Tech tackles bad cabbies

A Czech IT firm has developed its own solution to Prague's infamous problem with overcharging taxi drivers.

ET Netera has developed a smart-phone application called the "Virtual Taximeter," which allows passengers to track their cab journeys on their mobiles and displays the maximum legal price passengers can be charged for the ride.

ET Netera says it would like to cooperate with Prague City Hall so the application can be used to catch and punish crooked drivers, and according to Marketing Manager Ondřej Čihař, City Hall officials called the idea "interesting," but talks have progressed no further.

"We could have released the application worldwide and tried to earn money from it, but we would find it much more interesting if City Hall could use it as a solution to the unflattering situation of Prague taxi drivers," ET Netera General Manger Martin Černohorský said.

After six months with no further response, Černohorský said the firm has decided to release the application as a free download to the general public. It should be available within the next eight weeks.

Virtual Taximeter can be used by owners of the iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch, as well as users of smart-phones running either the Symbian or Android operating systems. It functions using the phones' GPS capabilities, and no Internet data connection is needed.

The application offers a menu from where passengers can choose their preferred language, and it automatically sets the appropriate rate. Users can then check if the rate matches with the price they are charged. When a problem occurs, passengers can take a photo of the driver, including his or her license number, and send it to authorities.

"I like the idea. It will give the people evidence to point at those who are fraudulent among us," said Daniel, a taxi driver who declined to give his full name. "I'm afraid the problem here is that not only tourists but also Prague residents are afraid of the taxi drivers, and they simply pay whatever price they are charged. Instead, they should report the case to the police immediately. Perhaps this application will give them the proof and confidence to take action."

Milan Černobila, an IT department official with the City of Prague, confirmed the prevailing concern of being cheated by taxi drivers.

"I remember feeling ashamed when an elderly British couple stopped me to get advice about what taxis to take in order to avoid any trickery," he said. "I realized they were worried in advance about what might happen to them."

Despite the city's damaged reputation, Jiří Bureš of the Prague Department of Transportation, which oversees taxi services, argues that the situation has improved.

A random inspection conducted in 2002 revealed that 32.7 percent of taxi rides were overpriced, but in 2009, that figure dropped to only 1.25 percent, he said. A similar decline occurred in the number of drivers who failed to issue receipts.

"We run about 1,000 random spot checks per year to inspect appropriate car equipment and description and markings," Bureš said.

While most people blame dishonest taxi drivers for Prague's bad reputation, Pavel Jelínek, spokesman for the Prague Taxi Drivers' Union, blames City Hall.

"Has anyone asked the fundamental question 'Why do taxi drivers have to rip customers off?' " he said. "Anyone would soon figure out that, at the current prices set by City Hall, it's not possible to earn one's living by keeping working hours."

City Hall does regulate prices, and the current maximum price drivers can charge within city limits is 28 Kč ($1.48) per kilometer. City inspectors also check that vehicles parked at official taxi stands comply with basic requirements. Cars must be yellow, have working air-conditioning and be less than eight years old.

"The price per kilometer should be 45 Kč, and drivers should not be allowed to offer cheaper rates - as it is in developed Western cities," Jelínek said. "Then the old cars would disappear from the streets along with the tired drivers who work 12 to 16 hours per day."

The Constitutional Court rejected the request of a Prague taxi driver who demanded an abolishment of price limits in March 2010 and ruled that the absence of these restrictions would exacerbate the problem.

"Backed by the decision that conditions should be equal for all taxi drivers, we can now impose fines of up to 500,000 Kč for overpriced rates, unlike the 10,000 to 50,000 we imposed in previous years," Bureš said.

Klára Jiřičná can be reached at
kjiricna@praguepost.com