Anonymous taxi with friendly face
Het Parool newspaper / Art & Media (24 May 2011)
by DANIËL BERTINA

In the run-up to the What Design Can Do! symposium, five designers present solutions for Amsterdam nuisances. In the final instalment, the Open Coop creates order out of the taxi chaos.

Earlier this year the Open Coop settled on the former Shell site at Tolhuistuin in Amsterdam North. Open Coop is a joint venture that brings together a number of architects, designers, artists and creative minds from influential design firms and one-made outfits. The choice for the location — for years a headquarters of big business — is partly symbolic, explains Hedwig Heinsman (1980) of DUS Architecten. “As upcoming Amsterdam designers we’re trying to find an answer to the influence of big multinationals on our city. By working together cleverly.” On Friday the creatives united in Open Coop presented at What Design Can Do!, a two-day international symposium at the Amsterdam City Theatre on the role that design can play in solving countless social problems. As a taste of what’s in store, last week Open Coop held a brainstorm session on the taxi chaos in the city. “Taxis in Amsterdam are a disaster, certainly for tourists,” says joint-initiator Thijs Middeldorp (1978) of Partizan Publik. Open Coop discovered a whole catalogue of complaints: short journeys are refused, passengers are overcharged, the total price for a journey is often unclear before the passenger gets into the car, the driver doesn’t speak the language, or he doesn’t know his way around the city streets. The single biggest problem is the lack of transparency, concluded the Open Coop. In the end, three solutions were proposed. First: all taxis are given the same colour and each is fitted with a big, professional and beautiful portrait photograph of the driver on the side of the vehicle. Along with the name, to make them more recognisable. “That gives those anonymous taxis a face, literally and figuratively,” says Heinsman. “Good drivers are therefore able to stand out from the others. They’re like moving billboards.” Further, every big station or taxi rank features an independent information panel where prospective taxi passengers, after entering their destination, can get an idea of the total cost of their intended journey. Heinsman: “That enables them to check if they’re being swindled.” Desperately lost tourists unable to find such a panel are assisted by a number of friendly ‘hosts’ in recognisable uniforms. That will cost tons, admits Middeldorp. “But it’s a way of limiting the immeasurable damage to the city’s reputation caused by the anti-social behaviour of taxi drivers.” Two ranks are created for the cars: one for short journeys and one for longer journeys. That allows a driver to decide for himself how long he wants to wait for passengers. For example, he can opt for four short journeys (plus tip), or for one long journey instead. That ensures more flow and less irritation. For the more seasoned and smartphone-skilled taxi passenger the Open Coop wants to design an app with GPS function that enables him to find all available taxis in the vicinity. Middeldorp: “Something like it already exists. You can call a taxi from a particular company with a push of a button. But we want to offer an open-source system on which every independent taxi driver is visible. That means more choice for customers.” All of this doesn’t have to end with just a handy idea, emphasises Heinsman. The application in particular makes it possible to thoroughly revamp the entire taxi world. “The Open Coop is expressly not a think tank but an ‘action’ tank. So we really want to test this idea by challenging drivers to unite — through social media and elsewhere — and set up a new type of taxi corporation. The Open Coop would then be able to design and supervise it. Now we’re looking for a few enthusiastic taxi drivers to take part.”