Airport taxi warning

[DandyDon]

I know that they are not going to change anything, and they have their reasons for wanting a fleet of vans to haul people away from the airport two hours after a fleet of cabs have brought departing passengers to the airport, leaving empty. I can only guess at the possible motives...??

(1) Someone or group buys the vans, and since it's Mexico - I'd say it's a safe bet that that person or group gets a nice kickback on purchases. They don't buy a new fleet every year, no - but they buy some now and then, and bribes are paid I am sure. Since they have to have two fleets, more purchases, more bribes.

(2) Some party has to select maintenance and repair facilities to keep the two fleets up to code. Got to be more bribes there, and with two fleets - even better.

(3) The fuel all comes from the state owned monopoly Permex, the world's second largest non-publicly listed company by total market value, but wasting extra gas in running two fleets, one arriving at the airport empty, the other leaving the airport empty, has to be good for some influence. "There have been various allegations of corruption within Pemex for over a decade. These range from political contributions to the Institutional Revolutionary Party (over $200 million), "no show" jobs (individuals receive a salary while performing no duties whatsoever), various forms of fraud, embezzlement, and even under the table fuel sales. It has been estimated these various forms of corruption contribute to the loss of over $1 billion a year." But that story can go on and on. The federal government doesn't own all of the corporation so it taxes it so heavily that it doesn't have enough for development.

(4) Jobs are big business on the island, licenses and permits are required, more controls: Can you say "more bribes!"

So if you want to walk off the airport to the other side of the circle dragging your bag on wheels, you have my envy.

 

[diverokc]

I read on TA that the vans are owned by the same people that own the ferries. If this is true we have seen the stories of proposed water taxis- I don't think they like each other.

 

[ggunn]

I will readily confess, I have no expertise in the traffic engineering nor the contractual relationships that a specific to the Cozumel airport. Are you willing to do the same and accept we are just chewing the fat here?

Of course. Duh.

 

[Skittl1321]

As for the idea that most use excursions that have transportation, I think my first instinct is to call *BS*.

Honestly, I really think the majority do. The cruise lines instill huge fear that the ship will leave you if you don't use their excursions and all their excursions provide transportation. There are HUGE line-ups inside the pier of people waiting for a bus for all the different excursions.

The people that do their own thing use the taxi's. Those people are usually repeat cruisers who realize you have to be an idiot to miss the ship, especially in an 'easy' location like Cozumel. But the cruise line CONSTANTLY reminds you how DANGEROUS!!! it is to not go on their rip-off excursion. (We took a cruise and in one port our companions were terrified to not be on a ship sponsored excursion. For two, they paid $80 to go to a beach, and it included a small buffet lunch and buses there and back. We paid $12 and met them at the beach in a taxi.)

So let's say Oasis of the Seas dumps 6,000 people in Cozumel, and 30% use taxi's, 4 to a taxi: That's 450 taxis.
If the majority weren't using cruise line transportation, I don't think taxi's would work... Are there 1,050 taxi's to pick up 70% of ONE ship's passengers at 4 to a cab? And then more taxi's to pick up the passengers from the six other ships?

I’m actually surprised the shuttle idea hasn’t caught on at Cozumel’s port- it happens at other ports.
One taxi van will load up passengers who want to go to Mr. Sanchos until it is full, another all the passengers who want to go to Chankanaab. When those depart another van starts collecting people for that location. We frequently have to wait in the vans/safari vehicles at other ports until enough people want to go to our destination (or the cab driver convinces you to go somewhere else where he can take more people.)


(So basically I am agreeing with your point that cruises put a MUCH higher load than the airport does- even though not everyone leaves the boat at exactly the same time.)

 

[Mike]

Is this honestly a deconstruction of the topic of why are taxis not allowed to pickup at the airport based on logic, when the reasons are quite clear it's about-

money
protection of fiscal territories
protection of jobs

The reason taxis aren't allowed to pick up at the airport is because there is an agreement between the political heads of the vans and the taxis.

Question for you - are the vans allowed to pick up passengers at the hotels and take them to the airport? Nope. The taxis get that piece of pie. In return they aren't allowed to pick up at the airport.

It's a political split of fares and revenues, money is involved and job protection is involved.

It's certainly not a logistics thing revolving around room at the airport. Like dozens of small airports if space at the pick up is a problem they would just do the que system where there is a person directing departures to taxis and he keeps calling up waiting taxis from the parking lot or qued on the street as they are required.

 

[Skittl1321]

I am still a little confused as to why tourists are not allowed to get a taxi outside the airport, and police are stopping it. What law is being broken? How far from the airport does it become legal to hail a cab?

I can understand a union rule, but I don't see why police involvement comes in. (Yes- it all goes back to money, and I'm sure the police are being bribed, but what grounds do they have to require people to walk back to the airport to get a shuttle.)

 

[Ron Lee]

skittl, just a few days ago someone reported walking to the street and getting a taxi at the traffic circle. No police. No problem.

 

[Mike]

I am still a little confused as to why tourists are not allowed to get a taxi outside the airport, and police are stopping it. What law is being broken? How far from the airport does it become legal to hail a cab?

I can understand a union rule, but I don't see why police involvement comes in. (Yes- it all goes back to money, and I'm sure the police are being bribed, but what grounds do they have to require people to walk back to the airport to get a shuttle.)

I answered this on page one

Cause the policeman is married to the sister of one of the van drivers.

You thought I was kidding???

Take your pick, it's island politics, deep dark dealings made over tequila between mexican fat cats that gringos will never be privy to.

 

[dmoore19]

I guess the question would be, at least for me, if the police are involved what does that do to the person getting the cab? Is it illegal for a tourist to hail a cab from there?

 

[Mossman]

Honestly, I really think the majority do. The cruise lines instill huge fear that the ship will leave you if you don't use their excursions and all their excursions provide transportation. There are HUGE line-ups inside the pier of people waiting for a bus for all the different excursions.

The people that do their own thing use the taxi's. Those people are usually repeat cruisers who realize you have to be an idiot to miss the ship, especially in an 'easy' location like Cozumel. But the cruise line CONSTANTLY reminds you how DANGEROUS!!! it is to not go on their rip-off excursion. (We took a cruise and in one port our companions were terrified to not be on a ship sponsored excursion. For two, they paid $80 to go to a beach, and it included a small buffet lunch and buses there and back. We paid $12 and met them at the beach in a taxi.)

This must depend on the cruise line and the perceived gullibility of their passengers. I took Holland America's Westerdam to Cozumel and don't recall any warnings of such danger.

---------- Post added January 3rd, 2014 at 10:15 AM ----------

I guess the question would be, at least for me, if the police are involved what does that do to the person getting the cab? Is it illegal for a tourist to hail a cab from there?

Police in Mexico are notoriously underpaid, or at least they believe themselves to be. Hence the need for additional "contributions" to their salaries. While it is possible that there is in fact a law on the books that mandates all airport passengers be transported by shuttle, it's more likely that the police in the reported incident were acting as paid private security, "enforcing" the taxi/van union rules by harrassing errants taxi drivers and their potential airport-sourced customers. The taxi drivers are likely worried that the cops will take down taxi numbers and report the drivers to the real authorities (the mafia "enforcers", whatever that means) and it's not very hard for a third-world police officer to harrass an gringo tourist with implied threats even if the tourist broke no actual laws.