Yellow Taxi / Yellow Cab in Cebu

This connects to our air travels...

I saw them two weeks ago, I saw one this afternoon! Yes friends, they’re already on! Are you happy? Well, am I happy? Truth is, I don’t give a hoot hehe!

What are they really? If you have not been a frequent user of the three Air Terminals in Metro Manila, then you are probably not very much aware on what those are. To summarize, those yellow cabs are just the very same kind of service – taxi. Only, they are more expensive at P70 flag down and something like four pesos or so every time the meter clicks – ah that click is purportedly every two hundred meters, say the authorities.

The body colors, meters and flag rates are the same from any of the NAIA terminals to anywhere in Metro Manila as it is now from MCIA to anywhere in Metro Cebu. In general (if not specifically) it is the same taxi service but twice the rates of the regular taxi cabs.

Why the presence of another “class” of cabs on city streets from and/or to the airport? Beats my confused brain!

Authorities say in the news that this will avoid the unscrupulous taxi drivers who charge passengers high flat rates instead of using their meters. Highlighted here are the receipt-issuing meters of those yellow taxis that are not (yet) present in the other-colored taxis (mostly white). The drivers are supposedly trained by the DOT on being more passenger-friendly or tourist-friendly.

My thoughts:
For them to field the yellow cabs, are there a lot of those unscrupulous taxi drivers operating at the MCIA? Where are the statistics? If so, why are they not being apprehended? So the authorities are indirectly telling us that it is okay for you the passenger/tourist to be taken-advantage-of by taxi drivers as long as you do not emanate from the MCIA?

By my very rough count, I have used taxis about 87 times from MCIA, 6 from the sea ports, and countless from the north and bus terminals since April 2009 to today (September 4). In all those cases, I only had one slightly ugly and another irritatingly ugly experience. The first one: once on board the cab from MCIA, driver politely asked if he could ask for an extra P20 on top of the meter reading as he had been waiting idle for too long in line at the MCIA and he was about to end his duty at 10PM shortly after sending me to my destination. I did not reply, but on arrival, I gave him exactly P150. Oh, it costs me usually P120 or therearounds from/to the airport and my new home in Banilad. The second incidence: on a delayed and late-night arrival from MNL, the guard (yes, THE GUARD at MCIA in charge of giving those little sheets of paper where he writes the taxi number) was the very person trying to ram me and three other passengers in one cab even if none of us were traveling together. In a decidedly loud voice, I opposed this caper half-shouting my reasons to the guard. He reasoned that he was just trying to help. I shouted that I heard him and the taxi driver that we will all be charged P100 each and that it was unfair since one was just going to Lapulapu (near the foot of the bridge), another was going to near SM, while another was going to Mango Ave. Hindsight, I now ask myself… would I have been the 3rd or last passenger to be delivered by the damn driver to Banilad? Anyway, on top of my voice, I demanded that said cab leave the place without any passenger or I will call the cops. I prevailed.

With the above sorry and ugly stories, I still insist there are NOT a lot of unscrupulous cab drivers in Cebu as there are in Metro Manila. In fact, I have a very strong feeling that the few asshole cab drivers in Metro Cebu ALL have had a stint at being cab drivers in Metro Manila. I am ready to bet on that inference! Any takers?!

Take this: in one of my flights, I left home rather too late and was really rushing lest the very strict Cebu Pacific check-in agents close their counters on me. On arrival at MCIA, I tossed P150 to the driver, grabbed my weekend pack and ran for it! As I struggled at the queue by the x-ray area, there came the taxi driver accompanied by a policeman trying to give me my change of thirty or so pesos. Half laughing, I exclaimed “imo na na dong”! And I said sorry I did not make it clear when I alighted!

The white cabs seem to be fine with me whom I consider one of the hardest to please passengers!

