Going by Taxi in Fujairah UAE

Calling a Cab
It shouldn’t take you long to get one of the distinctive yellow-coloured taxis in Fujairah as there are approximately 700 taxis circling around the streets of the city tooting their horns and looking for people to take for a ride.

But Murphy’s law often tends to reign: they are often nowhere to be seen just at the time you want to hail a cab as you stand on the footpath in the hot sun.

You can always book a taxi by calling the Fujairah Taxi Company on (09) 2233533.

Before getting into the taxi ask the driver if he knows how to get to your destination but most times they will say ‘Yes’ even if they don’t know, as they are keen to get the business.

Paying for a Taxi
A few years ago it used to be a standard Dh5 to go anywhere in the city but since they have replaced the old white cars with yellow cars and put the drivers in fresh uniforms they have also added a meter.

Normally the driver will switch the meter on as you hop into the car but if not, ask for it to be activated, otherwise you may pay a big price. Recently a tourist arriving at the Fujairah Port paid more than a 100 Euros to get the short distance to Fujairah’s main street. Fortunately rogue taxi drivers in Fujairah are rare.

When the meter is activated there appears a Dh2.50 municipality charge before the car moves forward.

The charge is Dh1 per kilometer so you will get a good distance around the city for Dh10.

Tipping is not required or expected but with so many taxis in the city and the wages so low the drivers will welcome you rounding your contribution to the next 10 dirhams.

Make sure you have plenty of change as taxi drivers will struggle if you give them a Dh100 or Dh200 note.

Taxis can take you to the airports in other emirates but there are rules which prohibit Fujairah taxis coming to pick you up from the same airports.

Taxi Driver Salaries
Taxi drivers get a proportion of the fares they make and it is worked out according to a sliding scale and incentives.

Most of the taxi drivers I have travelled with recently say they make Dh2000 a month but one said he only made Dh1500.

The cars are insured for accidents but if the police write in their report that a prang was the taxi driver’s fault then he will end up paying at least some of the costs. One taxi driver said recently that he was involved in an accident several months ago and ended up having to pay Dh800.

Dr Geoff Pound

Geoff can be contacted by email at geoffpound(at)gmail.com on Facebook and Twitter.

Image: This is the colour of the taxis in Fujairah.