Why Do We Call Taxis 'Little Yellow'? Taiwan Transportation Vocab

 What is a 'White-Plate' Car? Essential Chinese Vocabulary for Transport

計程車(小黃) Taxi

• Traditional legal taxis are uniformly painted yellow, earning them the nickname "小黃(Little Yellow)." By law, fares must be calculated using a taximeter.
  
  Taiwan has very strict requirements for taxi drivers. In addition to holding a professional driver's license, drivers must pass a police background check to obtain a practice registration. Furthermore, the police regularly review drivers' records. If a driver is found to have committed a major crime, their license will be revoked.

• 例句：
• 下大雨了，我們別走路，搭小黃回去吧。
  
  It started raining heavily. Let's not walk; take a taxi home instead.

白牌車 Unlicensed Taxi

• These are private cars that transport passengers illegally. The pricing method is based on price quoting, whereby the driver and passenger verbally agree on a price. The drivers have not undergone the taxi registration screening process, and the vehicles are not insured for passengers. In the event of an accident or dispute, passengers have no legal recourse. However, in rural areas and at quieter stations where legal taxis are scarce, you will often see people standing by their cars asking where you are going and quoting a price to solicit customers.
  
  We call them "白牌車 (White-plate cars)" because they use private vehicle license plates, which are white, instead of the red license plates used by legal taxis.

• 例句：
• 那些是白牌車，他們不跳錶，直接喊價。
  
  Those are unlicensed taxis. They don't use a meter; they just quote a price.

多元化計程車 Diversified Taxi

• This essentially refers to app-based ride-hailing platforms, such as Uber. These taxis can only be booked via an app, and payment is based on the amount calculated by the system.
  
  To comply with Taiwan's regulations, drivers of these 'diversified taxis' must currently also pass a government screening process as well.

• 例句：
• 多元化計程車不能在路邊攔，你必須用手機 App 預約。
  You cannot hail a diversified taxi on the street; you must book it using a mobile app.

R牌車 Rental Car

• R牌(R-plates) are special license plates for rental cars only. They are used for both short-term rentals and long-term leases. Vehicles with R-plates are typically used for airport transfers or business charters.
  
  
  Additionally, many businesses use vehicle leasing for tax planning purposes. It's important to note that the owner of an R-plate car must be a rental company and cannot be an individual.

• 例句：
• 我們預約的機場接送車，車牌應該是R 開頭的。 The airport transfer car we booked should have a license plate starting with R.

Thanks for reading! If you want to hear the correct pronunciation and intonation, don't forget to watch the video at the beginning of this post. See you next time!