So, the yellow cabs, I think, are not the solution if anyone is trying to eradicate the “pakyaw” matter in Cebu. There is still the wisdom of EDUCATION that can be done to the existing taxi drivers. And nobody please tell me that yellow cab drivers are of better caliber than white cab drivers – unless you tell me they are college graduates. Asus! Some of these white cab drivers are even civil engineers or marine captains who have just come home from their foreign assignments! And granting yellow cab drivers are college graduates and well-trained by the DOT, what the hell do you tell me if I am ‘taken advantage of’ by a white-taxi-driver? Will you say “sorry we can’t help you since you did not take the yellow taxi”? Will you say that? Hello?!

I also think there are already too many taxi cabs (makes me happy though) in Metro Cebu, that adding those yellow cabs will only all the more congest Mandaue Hiway and all other busy streets.

Let’s titillate everyone’s minds… in Manila the yellow cabs are operated by a conglomeration of about 9 or so DIFFERENT transport companies. Who are they? Well, taxi operators themselves who either operate the existing “airport coupon taxis” AND/OR operating the very white or other colored taxis that ply the streets! So, is that trying to tell us their companies maintain two standards amongst their taxi drivers – meaning if you’re a yellow cab driver you are maginoo and if you’re a white or any other colored cab driver you are permitted to be barumbado? Ganun?! BTW, you will know yellow cab identities by reading those things written on the sides of the yellow cabs like Sun Transport etc.

Now bring the topic to Cebu… the yellow cabs are also a conglomeration of vehicles pitched-in by the members of the MCTOA or Metro Cebu Taxi Operators Association. They are the ones who actually own all the white taxis you see on the streets! Tell me please… ang suha ba mamumunga ng durian? Ha?!

Bottomline: these yellow cabs are not really meant to help tourists and the general traveling public. It is just a means to earn more at double the usual rates.

We the “innocent” air-traveling public were not considered by these bright minds who operate the yellow cabs. For many of us locals and tourists, COST is still the basis for every move that we do. So we will most likely still take the white cabs, right?! Sometimes, there are a few hitches that can be resolved anyway, right? (oi, kung naa’y mubalibad ani she’s probably just another internet-bride nga nagtoo datuan na kayu siya kay iyang anab is foreigner ug naa na sya imaginary riches so okay ra niya ang yellow cab prices! Sus!)

Therefore, does that mean now that the Mayors of Metro Cebu and even the Governor will just shun us if we ever had a problem with white taxis because we did not take the yellow cabs trained by the DOT? Being the fathers and mothers of their respective LGU’s, that means they were part of the conception of these yellow cabs?! Why the selective training by DOT “for yellow cabs” anyway? Its coming out they have an intent to retain asshole white-cab drivers (if any) by training only those who drive yellow!

Dodong Ace… is this your way of making a beautiful tourist-friendly Philippines? Gosh!

DID YOU KNOW? In Metro Manila at least, these “uniformed” yellow cab drivers (some of them stink just the same) are all too proud about their “higher” status and when you engage them, they are just as talkative as their white-driving counterparts. Thus I learned that they are very confident their business of yellow cabs will be “forever” since the investors behind this caper are (they have a litany) the likes of FG Mike Arroyo, Manny Pacquiao, Gringo Honasan, FVR, etc, etc, etc. Ah, I don’t have time to validate those but the drivers are so talkatively proud harping about those! How about in Cebu? Do we have “personalities” in-charge of the different slices of the yellow cabs?

Oh well… I still trust the white cabs KEN, Holiday, Shurie, Airland/Scorpion who are all just a call away wherever I am in Cebu. And so do I trust R&E/EMP/MGE/Sturdy/Seven Stars, Basic, 24/7, ABC, etc that frequently use back home in QC.

Whadya think?

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Fly Cebu to Clark: A Great “Manila By Night” View

This is a short one and just a teaser really for those of you who like looking at city lights from a flying witch’s perspective!

Okay, the Cebu Pacific flight from Cebu City is at about 5:50PM so you expect to arrive at 7:40PM over at Clark. Dark enough when passing by the Metropolis, right? The return flight is even mighty better, leaving Clark at 8PM and arriving at Cebu by 9:50PM – you get to view the night scenes of both Metro Manila and Metro Cebu!

