serendipity’s post on unreasonable cabbies in singapore triggered really bad experiences i had with some. in hindsight, i should have not paid or yelled back kicking and screaming. where is my mean streak when i really neeed it?
1) cabby jammed break at Chin Siew tunnel at the fork between Clemenceau Avenue and Merchant Road because he remembered at the last minute that i instructed him to go to the former. it was such shock. fortunately the car behind us was at a safe distance and did not rammed into the rear of the cab. there was hardly any breaking distance infront of the cab i was in – we were facing the concrete divider. the cars around us came to a complete halt – in the Chin Siew tunnel mind you, and a driver that swerved in time angrily got out of his car – just at the bend towards Clemenceau Avenue. i wished the angry driver would beat up the cabbie, but Chin Siew tunnel wasn’t the place to do it. everything resumed within a minute. at my destination, which was 5 minutes away from Chin Siew tunnel, the driver acted as if nothing happened and didn’t bother compensating me with a discount of any sort. “you could have killed us”, i reminded him. but he was unmoved.
2) i had a meeting to attend at a school in the west of singapore. it was located far in at one of those avenues and streets in jurong west. i printed the map for the cabbie to follow. a map! and he still brought me to the wrong place which he was so sure at first that he was right. instead of bringing me to a certain avenue at jurong west, he brought me to jurong east. these 2 places were not near. i was late for my meeting. i was fuming speechless. he knocked off only a measly amount from the meter.
3) i was rushing to meet the geek at clementi mrt, which wasn’t far from my place. a cab ride would take at most 7 minutes. it was rush hour – which explains why the buses were infrequent – and the ride took 15 minutes instead. i placed the cab fare, a $10 note on the flat pane near the gear and rushed out. another passenger swiftly boarded the cab and so the cabbie failed to the the $10 and instead yelled out after me “MUST PAY YOU KNOW!” at that point the next passenger was already seated in the cab and people around the busy drop off point turned to stare. indignant i stormed back to the cab to show him the money. his tone shrunk as he meekly apologised. i happened to be at my peak of pms and when i met the geek at the platform, i cried in fury all the way from clementi to city hall.
i really hate it to have to take cabs. but what to do sometimes?
death by paper cut 