Alameda Taxi

When being a taxi driver, I would think being on time would be your number one priority, but not these guys. Going to the OAK airport early in the morning (5AM), the cab I called the night before ended up being 15 minutes late (minus 4 stars). I called after 5-minutes late, and was told he was almost there. 10 minutes later, he finally showed up, somewhat apologetic (plus 1 star).

Don't know if this is good or not, but he then drove really fast, I guess to make up time? I didn't feel safe, asked him to slow down, which he did (plus one star).

People make mistakes, but this made my morning much more stressful then need be. Maybe these guys are great, and this was just a bad day, however, I won't be giving them another shot.

Always arriving on time and with a smile, Alameda Taxi is the place I call when I get the travel bug and ache to skip town. Most recently, I was helped by a wonderful fellow named Dick C.

Attempting to strike up a conversation, I asked him where he was from. He told me was from Bhutan, and having never been there, I basically thew a suitcase full of questions at him. We talked the whole way to the airport only pausing for an occasional breath. He taught me about the "One Nation, One People" policy implemented in Bhutan and its hidden agenda of secret ethnic persecution. Sadly, he was a victim of their ethic persecution and escaped from Bhutan in 2000. I also learned about his family, goals, and even his dreams. My taxi ride was a surreal visit through history, led by a driver who possesses an abundance of knowledge and genuine friendliness.

Though all of Alameda Taxi's drivers are extremely nice and professional, when I am craving some time away, I will be calling on Dick C. for another history lesson and relaxing ride to the good ole' OAK.

Driver "forgot" to pick us up even though it was booked the day before. Almost missed our flight and had to make a last minute decision to drive to airport and skip the cab even though they kept saying they would be there in 5 minutes.

Unreliable, unprofessional. Even though parking cost us 4 times what a cab would have Im glad we didn't miss our flight over this horrible company.

I called them to set up an appointment a few days before for an early am. pickup for the airport. He adamantly refused to take my reservation and said i had to call 45 minutes before. Plus he had a bad attitude. Who would want to support a business like this?

if you want to go to the airport they are helpful and fine - if you want a short drive around town, they aren't so interested in helping (the fare must not be there)

they are polite and the cabs clean in my experience. I have had them arrive on time and at least they tell me when they won't take my request

Alameda Taxi misses scheduled morning pick-ups to the airport Period, did not show up. Alameda Taxi misses evening pick-ups from restaurants, also.

Predawn Airport request. 5:30 am.

Driver arrived 5 minutes early and parked across the street down the block. I walked over and asked him to pull into my driveway so we could load all our luggage and he refused. My buddy was still screwing around with his luggage and after less than a minute, the driver SPLIT! I called Alameda Taxi, and they said they didn't have time for us.

I had a newborn baby, and had to get my wife out of bed at 5:30 in the morning to drive us to the airport so we wouldn't miss our flight. Of course the baby had to come along also in her car seat because we couldn't leave her alone.

DON'T EVER CALL ALAMEDA TAXI!

EVER!

For the record, the driver in question had a big beard and a white turban, so especially avoid that guy.

If you are looking for a reliable and dependable company for taxi service DO NOT USE ALAMEDA TAXI. Made a reservation two days ago for a 4:30 am pickup this morning to the Oakland Airport. When the driver did not arrive called the company and was told they did not have the reservation and there were no cabs available. Decided to drive to the airport instead. Highly unprofessional and will never use this company again under any circumstances. Use at your own risk!

Called them for a 1.2 mile trip from home to the shopping center. The cab arrived soon. When driving off I noticed the driver did not put the flag down and asked about that. Out came a bunch of BS about if you want the flag down you have to state that when phoning. That was followed by a bunch of ongoing gibberish about phoning his boss, etc. When we got to the shopping center he announced the fare was $10. A 1.2 mile trip- $3 for the flag down and 26 cents each tenth of a mile would not reach $5. $5 is the minimum charge and that's what it should nave been. Outrageous. I gave him $10 and that set off a tirade about a tip. I just walked away.
After shopping, I had a person at a store phone for a cab to return home. Thankfully it was another cab company, Wanna Cab. He also did not put the flag down; but the bill was a reasonable $5.06 to which I added a tip. I would still have liked a metered trip, but the charge was honest.

10/31/13. DO NOT USE THIS cab service. They still fail to pick you up at the designated time, will tell you someone is coming when in fact no one ever arrives. They used to be dependable but no longer. Had I read YELP earlier, I would never have called them. They don't care that I had to spend $150 more on a ticket because of them.