Shanghai Busting Illegal Taxi Drivers at Disneyland

By Bridget O'Donnell

It might be the Happiest Place in Pudong™, but unfortunately Shanghai Disneyland has seen its fair share of taxi scams since the theme park opened last year.

Among some of the illegal practices that have taken place near the House of Mouse include shady meters, fake invoices, detours and unlicensed shifus disguising themselves as taxi drivers in fake cabs. And the problem only stands to get worse as an influx of tourists are expected for the Golden Week holiday.

But Shanghai Daily reports that transportation authorities are hoping to fix that with a recent crackdown on black cabs. Since the crackdown commenced in July, 12 drivers have been busted and forced to release passengers at taxi stands and spots near the resort and surrounding Disney Town.

A taxi stand outside Shanghai Disney Resort.

A traffic police officer told Shanghai Daily that they rarely receive complaints from tourists because it's harder for them to tell which cabs are fake.

Here are some of the telltale signs police say indicate you might be riding in a fake cab near Disney Resort:

• Suspicious license plates. Some drivers either steal plates from real cabs or make copies of authentic ones

• Shoddy and/or dated vehicles. Fake cars usually look "old and dirty," and operators especially prefer to use dated models of the Volkswagen Santana

• Drivers not wearing proper uniforms

• Poor service. Drivers subject to more complaints are considered highly likely to be operating fake cabs. Authorities say that some drivers have even gotten defensive against police, with an estimated 80 percent having some sort of criminal background 

• Cars taking passengers in no-pickup zones. Illegal drivers have been known to traverse along and pick up passegers at Pudong Shendi Ring Road, where cars are not allowed to stop

Think you've just ridden in a fake cab? Call the hotline 12345 and provide as much information as you can, including license plate number and route taken.

[Images via Flickr, East Day]

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