This past Thursday, Thailand’s Ministry of transport approved an increase in Bangkok taxi fares on the heels of protests by drivers over the past month. As things currently stand, the base fare for every taxi cab in the country is 35 baht and then 5.5 to 6.5 baht per KM depending on the length of the trip. To help paint the picture of these fees, a standard 20-minute taxi ride in and around Bangkok tends to be anywhere between 60 to 80 baht if the driver uses the metre. The new fare schedule being implemented all 80,000 registered Bangkok taxis can be found below:

1600 to 1800cc taxi cabs will have a base fare of 35 baht. 2000cc taxi cabs will have a base fare of 40 baht.

• A journey from 2 to 10 kilometres costs 6.5 baht/KM

• A journey from 11 to 20 kilometres costs 7 baht/KM

• A journey from 21 to 40 kilometres costs 8 baht/KM

• A journey from 41 to 60 kilometres costs 8.5 baht/KM

• A journey from 61 to 80 kilometres costs 9 baht/KM

• A journey from 81 kilometres onwards costs 10.5 baht/KM

The increase in fares also means that authorities will be taking a harder stance on drivers not using the meter or refusing service.

Our Take

Like I said last week when discussing the Grab protests, I have no problems with fares increasing and/or more favourable driver rules being put in place. I’ve often wondered how taxi drivers here in Bangkok are able to make money, and in all honesty, their margins are likely razor thin. I’d way rather pay more by metre (base fare + per KM fee) and never have issues with drivers refusing service. This is so much better than operating in a world where cab drivers feel like they’re getting screwed over (which they probably are) every time they pick up a customer.