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BAHRAIN'S taxi drivers were on their best behaviour when they welcomed passengers of the Brilliance of the Seas cruise ship after it docked for a second time at the Khalifa Bin Salman Port in Hidd.
In the aftermath of the 'taxi rip-off' controversy that followed the Royal Caribbean International's 10-deck liner's maiden voyage to the Middle East, the scene was calm and composed with a fleet of cabs neatly stationed in two lines.
Drivers even shook hands with tourists welcoming them to the kingdom. Police officers has earlier spoken to drivers individually informing them of their responsibilities to ensure that there was no repetition of extortionate fare demands and the kingdom's reputation being tarnished.
Lt Col Khalid Rabea Senan Al Dossary, the Ministry of Interior's director, licences affairs, was at the scene to monitor activities and said: "Everything is under control and officials are looking at the operation. The taxis are being allotted to the tourists according to their token numbers on a first-come, first-serve basis."
However, there remained confusion over pricing policy with local taxi drivers insisting on using their meters and some passengers demanding to pay only a fixed sum of BD25 which they had earlier been informed was the lawful amount for hiring a taxi for up to six hours.
Khalid Ameen, general manager of Arabian Taxis, claimed local taxi drivers were rejecting passengers who insisted on paying a fixed tariff and passing them over to his fleet of drivers. He said: "For a six-hour trip around the island, the normal meter reads up to BD45."
Mr Ameen complained that local taxis had been waiting overnight to collect their tokens early forcing Arabian Taxi drivers to wait for a 'pick-up' number or accept taking the 'BD25 for up to six hours' customers they had rejected.
He said: "I have asked our drivers to take passengers according to the law. The officials have been understanding and have said they would consider revising the laws."
Lt Col Al Dossary confirmed the move, saying: "We have reported the issue to our superiors as we feel after checking through the meter readings and investigating the matter that BD25 is indeed really low for such a long time."
The local taxi drivers were only able to pass on the fixed rate passengers and not face prosecution because alternative rides were available with the Arabian Taxi fleet, officials said.
"But if any taxi driver violates the law when there is no alternative ride available then we have warned them that they would be taken to court," Lt Col Al Dossary added.