The flights (both ways) use an ATR72 aircraft. It’s a turboprop, not a jet so that it does not fly high enough over the clouds. Thus, you get a very good view of the cities below. Whichever way you take, your flight will be passing somewhere above Manila Bay so you have a fantastic view of the whole metropolis at night. The street, house and building lights are so nice to see criss-crossing the vast urbanity. It’s like a mesh of arteries and veins made of lights. Some are too bright, some are faint and others are just specks. But those lights all compose a very nice memory of Manila By Night! The color is generally yellow but there are touches of red, white, blue and even green colors. Plus, if there happens to be a place beaming their “batman lights”, those could also be clearly seen!

I particularly like Roxas Boulevard with its hotel row and other buildings. The place is so bright viewed up above and it runs from the north harbor through Manila Hotel, Luneta, CCP Complex, MOA, all the way to the end of Coastal Road! Oh not to be outshone are EDSA, C5, NLEX and SLEX – even Commonwealth, Aurora Blvd, Ortigas all the way up to Antipolo, sucat and Alabang-Zapote roads! The industrial hubs of Bulacan, Las Pinas, Cavite and Laguna – even Batangas do command your curiosity since their roads and buildings are very clear amidst bright lights.

Hey, those of you who are good at photography and have gadgets that can take good night shots, this is a fantastic opportunity. Unfortunately this does not seem to be my cup of tea even if I love photography – since I only have my old Fuji E550 hehe! I did try to click some shots, tried various modes/settings, even tried video – you guessed it… to no avail, argh!

Now, now… which area in the metropolis do you think is mighty brightest?

I know the answer but am not telling here! Go fly and see for yourself!

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PAL’s EconoLight Fares: How much is your dignity?

“EconoLight” fares as we all know is Philippine Airlines' attempt to compete head-on with the Zero or Low or whatever fares that Cebu Pacific has pioneered via internet bookings. Sadly, “EconoLight” does not only fail but even puts its reputation in a bad light.

“EconoLight” looks like a product of old (no, make that aged) and backward thinking folks who probably have not heard about market research and market behaviours. Thus, I can boldly predict that this facility will fizzle any time soon or they’ll be forced to change it into something else.

Hey, you might be surprised to find that at times, your “Econolight” from PAL is way cheaper than Cebu Pacific’s “GO Fare” even with “GO Lite”. But that is talking about money matters – only. And for those of you who think your flight isn't all about the money, then you might want to consider the rest of this article. A first hand experience!

When I heard about this “EconoLight” thing – which is not really that widespread a news – I booked myself for my upcoming destinations, if only for me to experience it first hand. It happened to be a MNL-ILO-MNL flight for only P1,592.00 all in. At the time of booking, not only did I want to avail of a cheaper “EconoLight”, but I was bent to experience once again flying with Philippine Airlines on domestic routes.

First up, anxiety consumed me for better part of one midnight as the confirmation (or whatever) email I expected after making the online booking did not come. Okay, am used to Cebu Pacific’s quick and immediate automated response in this field hehe. But it did come the next day. I even thought that this is approved manually by a person and not a machine. That’s just a hunch since if everything is automated, then their ISD must be in need of technology!

The terms and conditions (if you read it) say everything that you need to expect – sadly, I know many passengers do not read this. Just the same, even if you are a read-the-fine-print type, PAL cannot yet shrug their shoulders and lift their chins high up to the clouds.

Protest Number 1 – the reminders on the top of the email. It said “The credit card used in purchasing the ticket(s) must be presented at the ticket collection point or upon check-in” and “If the credit card owner is not part of the traveling party, the credit card owner shall be responsible in ensuring that the passenger(s) must present at the ticket collection point or upon check-in the following: 1. Clear photocopy of the front of the credit card used; and 2. Clear photocopy of a separate valid PHOTO ID of the credit card owner”. This rule sucks! It not only sucks, its dangerous for the credit card holder.

