Taxi Rates

[Rhodesresort]

Yetta,

"If a route taxi is empty, isn't some money better than none???"

Perhaps so? But, lets agree to disagree.

Jamaica is a developing country, known as a third world country. In an already depressed economy, taking advantage will not help the people. Gas prices are higher in Jamaica than in the United States. The local taxi rates are based on, again, a very depressed economy. "Just imagine how much more $$ they could make if more tourists used the route taxi". No matter how many tourists use route taxis, paying the driver local rates still doesn't cover it.


Some of us are fortunate enough to have the opportunity to travel. The opportunity for most Jamaicans, never will.

[smith744]

In an already depressed economy, taking advantage will not help the people.

lol
lol
lol
lol

excuse me for laughing,
but please do tell me how in the world is me (i.e., a foreigner) taking a route taxi, AT the regular route-taxi fares, taking advantage....???...


lol
lol
lol
lol

too funny
waaaaaaaaaaaaaay too funny

hey,
boardie-Rhodesresort ... i got a question for ya.
let's do some role playing

so,
if/when my Ja-associates tell me the fare from Lucea to MoBay bus-park is Ja$xyz,
what am i 'spose to do..??..
what should i pay..??..

lol
lol
lol
lol

if i was to do what you're *suggesting*, hinting, imply-ing, all my Ja-associates would say that i was an idiot.

[RockRobster]

Yetta,

"If a route taxi is empty, isn't some money better than none???"

Perhaps so? But, lets agree to disagree.

Jamaica is a developing country, known as a third world country. In an already depressed economy, taking advantage will not help the people. Gas prices are higher in Jamaica than in the United States. The local taxi rates are based on, again, a very depressed economy. "Just imagine how much more $$ they could make if more tourists used the route taxi". No matter how many tourists use route taxis, paying the driver local rates still doesn't cover it.

This is sheer economic nonsense. How can more riders, local or tourist, on a 'route' taxi not "cover" it? Is your argument that the incremental weight of a north american tourist is so great as to upset the fuel mileage so much that the 100J fare won't cover the additional fuel used for this fare? For a 'route taxi' to maximize his profit potential per 'route' run, his goal is to keep his taxi as full as possible for as long as possible. Empty space = lost fare/lost profit opportunity. Therefore, the taxi would want to fill itself and is not concerned with whom it fills its capacity with, as long as they pay!

And, as to the argument that a worker returning home after a hard day at work having to wait for the next route taxi because the last one was full up with pasty white faces is somehow harmed by the pasty faced tourists using the route taxis......my thoughts are that the worker is glad to see that there are enough tourists in town that the route taxis are full of them. That means that economy is doing better and that worker's job is that much more secure. If I was a worker coming off this summer's economic hell in JA, I'd be well pleased to see route taxis crammed with tourists.