There are now 61 fewer taxi operators and 1,895 licenced taxis on Northern Ireland's roads compared to two years ago, new figures show
There are now 61 fewer taxi operators and 1,895 licenced taxis on Northern Ireland's roads compared to two years ago, new figures show.
The LTOA, which represents a group of mainly large private hire taxi operators here, says there are simply now too few taxis and taxi drivers to meet passenger demand across Northern Ireland especially during anti-social hours at evenings and weekends. "Drivers have decided it is not worth their while driving the extra hours especially evenings and weekends on the current DfI fare structure when there are additional challenges for working these hours."
Currently only around 22% on average are passing the theory element, which the LTOA says "remains unacceptably low compared to other licence types". "Taxi operators have a business model where their income increases when the number of drivers they have increases . In other words, it's in our interest to have more drivers and address these problems, but there is only so much we can do within the current legislation and in the absence of an Assembly
“The taxi industry operates within the wider context of the existing economic situation and there are many factors that contribute to the current shortage of taxi drivers. In November last year, Mr O’Dowd's predecessor Nichola Mallon announced a 7.6% increase in the maximum fare as part of a post-Covid support package for the industry, and to encourage new drivers.
Danmark Seneste Nyt, Danmark Overskrifter
Similar News:Du kan også læse nyheder, der ligner denne, som vi har indsamlet fra andre nyhedskilder.
Charles Leclerc 'had confidence' in Ferrari comeback despite struggles of 2020Charles Leclerc said he always believed Ferrari would one day return to the front of the grid despite their struggles in the 2020 season.
Læs mere »
Fresh version of Xfce revealed in recent Xubuntu buildsFresh version of Xfce, the oldest Linux desktop of them all, revealed in Xubuntu builds
Læs mere »
Zef Eisenberg: Racer's high-speed crash 'not survivable' inquest toldMaximuscle founder Zef Eisenberg was killed attempting a land speed record at Elvington in 2020.
Læs mere »
Universal Credit: Taxi driver refunded £11k after complaintStormont's CommunitiesNI has repaid more than £11,000 to a taxi driver after he complained that he lost out on benefits due to poor advice
Læs mere »