The Wrocław City Hall has provided a tool that allows each passenger to quickly and easily check whether the taxi they use is legal. Just scan the QR code on the new sticker on the taxi and check if the vehicle is registered in the city database.
Wrocław, as the first city in Poland, declared war on dishonest taxi drivers on such a large scale. The city has prepared and launched today an information campaign aimed at raising awareness and educating passengers on how to recognize a legally operating taxi. Each taxi vehicle should be properly marked. How? It must have a lamp with the inscription “taxi”, a side number with the inscription WROCŁAW and a plate with the fare tariff.
“Check Taxi”
From now on, the driver of every legally operating taxi in Wrocław can receive a free sticker with a QR code and the inscription “check the taxi” from the Municipal Office. They can be obtained at the Department of Transport of the City of Warsaw. – After scanning the code, the user’s phone will be redirected to the database of legally operating taxis in Wrocław. In this way, we can quickly and efficiently, even before the start of the course, check the vehicle that came for us – explains Paulina Tyniec-Piszcz. This is great news for every taxi user – from youngsters to seniors.
There are over 6,214 taxis registered in Wrocław. Wroclaw officials first trained police officers on how to recognize whether a given vehicle has all the administrative permissions to transport people. Then, in December and March, 500 policemen carried out inspections.
– Their results were disturbing, 60 fines were issued, 30 registration certificates were seized, 8 people did not have a license to provide passenger transport services, and 20 vehicles were unfit to drive. What’s more, several drivers had drugs on them – said Deputy Commissioner Wojciech Jabłoński from the Municipal Police Headquarters. – Therefore, first training and now actions such as this campaign starting today are of great importance for improving safety.
The Mayor of Wrocław, Jacek Sutryk, reminded that the issue of improving security is one of the priorities of his presidency:
– We have introduced a program to combat violence against women with 24-hour emergency numbers, last week we showed a new home for women in the homeless crisis. Every year we support the municipal police with equipment and financially. Already this year we bought 3 unmarked vehicles for over PLN 300,000. zloty. Wrocław is monitored by 224 city monitoring cameras, 70% of which outside the city center. Today, the City Guard consists of 38 vehicles and 323 guards. But the basis of safety is to take care of your own safety – using e.g. tools provided by the city. The “Legal Taxi” program is one of them – Mayor Jacek Sutryk said today on the Wrocław market.
Taxi scammers on target
It has been known for a long time that crimes and irregularities in the functioning of taxis occur in subsequent Polish cities – mainly those offering services via applications.
– The only way to distinguish between a legal and an illegal taxi is this action – a sticker on the passenger’s window with a QR code, which is why we are happy to join this campaign – says Grzegorz Pęzioł, president of Mini Taxi. Other corporations whose drivers will put stickers on the windows are Ryba Taxi, Radio Taxi Serc, Z.T.P. Radio Taxi and City Taxi.
The idea of Wrocław officials is to create a positive trend of placing these stickers on the rear window or taxi door – so that they are as visible as possible to the passenger approaching the car. In addition, this campaign is to act preventively by discouraging dishonest drivers from committing offenses and crimes.
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