|
Taxi troubles 出租車之困 Take a hike 歇菜 Jun 12th 2013, 1:43 by T.P. | BEIJING  Beijing’s taxi drivers and passengers seem to be suffering under socialism with too few chinese characteristics 北京的哥和打車一族似乎飽受不夠中國特色的社會(huì)主義之苦 BEIJING’S beleaguered cab drivers have been complaining for years about the relentless growth of their operating costs, and the city government’s stubborn refusal to allow them to raise their taxi fares. The first proper increase in seven years, including a 30% increase in the base fare, was authorised this week. But even so, many drivers remain grumpy. 多年以來，北京的的哥的姐們對(duì)不斷上漲的運(yùn)營費(fèi)用已是叫苦連天，頑固的北京市政府卻一直拒絕提高打車費(fèi)用。直到本周，7年未見變化的打車費(fèi)終于迎來了合理調(diào)整，其中起步價(jià)格提高了30%。但是即便如此，許多出租車司機(jī)仍然不甚滿意。 The fare hike—from 10 yuan ($1.60) to 13 yuan for the first 3 km of any ride, and from 2 yuan to 2.3 yuan for each additional kilometre—went into effect nominally on June 10th, but drivers will not see the extra money until their fare metres are converted. This will be done on a rolling basis, officials say, and the job will not be finished until the end of June. 北京打車的起步價(jià)格從3公里內(nèi)10元（約合1.6美元）提高到了13元，之后每公里的收費(fèi)從2元提高到了2.3元。名義上這一措施將從6月10日起正式生 效，但出租車司機(jī)們?cè)诟鼡Q計(jì)價(jià)器之前不會(huì)見到任何實(shí)際的收入增長。官方稱這一過程需要循序漸進(jìn)，全部更換工作要在6月底才能完成。 Even then, drivers say, they do not expect much of the money to come their way. “The big meaty part of the crab stays with the taxi company,” said one driver who contracts his car from Shouqi (Capital Car), one of the biggest taxi companies in Beijing. “The drivers just get to gnaw on the little crab legs.” 的哥們說，就算計(jì)價(jià)器全部更換完成，他們也不指望能多賺多少錢。北京最大的出租車公司之一，首汽公司旗下的一名出租車司機(jī)說：“螃蟹肉都在出租車公司碗里呢，司機(jī)們頂多啃啃螃蟹腿?！?br> Beijing cabbies have long been prone to grumble, and it is easy to sympathise with them. They often work 12-hour shifts in a city where living costs are high, traffic is brutal, and tips are rare. Petrol prices alone are nearly double what they were in 2006, when the last fare hike was implemented. They have been allowed to levy small fuel surcharges in recent years, but in amounts that barely make a dent against the increase in their overall costs. 北京的出租車司機(jī)們抱怨已久，而且他們理應(yīng)得到理解和同情。這座城市生活成本高昂、交通糟的要命、極少有人給小費(fèi)，而司機(jī)們每次輪班要工作12小時(shí)之久； 上次調(diào)整出租車計(jì)價(jià)還是在2006年，而現(xiàn)在的汽油價(jià)格幾乎比那時(shí)翻了一番；雖然最近幾年出租車可以收取小額的燃油附加費(fèi)，但這對(duì)整體上漲的成本來說無異 于杯水車薪。 The unhappy drivers have in turn made for an unhappy taxi-riding public. Because of their tiny margins, drivers often refuse to pick up customers if conditions are not just right. Heavy traffic means too much waiting time and too much fuel consumed. Wet weather almost always leads to bad traffic, and also to higher risk of accidents. An unattractive destination could lead to an area with bad traffic, or a long and empty ride back to richer pastures. 司機(jī)不滿意，導(dǎo)致打車一族也不滿意。因?yàn)槔麧檶?shí)在微薄，出租車司機(jī)經(jīng)常拒載那些拉了也不賺錢的乘客。擁堵的交通意味著待客時(shí)間過長，燃油消耗過大；只要有 點(diǎn)刮風(fēng)下雨那么交通幾乎一定會(huì)苦不堪言，而且出現(xiàn)事故的幾率也會(huì)大大提高。如果乘客前往的目的地不理想，出租車要么會(huì)陷入擁堵的車流中，要么就得放空跑回 來，重新回到打車人多的地區(qū)。 New ways have emerged for passengers to sweeten the pot on their own. On the low-tech side, would-be passengers can offer extra money to the many “black” cabs—unregulated private cars—that now prowl Beijing streets. 于是打車族開始自己另辟蹊徑。乘客可以選擇多掏點(diǎn)錢打“黑車”，即非正規(guī)經(jīng)營的私人汽車，它們經(jīng)常潛伏在北京的街頭巷尾。這是一種沒什么技術(shù)含量的方法。 On the high-tech side, increasingly popular mobile-phone apps, like Di Di Da Che, allow Beijing taxi-seekers to give not only their location and destination, but also the size of the tip they are willing to pay. Interested drivers can reply with their own location, estimated arrival time, and number-plate information. 而有技術(shù)含量的方法，就是選擇日漸流行的打車應(yīng)用，例如“嘀嘀打車”。這種應(yīng)用不但使北京的打車一族可以提前告知其上車地點(diǎn)和目的地，還可以提前告知司機(jī)其愿意多付的小費(fèi)金額。感興趣的出租車司機(jī)可以向打車人回復(fù)自己的所在地、預(yù)計(jì)到達(dá)時(shí)間以及自己的車牌號(hào)。 Regulators do not approve, however, and are moving to restrict the use of such systems, out of the worry that giving passengers the ability to signal a tip will undermine their overall control of pricing. Increasing the number of taxis on the road might offer them a similar measure of control, but unfortunately they have not seen fit to use it. 然而，監(jiān)管方不高興了。他們開始限制這種應(yīng)用的使用，理由是擔(dān)心乘客自定小費(fèi)金額會(huì)威脅到總體價(jià)格管控。其實(shí)提高出租車數(shù)量也可以實(shí)現(xiàn)類似的管控效果，但遺憾的是官方似乎不打算這么做。 According to the Economic Observer, a Chinese newspaper, the number of taxis in Beijing has remained steady at 66,000 over the past ten years, despite the city’s growing population and the rising levels of income that make it possible for a greater proportion of residents to hail a taxi now and then. Planners, the report says, will continue to limit the total number of taxis. 據(jù)中文報(bào)紙《經(jīng)濟(jì)觀察報(bào)》稱，盡管過去10年來北京的人口不斷增長，收入水平不斷提高，時(shí)不時(shí)打個(gè)車的居民也越來越多，但北京的出租車數(shù)量一直穩(wěn)定在6.6萬輛左右。而且決策者還會(huì)繼續(xù)限制出租車數(shù)量。 They may have their reasons for that. But on the streets of the capital—of a country that says it wants to increase the role of market forces—one thing is clear. Something in the equation of supply, demand and pricing is not adding up. 也許他們有他們的理由吧。但是在一個(gè)自稱要更多依靠市場(chǎng)力量的國家里，其首都街頭卻有一件事變得很明顯：在供給、需求、價(jià)格的方程式中，有什么東西不對(duì)頭了。 |
|
|