Why? Here’s why… by having the check-in agents physically look at your credit card, you as the card holder physically presenting it, is already jeopardizing the otherwise secure status of your card. I won’t elaborate on on that, but folks you all be aware that a mere glance at the back of the credit card by a check-in agent (and the baggage loader beside her) is already enough reason for your card to be compromised.

Why else? You the card owner, photocopying your card and giving copies to your relative/s or employee/s whom you purchased the ticket for, IS NOTHING DIFFERENT THAN YOU GIVING YOUR CREDIT CARD TO THE CHECK-IN AGENT AND THE WHOLE AIRLINE AND THEIR EXTERNAL EMPLOYEES (baggage loaders). Imagine, you are also giving away a copy of your ID (probably a company or SSS ID) with all other pertinent details. Let’s not elaborate on that lest other innocent folks learn more on how to do those bad things. But my goodness, this rule is tantamount to giving away your soul!

Instead of the airline preventing credit card fraud (as it claims on the email confirmation) they are actually paving the way for their employees to perpetuate or gain access to a new venue of committing fraud.

Protest Number 2 – inflexibility of the above rule. As I was checking-in for my early morning flight to Iloilo, the counter beside me had a young passenger probably in her late teens to early twenties all in tears calling probably a parent or relative via her cellular phone since she did not have the required photo copies. At 3AM, isn’t it a ghastly sight? In fact, isn’t it a traumatic experience? Golly, even I was irked fumbling to get the card I used for my booking. What if by chance I left it at home in my other wallet? I too would have encountered the same traumatic experience at an unholy hour of the day. Gosh!

Of course PAL may have a lot of reasons to defend its side on the above. Especially on my protest number 2, they will probably readily say “that’s why we are reminding all passengers via the electronic ticket”. But what’s the whole point? Are they the sergeant-at-arms for the credit card industry of the world? If so, what are they in business for, to ensure convenience of their passengers or convenience of credit card companies?

They, you and I can start collecting statistics as to how many passengers are unnecessarily inconvenienced by this "extra" rule versus how many passengers have PAL caught a ticket booked with a stolen card number.

Imagine this: you got a new house-helper from the province and would like to buy her a ticket coming to Manila and probably back, so you book her using your card, and you bother yourself with trying to pass to your maid that electronic confirmation, photo copies of your credit card plus your ID. I know there are other similar inconvenient situations in a set-up like that. But go imagine!

Here’s the next entry on your booking confirmation:
“The passenger(s) shall be denied boarding for failure to comply with the foregoing requirement.” Thus, the girl I saw crying and calling on her hand phone.

Here is my bottom line on the above topic (protest numbers 1 and 2), if you are in the business of flying passengers on a plane, then it is not your business of being an anti-fraud agent for the credit card industry. So concentrate on the former and don’t inconvenience your passengers by occupying yourself with the latter. In fact, I have seen businesses fail for not knowing or going beyond the boundaries of the reason/s they were in business for. Wasn’t/Isn’t PAL? Well, your guess is as good as theirs hehehe!

We the consumers (credit card holders) have a responsibility and that is primarily to ensure our credit cards are not compromised. Meaning (for all of us) we have to keep guard at all times, so that PAL doesn’t go beyond what it is in business for. Meaning (for PAL), if the transaction went through, then it is the very own look out of the card holder. Remember this: none of us credit card holders requested PAL to be the guardians of our cards. Remember this PAL folks, thanks for your concern, but if it incoveniences the many of us, NO THANKS! Why?! Do you at your ticket offices ask a buyer where his cash came from? It could have been stolen from the passenger's relatives, right? Why are you not as concerned?

Protest Number 3 – “For EconoLight fares, the following specific fare conditions apply:” In my personal view and that of some friends, this is the clincher that makes the “EconoLight” fare worst than anything else. It seems to promote, discrimination and social segmentation a.k.a caste system! Gosh, and in this century? It probably is high time to revamp the pencil-pushers over at Roxas Boulevard! The list of “specific fare conditions” are clearly the product of aged colonial-thinking-government-employee brains hahaha! Here goes the most glaring of them all:

Item 5. “Seat assignment will be at the rear of the aircraft”. On my Iloilo (and back) flight, I was even happy since I am a rear-seat lover (I know the statistics, if you know what I mean). But this “condition” of the “EconoLight” fare raised my eyebrows to the high heavens just the same. When I conferred with friends about this “condition”, the unanimous response was… WHY?

