Hailing a cab in Baku

By Nazrin Gadimova

Being an integral part of any big city life, taxis work around the clock, without breaks, weekends or holidays and in any weather. So, if you urgently need to get from point A to point B in Baku - taxi would be the most appropriate option for you. However, an uninformed person can face unpleasant moments in this field.

Let us, for example, imagine that we are trying to catch a taxi on the street. Firstly, it is not so easy to catch a taxi in the sea of cars, and it can take a lot of precious time and effort. Even if you are lucky enough to catch a taxi, then it will be quite problematic for the taxi driver to park his car in the jammed streets of the capital.

Sometimes the driver has to break traffic rules and this may entail a dangerous situation on the streets. One should not lose sight of the fact that the taxi drivers often try to increase the fares. Moreover, being good psychologists, they try not to miss a moment to take advantage of the fact that you are in a hurry, especially if you have lots of luggage, and even kids. In this case, you will agree to any terms, just to be at the right place in time.

Until recently, fares of the taxi services were regulated exclusively by car drivers themselves. As a result, before you get in the car, you had a long time to bargain, trying to come to a reasonable consensus and not to be tricked. Moreover, there were a lot of drivers who did not know the city well, as well as numerous "Schumachers", who were endangering the lives of passengers.

More "aubergines" for Baku

Over the last year, the situation has changed noticeably in the capital city. What is more - a kind of competition appeared on this market - several taxi dispatchers have begun to fight for the right of transporting the passengers. The market has grown, so, we have a choice now.

Thus, so-called London cabs, which operate on the principle of the counter, have become an absolute novelty for residents and visitors of the capital. By the way, fans of "eggplants" (as they are popularly called) will be glad to know that another 500 London cabs will be imported for the upcoming 2015 European Games, to be held in Baku.

Currently, the company's tariff prices are 0.7 manats per 1 kilometer at a distance up to 10 kilometers, 0.4 manat per 1 kilometer at a distance from 10 kilometers to 20 kilometers, 0.2 manats per 1 kilometer at a distance more than 20 kilometers.

However, based on my own experience, I would say that catching a cab in a city center is a real nuisance. In most cases, these taxis are already full and sometimes they simply can not be found at the right time. But it should be noted that the cab can also be ordered by dialing *9000.

In this case, there is an alternative - 189 taxi service. One of the main advantages of this service is that after learning the route the operator sets the fare at the same moment. And only after making sure that the client agrees, the dispatcher communicates with the driver of the car that arrives at the address.

The company's tariff prices are 0.7 manats per 1 kilometer. As to the private taxi, it all depends on the diplomatic skills of the passenger.

Getting on a taxi which had been reserved earlier will be the most convenient way to get to destination for tourists who have arrived in the city by plane or train.