I guess the broader lesson implied is that you need to put in the effort to understand the local culture, and adapt your strategies accordingly, before you try to enter a new country.
Partly because the roads are less congested, even in the heart of Tokyo, since so many take the train. I never found myself wishing I could take an Uber in Japan -- a taxi was always there when I needed it... and that was only if I wasn't near a train station, which was almost never.
Edit: There is a flip side to this though. In Japan it was obvious to me that people take pride in their work. Even people who drove taxis out clean train stations. The resulting quality of work was astonishing. However, I also got the impression that these people are give respect for their good work. I don't think many taxi drivers in the US respect their own work and society for sure doesn't make them feel respected. Respect seems to be much tighter coupled to monetary success and I can't say I'm free from that.
“The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends towards justice.”
For me, taxi driving was a game: "I wonder who I'm going to meet today..." One of my passengers had been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. He didn't win - I picked him up at the homeless shelter. He was going to work, and was almost back on his feet...
Sometimes passengers remembered me.
Sometimes passengers provided the rest of the story for things I'd been wondering about, or confirmed 'tall tales'. Like the bartender who confirmed that the visiting NBA basketball players really did come into his bar that night... Months before, the other night driver on our little team had said, "YOU'LL NEVER GUESS WHO WAS IN THE CAB LAST NIGHT!"
> and society for sure doesn't make them feel respected. Respect seems to be much tighter coupled to monetary success and I can't say I'm free from that.
Plenty of my passengers let me know that they appreciated us.
Taxi driving has traditionally been a rough occupation. Drivers used to carry a lot of cash, and were seen as targets for thugs who were desperate for money. Cash isn't as common as it used to be, so taxi drivers don't have to project as much "toughness" as they used to.
I was always looking for a bigger picture, so I guess my experiences in the cab reflect that.
When we missed the shuttle to the train station, the shuttle manager apologized profusely, like they had done something wrong, when really we had just showed up a few minutes late.
A similar story is playing out in Hong Kong, even without the government cracking down as hard. There are some annoying taxi drivers, but for the most part, local taxis are cheap, fast and comfortable.
I use Uber pretty much exclusively these days, but in Japan it doesn't make sense: in central Tokyo, you can hail a cab in seconds on any major street, and outside it, the nearest train station will have a taxi rank. And if you go out far enough that you need to call a cab, then Uber's unlikely to serve the area either.