On the Subject of Taxis....

[Lola]

Two things:

Interesting that folks are being guided to use Charter vehicles instead of route taxis, yet route taxis can also be chartered... what, exactly is the recommendation for tourists to follow???

Rob, you stated earlier that there were more charter vehicles than route taxis in Negril, yet that was not the case in your count at the Corner Bar...

One more - addendum to Smith's map of the roundabout/plazas in Negril - while the area in front of Coral Seas Plaza is often used by taxis and their customers, I don't think it is an 'official' pickup area, because when there is police presence, the cars are not there. That's why I stated in an earlier post that there are 'known' areas where one can catch a ride...

I am, and have always been in full agreement that Jamaicans should have priority in using the system.

** Smith - thanks for the 'blinking lights' mention - I think I have seen that, I will watch for it. Sometimes they beep too.

[Rob]

Two things:

Interesting that folks are being guided to use Charter vehicles instead of route taxis, yet route taxis can also be chartered... what, exactly is the recommendation for tourists to follow???

Rob, you stated earlier that there were more charter vehicles than route taxis in Negril, yet that was not the case in your count at the Corner Bar...

Lola,

I have mentioned that route taxis can be chartered, but lets face it, if you charter a route taxi, that is one less route taxi to server the Jamaican people. My recommondation would to use one of the charter taxis available all over Negril.

As for the vehicle count, if you count the only West End route taxis and the charter taxis, they both equaled 5. So the count is the same. The problem comes in with the number of non-West End route taxis driving off their route. Had they not been driving, the number of charter taxis may have been higher. We will never know the actual numbers because of the supply/demand issues that happen during busy season. When route taxis drive routes other than their own - it must skew the results.