Getting one
The latest official figures from the Beijing Taxi Licensing Authority show that Beijing has shedloads of taxis. Millions of them.
Unless you find yourself on the fifth ringroad at 4am you'll be able to find one. Taxi-drivers are eager to serve, and will
quite happily drive perpendicular to traffic flow and screech to a halt at your feet in response to a wave. It is possible to
order taxis over the phone. Damned if I know what the number is though.
Taxi typology and charging
Three flavours. The most expensive come in at 2Y a kilometer, but you are unlikely to find these luxurious beasts unless you
are outside a five-star hotel. 1.60Y and 1.20Y cabs are what you will usually see, and unless you are taking a long journey across
the city, the difference in price between the two is minimal. There's a minimum charge of 10Y which covers the first 3 kilometers,
and the rate per kilometer rises when you travel over 15k's. Or around 15k's.
Show him the way to go home
Business cards with addresses on and helpfully circled maps are obviously useful. Reciting your exact address will probably cause confusion, as there are too many roads and buildings to keep track of - it's best to give the name of a nearby landmark, such as the nearest bridge, main road, or large hotel, and take it from there. If your taxi driver has just got off the train from Nowherezhou in Hunan, keep naming larger and larger places until you find one he knows, and direct him from there.
How much!?
As I've said, I've found Beijing's taxi corp to be entirely honest. There are obviously a few out there who are not to be trusted, but they can be avoided. Ignore any taxi driver who isn't in his cab, doesn't have his red 'taxi' light on, doesn't have a registration card on his dashboard, or pimps for two excessively-made-up and very nervous young women in the back of his cab (that only happened once, and it wasn't in Beijing. And no, of course I didn't).
A habit I picked up while living in other cities was to only take taxis that were cruising around looking for business, rather than waiting by the roadside, on the basis that those sitting by the roadside weren't sure how long their cabs were going to stay in one piece for. I'm not sure this is valid in Beijing though.
In Beijing, I've suspected I've been cheated only twice, and I could have been wrong both times.
Hints and Tips
Don't bother putting the seat belt on, unless you want a great big dirty stripe diagonally across your torso - you'll be the first person to use it since the crash test dummy. You'll occasionally see your driver pull his across when he thinks he might drive past a policeman, but he's unlikely to go so far as to fasten it.
If you are going to give directions, do so in advance - negotiating Beijing's junctions needs forethought, and the driver needs to know which way he should be turning. If you don't manage to do so, don't be surprised if you need to wait a kilometer before there's a chance to turn around.
All taxis should display a large drivers registration card on the passenger's dashboard, with a driver's number, photo, name and a phone number for complaints. If you think you are being cheated, take a note of the details, and then spend the next couple of days thinking 'Oh, I really should complain about that taxi driver' before realising that its really not worth the hassle.
Drivers are obliged to beep when overtaking, which is why the roads can be so beep-y. They probably do find it fun though. I would.
Hello, taxi
I think Beijing's taxi drivers are great, and always start conversations with them. Many of them are from outside Beijing and have various interesting opinions about life in the big city. I speak Chinese to them, but they all have to take English language courses as part of their registration process (does New York do this?), so try your luck in English.