivalent to 200 m) covered, the fare should be Rs 4.80. That makes the total fare for the distance equal to Rs 115.60.
This is just a case in point showing how cabbies charge unfair fares. Being overcharged is a regular experience for those taking cabs in the capital.
How are meters manipulated?
An investigation carried out by Republica has found taxi drivers in Kathmandu Valley generally use one of three different methods to raise their meter readings.
Earthling
This is the most commonly-used method. An electric wire can be connected to the meter, helping speed it up if brought in contact with other metallic bodies.
According to concerned government officials, unscrupulous cabbies bring such wires in touch with metallic parts of the gearbox, hand-brakes, radio and radio-aerial.
Passengers on board can see the misdeed with their own eyes by simply monitoring the driver’s activities. Just a simple touch of wire on metal is enough to increase the fare by Rs 10, according to meter experts.
Fast call
Experts estimate over 90 percent of cabbies operating in Kathmandu Valley use this method to raise the meter reading. Each meter is supposed to read each 200-meter distance as one call. With the help of technicians, greedy cabbies can reduce the distance of the call. A taxi meter can, for example, be tampered with to read one kilometer as four calls.
Neither traffic police, nor passengers can know if cabbies have sped their calls up unless they know the exact distance traveled.
Gear manipulation
Taxi drivers in Kathmandu Valley have also been found manipulating gearboxes to help raise meter readings. Taxi gears generally have 14 spurs, which, according to officials of the Department of Standard and Metrology (DoSM), is the basis on which they are able to adjust taxi meters to be in line with the price determined by the government.
Concerned experts believe most Kathmandu Valley taxis have 12 or less spurs, enabling drivers to fleece passengers for shorter distances.
Who is responsible for stemming this practice?
Contrary to common belief, it is not the traffic police, but the DoSM, which is solely responsible for keeping the practice of rigging taxi meters in check.
"We do not have any device to check if a cabby is involved in such foul practice," laments deputy superintendent of police Bikash Shrestha at the Metropolitan Traffic Police Division (MTPD), Ramshahpath.
Here lies the problem. The DoSM is moved, if at all, only when it receives complaints directly or through traffic police. Tampering with taxi meters may seem a trivial issue, however is growing to become a menace in the Valley as most victims fail to see the point in reporting individual cases to the police for amounts as meager as Rs 100.
However, it is mandatory for cabbies to have their meters checked at the DoSM once a year. Should their meters be found to have been manipulated, the DoSM is authorized to take the necessary action. "Most of the meters are found in order when they come to us," says Mohan Koirala, chief of the Taxi and Tempo Unit of the DoSM.
Why not conduct surprise checks?
Surprise meter checks could do much to solve the problem. But officials at DoSM say they have neither the equipment, nor adequate human resources required to conduct the checks.
There are only five DoSM technicians designated to check the meters of some 7,000 taxis plying the streets of Kathmandu. To make matters worse, there is only one Standard Rolling Machine (SRM) allocated to do this. A SRM is an electrical device used to check if meters installed in taxis are functioning in conjunction with fares determined by the government, however is not able to be taken out into the streets to conduct surprise checks.
Security threats another hurdle
Besides the lack of human and technical resources available to conduct spot checks, threats to officials designated to conduct the checks also prevents the issue from being resolved. "How practical will it be for us to conduct such checking when there are cases of (traffic) police being beaten up by unruly drivers?" asks a senior official at DoSM.
Govt decision to revise fuel price adds worries
Further adding to DoSM’s worries is government’s recent decision to revise fuel prices on a monthly basis, as revision of fuel prices usually means revision of transportation fares.
DoSM officials say they have the capacity to adjust a maximum of 110 taxi meters per day. "It is just difficult to adjust meters of all taxis plying in Valley in one month," says Koirala.
The government last updated taxi fares on July 1, 2008. It took nearly two-and-a-half months for the DoSM to adjust the meters of all taxis operating in the Valley to be in line with the new rate.
The DoSM is in such a poor state that it doesn’t even have an electricity generator to continue working during a power outage. "We will have to remain idle when there is power outage," an official at the Taxi and Tempo Unit at the DoSM complains.
Making matters worse is that the DoSM doesn’t have the expertise to repair taxi meters on its own.
Officials say cabbies first reach workshops recognized by the DoSM to repair their meters and come to them only when they require a seal. "We put such meters in Standard Rolling Machine and put a seal into them if they are found displaying fares," says an official at the DoSM.
There is also the unfortunate possibility that taxi drivers may have nexus with the workshops to adjust meters, as there is no provision to conduct surprise checks and drivers are only required to come to the DoSM once a year to have their meters checked.
Solution
Officials at DoSM advise passengers that the best way to avoid paying exorbitant fares is to see that the taxi meter has its seal intact, as it is difficult to manipulate meters without tampering with the seal.
But this is easier said than done. Not all passengers have the technical understanding to make use of this advice.
Traffic police inspector Sita Ram Hacchethu says the problem of unfair fares could be resolved should the DoSM conduct routine surprise checks and fine cabbies the maximum penalty should they be discovered to be crooked. It is equally important victims make complaints to the police or the DoSM against such cabbies.
The DoSM is authorized to fine cab drivers between Rs 500 to 20,000, and seize the manipulated meters if a cabby is found to have been involved in such practice. But there are very few cases of meters having actually been seized. Worse still, the DoSM lets most of these unscrupulous taxi drivers off after charging a meager amount, a complaint traffic police officials frequently make.
Traffic officials maintain it would be far better if it was provided with the necessary resources to check meters. "The Department of (Standards and) Metrology does not have its own implementation mechanism," says a senior traffic police officer, preferring to be unnamed. "At least we have our men in the streets almost all the time."