On my Iloilo flight, I was supposed to be seated at 27C (2nd to last row) but an old lady was already there. Before I could say anything, the woman at 27B (obviously her daughter) apologetically requested if we can switch (old woman was originally 27D) so they can be together. I smiled and said “no problem” and sat at 27D. I just thought, it’s still an aisle seat, so no sweat! Oh hey, this was a new A320-200 with softer seats than the older same planes of PAL and definitely better than those of Cebu Pacific’s faux-leather seats! However, almost at the end of the boarding process, a steward came to me asking if I can switch seats with an old lady who was seated at an emergency exit area. For a second I was reluctant, but seeing that the steward was courteous enough and realizing that an exit seat has more leg room, I agreed and followed him to the seat (I think that was 10F or 9F). He even told me that he’d get my backpack from the bin for me on arrival. When we got there, the oldie was busy conferring w/ her seatmates (probably family). I heard another passenger say to her, “yun yung sa dulo, yun pang-mura ang bayad” (that’s a seat at the rear… the ones for cheap fares). I heard all that though I was busy tinkering on my new phone (how to switch to “flight mode”). Then the steward, red-faced with shame looked at me saying “sorry sir, wag nalang daw e” (a.k.a. “disregard”)! And thus I said, “no problem” and faced back to return to my 27D. But I realized something and stopped tinkering with my Samsung Omnia (I-900) then faced the steward and said “hey, its not a passenger choice, its your responsibility to follow CAB regulations. If she does not want my seat, go get anyone from these males (pointing at other passengers from rows 12 to 15)”. Then I returned to 27D. (Just an aside, during flight, I craned to see if the old woman was still at the exit seat. She was! I was tempted to take a photo of her so I can report PAL to the authorities, but for some reason, I dropped the idea. Probably I was apprehensive it might create a commotion in the plane... or... probably I just love PAL that deep).

Hey on my return flight (I was too early for my 8:15PM flight) I was already at the check-in counters 5PM but couldn’t check-in yet since they were busy with PR144 – a flight that leaves for Manila after 5PM, I think. So, I stood around observing things. I caught a lady asking why she was seated at the back. The male check-in agent obviously irritated, in a voice heard by everyone announced “ma’am kasi “EconoLight” fare lang ang binayaran mo, sa likod talaga ang naka pre-assign na seats. Pero sila (pointing at other passengers), mahal ang binayaran nila aabot ng four thousand kesa yung five hundred plus mo". Oh, I do not wish to translate that anymore. It’ll be good for us Filipinos if our foreign friends do not understand this dialog. I felt too hurt for that lady.

My time came. At about 1745H, the staff started accepting passengers for check-in on PR146. I was first in line but a bald old-man went straight to the check-in counter so he was ahead of me. Okay, fine I thought – since he looked like he knew everyone in the Iloilo airport. I was called after him. When the girl gave me my boarding pass, the seat was 27E. I looked at my sequence number and it said 003 – that means I was the 3rd passenger to be checked in. That further means, the bald old man ahead of me was sequence number 2 and they have probably pre-checked-in somebody else – a favor that they give to friends, family and VIPs.

I asked the girl to give me an aisle seat. Her response was similar to what I heard before… “sir, naka-pre-seat na kasi kayo dahil EconoLight fare ang binayaran nyo, so I can’t change your seat anymore, sa likod talaga ang seats nyo". I retorted with “I know all about EconoLight you don’t have to explain that, my point is I am sequence number 3, therefore there is still an available aisle seat for EconoLight passengers so you don’t have to give me 27E. There must be a 27C, 27D, 28C or 28D. And I know how to change the seat number, if you don’t, just retrieve my record and… (I told her the entries to do in her system)". After I said all those, she gave me a new boarding pass with seat number 27C. No offenses there, our conversation was light and lively.

