Anytime I enter a taxi or any public transport vehicle driven by someone else, I am always aware of some safety best practices to ensure a comfortable ride.
To help you also stay safe, here are my 10 essential safety tips for traveling by taxi.
Keep Emergency Contacts Handy
I have emergency calling activated on my mobile phone to make it quick to call for help in just a few seconds.
Set your emergency contacts in your phone before you ride and make sure you know how to easily activate them by heart.
For example, some phones activate emergency contacts by pressing the power button three times while others often have emergency contacts on speed dial. In any circumstance, keeping emergency contacts handy can be life-saving not only for you but for someone else.
Enable Your Mobile Phone's GPS
When it comes to taxi safety rules, your phone is your best friend, especially your mobile's GPS tracking function. I always enable my GPS tracking app whenever I ride a taxi in an unfamiliar place.
Aside from allowing me to check the address of each street that I pass by, I can also send my current location to my friends so they'll know my whereabouts.
Note the Vehicle's Plate Number
Some of my taxi safety precautions happen before I hop in. The first thing I do after negotiating the fare is to take a photo of the taxi's plate number and send it to someone that I know.
License plates are one of the best identifiers that can help track down a taxi. This gives me the information I need in case something happens.
Unless you're using Uber, Lyft, or Grab where the information is readily available on the app, I highly suggest snapping a photo of the plate number before you take the ride.
Check the Legitimacy of Your Ride
I've traveled quite a lot in the past few years and what I discovered in many countries all over the world is that there are still a lot of illegal taxis on the street.
Many of these taxis do not comply with the safety regulations of the country they are in. Most of the time, they pose a threat to our safety. Look out for worn-out taxis that are often very aggressive in picking you up as a passenger.
Check the name of the company or franchise and do a quick web search. You can even ask for the driver's ID. If they are willing to give it to you, they might be legitimate but if they don't, consider picking another one.
Do Not Fall Asleep
I know riding a taxi and getting stuck in traffic can be very boring. You might even fall asleep while riding, but this can be very dangerous.
Do everything you can not to fall asleep when you're in one. Make use of your phone to play games, talk to your friends, watch a movie, listen to music, and do anything to avoid sleeping.
You can even try making conversation with the driver. Riding a taxi requires a lot of awareness of your surroundings and you can't do that when you're asleep.
Check for Child Lock
In the Western world, taxis often come with child lock features to protect anyone from suddenly entering the taxi and to protect child passengers from suddenly opening the door.
This is a very good safety feature for personal cars but can be a red flag for those riding a taxi. This features also means that the driver can lock you inside the taxi and take you somewhere besides your destination, especially if you are uncooperative with their demands. What I usually do before I get inside is to open and close the door and then try to open it again.
This activates the child lock feature and I then ask the driver to disable it. Most of the time, the driver will comply and explain the feature but if the driver is adamant, it's time to search for another taxi.
Always Discuss the Fare
This next tip varies from one country to the next. Most countries often have taxi meters that will provide the average fare but other countries do not use these taxi meters.
This means you must discuss the fare with the driver. With that in mind, the fare will depend on your negotiation skills. I always discuss the fare first before I get into the taxi and make sure that we agree on the fare.
I want to hear the driver agree verbally before I take the ride so I am assured that everything is fair for both of us.
Don’t Ride Shotgun
Riding in a taxi is very different from riding in a car with your friend. I normally do not ride in the front passenger seat of the taxi.
This makes me within arms reach of the driver, who is still a stranger to me. It is much better if you sit in the backseat every time.
This gives you enough room to defend yourself if anything may happen. It also gives you more opportunity to get out of the car since there are doors on either side of you and therefore two options to exit instead of one.
Act as Though You Are Familiar With the Place
Another great tip when riding the taxi, especially when I'm traveling in an unfamiliar city, involves a little bit of acting.
Before I take a taxi, I always check the route and the specific address of the place that I want to go to. When the taxi arrives, I always act as if I am a local or I'm familiar with the place. It is always a good rule to never reveal any details to your driver or tell them that you are new or just visiting.
If they ask, simply tell them that you are just meeting a friend. Keep your conversation short and never give any information.
Keep Your Belongings with You
Whenever I ride a taxi, I always try to avoid showing or bringing valuable items with me like laptops or any other gadgets.
When I'm out for the night, I also don't wear a lot of jewelry to avoid attracting someone wishing to rob me.
I always try to hide these things if it is important for me to bring them outside. I make sure that they are hidden away and make them unrecognizable.
Conclusion
It is important that you always be vigilant and stay proactive when riding a taxi. These are just some of the best things that you can do to make sure that your taxi ride is secure, safe, and comfortable.
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