High time we put down our phones and looked through to the front of the taxis we’re sat in. Behind the wheel, every driver has a story; a reflection of resilience, adaptation, and the pulse of a changing China. I took the opportunity to speak with three taxi drivers from different walks of life to uncover their experiences navigating Nanjing’s ever-evolving streets. In many ways, taxi drivers are the silent witnesses to the city’s transformation, their vehicles rolling archives of shifting times and personal struggles.
是时候放下手机，看着我们坐的出租车前面了。 在方向盘后面，每个司机都有一个故事；反映了复原力、适应性和不断变化的中国脉搏。 我借此机会与来自各行各业的三位出租车司机进行了交谈，以了解他们在南京不断发展的街道上航行的经历。 在許多方面，計程車司機是城市轉型的默默見證者，他們的車輛滾動著不斷變化的時代和個人鬥爭的檔案。
Mr. Zhao: The Veteran
Taxi: Yellow EV
Location: Gulou
赵先生：老出租车：黄色EV地点：鼓楼
With over 25 years in the driver’s seat, Mr. Zhao has witnessed Nanjing transform. “The roads were quieter, the skyline lower,” he recalls. Having started his career when taxis were less common on the road, more of a novelty so to speak, he has adapted to everything from digital fare payments to app-based ride-hailing platforms.
赵先生在驾驶座工作了25多年，见证了南京的转变。 “道路更安静，天际线更低，”他回忆道。 他的职业生涯始于出租车在路上不那么常见，可以说更像是一种新奇，他适应了从数字票价支付到基于应用程序的拼车平台的一切。
Despite the changes, some things remain constant; his deep knowledge of the city and his ability to avoid those much-chagrined traffic jams. Not often encountered by taxi drivers these days is also his appreciation for a good conversation. “Passengers are important to me. Not many people will chat to drivers anymore, but when they do, it puts a smile on my face,” he says, recounting a recent ride where an elderly woman shared her memories of a local Nanjing delicacies; probably long gone by now. Mid-ride, he even recited a Tang Dynasty poem about the Stone City, taking the time to remind me of how much history flows through this city. “Sometimes, I feel that every day I drive through the same roads, but every year, the city outside changes”, he says with a nostalgic smile.
尽管发生了变化，但有些事情仍然保持不变；他对这座城市的深入了解以及他避免那些非常沮丧的交通堵塞的能力。 这些天来，出租车司机很少遇到的也是他对良好对话的欣赏。 “乘客对我来说很重要。 不再有多少人会和司机聊天了，但当他们这样做时，我的脸上露出了笑容，”他说，他讲述了最近的一次骑行，一位老年妇女分享了她对当地南京美食的回忆；现在可能早已过去。 中途，他甚至背诵了一首关于石城的唐朝诗，花时间提醒我这座城市有多少历史。 他带着怀旧的微笑说：“有时，我觉得我每天开车都会走同样的路，但每年，外面的城市都会改变。”
Ms. Lin: The Single Mother
Taxi: Green EV
Location: Qinhuai
林女士：单身母亲出租车：绿色EV地点：秦淮
Lin, driving a taxi is more than just a job; it’s a means of independence. She explains that as a single mum raising a teenage son, she chose the profession for its flexible hours. “It’s not easy”, she admits. “Late nights can be tough, but it allows me to be there for my son when he needs me, especially with homework.”
Lin，开出租车不仅仅是一份工作；它是一种独立的手段。 她解释说，作为一名抚养十几岁儿子的单身母亲，她选择这个职业是因为工作时间灵活。 “这并不容易”，她承认。 “深夜可能很艰难，但它允许我在儿子需要我的时候陪伴他，尤其是做作业。”
You can almost imagine the taxi as her second home; clean and immaculate but with a sense of pride, where she mentions that her usual passengers are hurried businesspeople shooting across the city to star-crossed university students out on their first dates. “Some never look up from their phones, but the odd passenger will talk about their jobs, their holidays and their families. It reminds me that we’re all just human.”
你几乎可以想象出出租车是她的第二个家；干净整洁，但有一种自豪感，她提到她通常的乘客是匆匆忙忙的商人，在第一次约会时穿越城市，向穿越星星的大学生射击。 “有些人从不从手机上抬起头来，但奇怪的乘客会谈论他们的工作、假期和家庭。 它提醒我，我们都只是人。”
She talks about how one night recently, she picked up a tearful but drunk young man who had just broken up with his girlfriend. “He sat in the back, crying. I didn’t say much, just drove him home safely and quietly. Before he got out, he smiled and just said, ‘thanks’.”
