The taxi-culture of Malaysia is probably unique in world-wide comparison. While the unique habits of drivers are most prominent in Kuala Lumpur and Klang Valley, unfortunately also more remote places like Penang, Johor Baru (bordertown to SIngapore), Kuantan (East-coast) and Ipoh suffer from the same symptoms. To understand the un-orthodox behaviour of taxi-drivers, one has to know a little about the background:
Taxi licenses are held by a few, politically connected business-people. They hold up to several hundreds of licenses and the permit to buy the commonly used locally manufactured Proton cars at discounted prices through the official network. Taxis are rented out on a daily basis to private individuals who actually drive the car. They have to pay a fixed MYR 50.00 per day to their respective license-holder. Hence, they only start to generate their own income after having made those initial MYR 50. Reminds one of the situation of prostitutes, doesn't it?
As a consequence, drivers are only interested in doing the long trips, 20, 30kms or more. But... not at all times. Going into the city-centre from 7 to 9am is out, because they don't want to waste time in a jam. That applies likewise to leaving the city-area between 4 and 8pm. Even if you call through one of the official five tax-hotlines, the operator will tell you, that a driver might be prepared to do the trip for an additional MYR 20 (!).
Going from one residential area to another is "not convenient" (the driver may not be familiar with the destination) and his chances to find passengers for his return-trip are slim. However, at any time of the day, you will find cohortes of drivers who are prepared to drive you to the airport (60km distance and jam-free!). The normal fare from KL city is MYR 60 to 80.00.
Short distances within the city area are of no interest for drivers as these trips produce little money, but take a long time, as the city is always congested. They may however make the trip more rewarding for their pocket by finding 'short-cuts' to ship around even 'expected' traffic-jams. The unsuspecting tourist, being unfamiliar with the area, may not notice that he is literally 'taken for a ride' around town. As a guideline: short trips within the city-area should cost from about MYR 6.00 to max MYR 12.00, depending on the actual distance.
Between midnight and 6am, there is an official night-surcharge nationwide of 50%. Watch out! Some culprits try to make it 100% for you, especially for white men. Your senses should go on alert when you are addressed as "Boss, ..".
Foreign passengers are generally preferred to locals (easier to cheat). Starting from a hotel drive-way is usually more expensive ('fixed price' including commission for the bell-hop) than taking a cab from the stand 20m away.
In any situation, you will find yourself haggling with the driver through the opened car-door whether he wants to go to the place you are heading for. It can be going on to a point where you are inclined to ask the driver "Where do y o u want to go?".
If the driver says yes, the next question is of course the price. If you manage to avoid that early discussion, jump into the car and close the door, you will still be exposed to the discussion whether you go with or without meter.
All taxis have of course a meter out of which about 10% are used. The 90% majority of taxi-drivers try successfully to impose 'fixed' prices by telling you "sorry boss, meter broken" or simply covering it with a dirty wiping-cloth. A simple means to stop that non-sense is to pull out a piece of paper and a pen and threaten to report the driver to the respective authorities. Their photo-license to drive a taxi and the hotlines of the Commercial Vehicle License Board and the JPJ (equivaent to our TUEV) are usually displayed inside the car. They probably believe you would do, as foreigners are seen as far more determined. Malaysians are simply too complacent and 'avoid all that trouble'. Facing that pressure, the driver may either give in or ask you to leave his car, which you should do then anyway. There are enough taxis around and the next one luckily may behave by the book.
Remember, the number of 'correct' drivers is disappearingly low. Only subtle pressure may improve the situation for you there and then. For the overall change of the situation to a better, Malaysia's population has been waiting for decades and will continue to hope.
Meanwhile, the 'authorities' mostly resort to lip-services. Obviously too many of them are earning additional income from the current state of affairs...
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