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Stories of road rage in China is a cliche here in China. Here in Shanghai, taking a taxi is an adventure to many who is foreign to this oriental land. In fact, most cars are rushing and always doing a cut-throat battle on the road, seeing who will be the winner at the end of the day, the big auto or the small one.

It seems to be a little hard for any foreigner to digest when they first came into an environment with lots of horns and retarded gear changing. Either you end up nauseous or actually felt exciting about every trip on the road. And in fact, most taxi drivers smoke and allows their passengers to smoke. This is not a bad thing, especially for smokers. Suddenly, smokers seem to have entered into a no-man boundary haven where they can smoke anywhere they want, anytime they want.

But of course, being Shanghai, one of the mojor cities in China, the government here is always trying to change the image of the “I don’t give a damn” attitude among its citizens, or rather, a re-education of its citizens because most are so comfortable in their own country, and unaware of the presence of foreigners from other countries who have different values and lifestyles in their daily living. In fact, Shanghai has banned all taxi drivers from smoking in the car as a face-lift for the image of the city, prior to the arrival of the World Expo to be held in Shanghai during 2010.

Not all taxi drivers here in Shanghai give a “fuck care” syndrome though. Of course, it has been stereotyped that many taxi drivers are just aiming for a daily normal living, driving whenever they want, lazing around in unwanted places when they are tired. Some might argue that this tedious and crazy occupation that exist makes this drivers a cynical and wearied part of the society. Some might even be living in an environment which depict proverty. However, for those who is combating to change the image for a better society, that is not so.

Meet Mr. Button, a Taxi Driver who is working with Da Zong Taxi Co., Ltd. This guy, whom I met one night when I was trying to find a taxi and rush to the Pudong Airport, is rather an interesting fellow. At first, I thought he could have part of a minority of taxi drivers in town, scammers who like to drive around in circles so that they can earn more. Or maybe one of those typical new-age Shanghainese, who always tend to take the most advantages out of people, reaping you dry. Here’s the scenario. Mr Button happened to be waiting for his client to go to the Pudong Airport. It’s a pre-booked assignment. I happened to be living in the same corner as his client. So when I asked whether he was going to the Airport, he said yes, I can hop in. He will charge 100RMB for the trip.

Of course, to many, they will think “Hey, I saved 50RMB for this trip.” But I was thinking that he is earning more from the trip and yet charging so much more. Most would have agreed upon a standard in which maybe his client will arrive and perhaps negotiate to see whether we can share the trip cost.

I shrugged and took off with another taxi. It was a matter of face issue. I rather pay more than submit to such an action. Besides, I was the one who wanted to go off with a cheap deal in the first place. Anyway, I needed the taxi receipt which I might not get if I shared the taxi. So Mr. Button was staring at me, and perhaps maybe sulking and cursing me under his breath.

The next time I met Mr Button, it was three days later on a Sunday. I was at Xuhui District after getting off from an airport bus, and I hailed to a taxi to head back home. My impression when I got into the car was good, and I am glad I got into a new car with nice soft cushion and a certain fragrance tinging in the air. It should have been a normal quiet ride except that Mr Button said, “I recognize you”.

Shocking actually, because I don’t remember taxi drivers’ faces. They all look the same to me maybe because I have stereotyped them. But when he said he was the driver 3 days ago at yadah yadah road, of course I suddenly remember him. Who won’t if you had a bad impression of someone?

But as the short trip continued, I came to like Mr. Button. He is rather very different from what I imagined him to be. A polite and humble driver, he was very keen to share his life experience with me. I learned that 6 years ago, he was like most other drivers in town. However, he decided to improve himself by learning English. Later, he picked up French and Japanese. Of course, most of his verbal command proficiency are limited to dialogs regarding to Taxi booking services. But he is good enough to venture into any topics with his client: talking about weather, about museum, about client’s home town. I have to say he is pretty good and he is definitely an exemplary role in a changing image of Shanghai.

Don’t be fooled by his two star logo at the front seat. He can do better than that! He just see that there’s no need to do all those paper work, when he can actually spend the time doing more productive work like building a team of reliable taxi drivers who provide honest, sincere and on time services. He manages a team of drivers and his motto is that he will continue to provide excellent services to the clients he build this couple of years.

And if your are in town, let’s hope you are lucky enough to meet Mr. Button while you hail a taxi. Of course, that will be difficult as he is always booked in advance by his clients. He provided me with a name card though. I am rather amused by his choice of name: Mr Button. It actually meant something like press the button and I will be there. Haha! But it make sense, because he really preach what he does and besides his surname is really button(钮) in Chinese.

If you are interested in booking a service with him, this is what he wrote in his name card:

Mr. Button. Cellphone 13611629539 (24/7)
Will respond to your text messages
(Even if you make an appointment outside of China)
Service to and from Pudong Airport.
Ningbo, Nanjing, Hangzhou, Suzhou, Kunshan and other cities.
(Reliable & courteous)