Item 7. “Meals - a. Domestic flights - water upon request; b. International flights - peanuts and unlimited non-alcoholic beverages (i.e Soda, Juice, Water, Coffee & Tea). So you thought this is just fine, right? I also did! But hear this:

During distribution of snacks and when the crew got to my area, I was looking at them just observing really. My brain was actually musing why PAL stewardesses these days are not anymore tall than the usual in olden days. I was surprised to hear the stewardess say “I’m sorry sir, we do not serve snacks to “EconoLight” passengers. I smiled and readily answered, “yes, I know, and I did not ask for any, right?” Then she moved out to the aft galley. But that short a conversation called the attention of most passengers from rows 26 down to 24 – all of 18 passengers to be exact. Then came a question from a little boy over at 28A “mama bakit hindi tayo binigyan” (why weren’t we given any). The mom at 28B replied “kasi mura ang binayaran natin, anak” (because we paid a low fare, my child). My heart sank down to 27,000 feet below us and I wanted to storm the galley and pay any amount so I could grab a damn pack of crackers and give to the boy. But I controlled myself. Oh well, my emotions.

Item 8. “No headsets will be provided”. As I am more for the domestic flights my initial reaction was just “as if you provide any hehehe”. But for international flights, I’d advise “EconoLight” passengers to start singing their hearts out loudly. That would be a nice one hehe!

Item 9. “Infant and children traveling with adults holding ECONOLIGHT tickets are not entitled to Bassinets/Milk requests”. I generally have no comments on this except that I have my final analyses below:

Final word. So, “Econolight” fares are not promo fares. With this, PAL has obviously launched a shameful and entirely different class of service that is tantamount to saying “okay, you buy this cheap fare and that entitles us or anyone else to publicly ridicule or shame you. Thus, for just a little amount of money than the normal economy fare, you allow yourself to be treated as someone who belongs to a lower echelon in the air-flying society that you deserve everything less than anyone else in the aircraft cabin.

In sum, PAL has miserably failed to attack the high success of Cebu Pacific’s GO Fares. It even went off-tangent, in fact! They did not compete but they just made an entirely new class of service that puts them in a bad light.

So what have we discovered here? It comes out that when you avail of an EconoLight fare, you are subjecting yourself to be treated in a different way, and sadly, roughly. With that kind of fare, you are really saying “okay, trample upon me” or “I avail of this low fare in exchange of my dignity”.

THIS is what PAL missed: in Cebu Pacific, the GO Fares (a few seats per flight) are offered on a first-come-first-served basis. Meaning, those seats are promotional for you to book early and get them low-priced tickets. BUT after that, you are as good a passenger as those who bought their tickets yesterday for P4,100 or more. PERIOD - AND NO OTHER DAMNED SHAMEFUL CONDITIONS!

Perhaps, the people at PAL's Marketing department, in an effort not to be tagged as copying Cebu Pacific's gimmick (which obviously they are anyway) had to resort to what their lowly minds can achieve - the 13 "specific fare conditions". What's wrong with copying the good (of Cebu Pacific) anyway?! Okay, let's stop there.

So, how much worth is your dignity anyway?

Look at these bookings I tried on a Manila-Iloilo-Manila flight for 17th and 24th February 2009 (a far future date so I am assured availability of an EconoLight fare):

EconoLight:
Economy Fiesta:
Business Restricted:
Business Unrestricted:
Cebu Pacific’s GO Fare:

So, you see the fare differences. From EconoLight to Fiesta its P1,201.00 roundtrip or P600.50 difference one-way. And, its a P440.00 difference roundtrip between PAL's EconoLight and Cebu Pacific's GO Fares or P220.00 difference one-way. Now reflect on all of the issues above. If you think your dignity is that cheap, then EconoLight Fares are for you.

Have a nice flight!

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