A Volkswagen Jetta taxi, seen in the Sanlitun embassy area in Beijing back in 2013. It was a hot summer day in July so the Beijing taxi driver took a well deserved rest. He was having a sleep with the driver seat down and his yellow shirt hanging down from the ceiling of the vehicle.
These yellow shirts are a thing. They became obligatory by law in 2007 in the run-up to the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. Beijing taxi drivers, a notoriously grumpy bunch, didn’t like the shirts at all, but the Beijing government made clear that no shirt was no ride, so in the end early all taxi drivers complied.
Seeing a taxi driver having a nap like this was perfectly normal in times then. On any hot summer’s day you could find exhausted Beijing taxi drivers, riding for 12+ hours a day, taking a rest on any shaded street.
The FAW-Volkswagen Jetta used to be one of the most popular taxi’s in Beijing in the 2000’s and early 2010’s. Nowadays, most have been replaced by taxi’s made by the local Beijing-Hyundai joint venture.
