Education key to taxi congestion – Letters to the editor – The National Dt 07 January 2016
Taxis wait near Mushrif Mall entrance on Al Dhafra Street blocking the flow of traffic leading to the car park. Ravindranath K / The National
Education key to taxi congestion
Your news item, Packed Mushrif Mall taxi rank a headache for drivers (January 4), was a real eye-opener.
I also see this regularly in front of Abu Dhabi Mall but in my view, Mushrif Mall is better placed than the other malls in terms of parking options.
There are two reasons causing this problem at Mushrif Mall. One is the lack of training and education for taxi drivers to not block traffic.
Even if they know that there is no space for them, they will often still squeeze in, ending up either blocking other vehicles entering the mall parking area or even creating the dangerous situation of placing them in the path of the speeding vehicles on the road.
If the taxi companies won’t train their drivers, the mall authorities should have security staff controlling the area.
The second and most important point is the lack of patience by all drivers. When a vehicle – whether it is a taxi or a private car – is trying to park, the drivers behind express their impatience rather than giving them a little bit of time.
We need to develop a culture of patience and harmony.
Ramesh Menon, Abu Dhabi
The National Dt 06 January 2016