她談到了最近一天晚上，她遇到了一個淚流滿面但喝醉的年輕人，他剛剛和女朋友分手。 “他坐在后面，哭着。 我没有说太多，只是安全而安静地开车送他回家。 在他出去之前，他微笑着说，’谢谢’。”
Mr. Wang: The Newcomer
Taxi: Black EV
Location: Jiangning
王先生：新来的出租车：黑色EV地点：江宁
Wang, who left a factory job to become a taxi driver two years ago, is still adjusting to the fast-paced world of ride-hailing platforms. Unlike Zhao, he never knew Nanjing before instant map apps and mobile payments, yet he faces his own challenges: stiff competition on the ride-hailing apps and demanding passengers.
两年前离开工厂工作成为一名出租车司机的王仍在适应快节奏的拼车平台世界。 与赵不同，在即时地图应用程序和移动支付之前，他从未了解过南京，但他面临着自己的挑战：拼车应用程序的激烈竞争和要求苛刻的乘客。
“It’s difficult to stay ahead and not be neijuan (内卷)”, he says. “You need good ratings, quick responses, and patience.” He says all of this while glancing at his phone screen, with one eye on the road of course. He sighs, adjusting his rearview mirror. “Some days are hard; long hours, low fares.”
他说：“保持领先而不成为内卷是很难的。” “你需要良好的评分、快速的回应和耐心。” 他一边说着这一切，一边瞥了一眼手机屏幕，当然一只眼睛盯着路。 他叹了口气，调整着后视镜。 “有些日子很艰难；工作时间长，票价低。”
But he gets a little more excited explaining how he likes to pick up passengers from Nanjing South Railway Station. He tells me he drove a family who had just arrived in Nanjing from a small rural town for the holidays. “The kids kept pointing at the tall buildings, amazed. It reminded me of how I felt when I first came to the city. There’s always something new to discover.”
但他更兴奋地解释了他喜欢从南京南站接乘客的方式。 他告诉我，他开车送了一个刚从农村小镇到南京过节的家庭。 “孩子们一直指着高楼，很惊讶。 这让我想起了我第一次来到这个城市时的感受。 总有一些新的东西可以发现。”
The Roads They Travel
他们旅行的道路
Despite their differences, all three drivers exemplified one thing; Nanjing’s roads are more than just tarmac and traffic. They are just one part of the circulatory system ferrying around the lifeblood of the city.
尽管他们存在分歧，但这三位司机都体现了一件事；南京的道路不仅仅是柏油路和交通。 它们只是环绕城市命脉的循环系统的一部分。
Their cars are not just mere vehicles, but spaces where there are fleeting moments of connection, where sometimes laughter and understanding can take place.
他们的汽车不仅仅是车辆，而是有转瞬即逝的连接时刻的空间，有时可以在这里发生笑声和理解。
As passengers, we often see taxis as part of that collective convenience that makes life run smoothly here in China. But they’re not just a way to get from one place to another. Behind every app screen or even the ticking meter is a person with their own journey; some long, some just beginning.
作为乘客，我们经常将出租车视为集体便利的一部分，使中国的生活顺利进行。 但它们不仅仅是从一个地方到另一个地方的一种方式。 在每个应用程序屏幕甚至滴答器后面都有一个人带着自己的旅程；有些是漫长的旅程，有些只是开始。
Perhaps the next time you step into a taxi, you’ll take a moment to look beyond the phone screen or the neighbouring window and appreciate the story waiting to be told. Paraphrasing Virginia Woolf, cities and people are always shifting, in a constant state of flux.
也许下次你走进出租车时，你会花点时间看手机屏幕或旁边的窗户，欣赏等待讲述的故事。 转述弗吉尼亚·伍尔夫的话，城市和人民总是在变化，处于不断变化的状态。
But in the backseats of taxis, we catch glimpses of something more permanent; stories, moments, and the quiet hum of a city that never stops moving. We know we’re a small part of the larger story.
但在出租车的后座上，我们瞥见了一些更永久的东西；故事、时刻和永不停止移动的城市的安静嗡嗡声。 我们知道我们是大故事的一小部分。
