Taxi Driver Plants Bomb On AH Forum

Spook_ie

No happy New Year for revellers as taxi fares pushed up by 50pc

Saturday December 27 2008

TAKING a taxi on New Year's Eve will now cost almost 50pc more than usual -- and it will cost 22pc more to take a taxi home at night under new rates introduced by the Commission for Taxi Regulation.

The Commission has imposed a special Christmas and New Year premium rate for the first time this year.

A 20km journey taken during a normal weekday, based on an initial flat fare of €4.10 and a charge of €1.03 per kilometre for the first 14km and €1.35 a kilometre for the subsequent six kilometres would cost €26.62. The same journey taken on New Year's Day before 8pm will be charged at the standard public holiday rate, coming to €34.17.

However, the same journey taken between 8pm on New Year's Eve and 8am on New Year's Day when the new so-called "golden time" rates are in effect will cost a total of €39.85 -- an increase of €13.23, or almost 50pc.

The same journey taken on a normal weeknight between 8pm and 8am would cost €32.55 based on the new premium rate -- an increase of €5.93, or more than 22pc.

Michael Kilcoyne, chairman of the Consumers' Association of Ireland (CAI), said the new Christmas and New Year charges -- on top of the 8.3pc fare hike imposed five weeks earlier -- cannot be justified.

Excessive

"I accept the principle that they're entitled to something extra but it's excessive, particularly in the middle of a recession," he told the Irish Independent last night.

The absence of public transportation means that consumers are left with no choice but to either drive or pay the high fares, he said.

"It's unreasonable there's that kind of a hike. I don't think you can justify it," he said.

Taxi Commissioner Kathleen Doyle insisted that the new fares were imposed following public consultation last April.

She claimed the new rate structure was imposed to act as an incentive to get more taxi drivers on the road to address a severe shortage of drivers during the holiday period.

She denied that customers were being 'gouged' because of the lack of alternative public transport services.

"It's in line with the economics out there," she told the Irish Independent last night. "It's got nothing to do with raising prices during a recession."

She said the new holiday rates are the maximum fares a driver can charge and claimed that many taxi drivers can and do offer discounts on their fares.

"A maximum fares order means that's the maximum someone can charge. But drivers can offer discounts and many do," she said.

But Pat Claffey, co-owner of Blue Cabs, based in Dublin, said that while taxi drivers believe it's only reasonable that they should be compensated for working over the holiday period as other workers are, "at the end of the day it's supply and demand".

But the new "golden time" rates aren't incentive enough to get many taxi drivers to work this New Year, he added.

He added that anyone hoping to get a taxi at New Year would have to book ahead to secure one, for which another €2 fee will apply.

He also questioned the wisdom of imposing the rate increase at the current time.

"I don't know the rationale why it was put forward this year. I'm not quite sure where it came from.

"It is substantial, there's no doubt about that," he said, adding "consumers may very well vote with their feet".

But he added that the taxi industry shouldn't be to blame for the lack of alternative public transportation.

- Allison Bray

So you couldn't get a taxi for Xmas/New Year previously, the taxi regulator puts in a rise in the cost for taxis to try and get more taxis working that period, right or wrong, should she have just left it at the normal rates and let the customers complain about the problems getting a taxi or is she showing vision in attempting to overcome the problem? If she's wrong, what should she have done?

mike65

AH hijacked by lobby group.

Sharpshooter

TAXI.........

shenanigans1982

Spook_ie wrote: »

So you couldn't get a taxi for Xmas/New Year previously, the taxi regulator puts in a rise in the cost for taxis to try and get more taxis working that period, right or wrong, should she have just left it at the normal rates and let the customers complain about the problems getting a taxi or is she showing vision in attempting to overcome the problem? If she's wrong, what should she have done?

If some stingy bastard is going to leave his kids and family at home and go out and work on Christmas day I don't think he needs any encouragement to go out on New Years Eve.

Maybe she should just licences to four-in-ers...I've heard they will work any hours.

Mint Sauce

or people who might get a taxi to travel a short distance, might decide to walk instead, i often get a taxi home after a night out, its only a short walk, about 10 minutes, but at that time of night, after a few drinks, conveinent and safer, with this price increase, you might find more people walking

Sharpshooter

shenanigans1982 wrote: »

If some stingy bastard is going to leave his kids and family at home and go out and work on Christmas day I don't think he needs any encouragement to go out on New Years Eve.

Maybe she should just licences to four-in-ers...I've heard they will work any hours.

After Hours even.;)

But it is a time of the year when they make a lot of money , and surely this is counteracted come January ,
when a lot of people don't have the money to hire a Taxi?
Wouldn't they just about break even so?
I don't know much about taximen and how they work but , I would think this would be the case.

shenanigans1982

sharpshooterH wrote: »

After Hours even.;)

But it is a time of the year when they make a lot of money , and surely this is counteracted come January ,
when a lot of people don't have the money to hire a Taxi?
Wouldn't they just about break even so?
I don't know much about taximen and how they work but , I would think this would be the case.

Obviously not...it not so much work....more of a racket.;)

Sharpshooter

shenanigans1982 wrote: »

Obviously not...it not so much work....more of a racket.;)

I just think that it does make sense to make money while you can , especially if the next months money is hardly guaranteed.:pac:
But I am only talking about Christmas and New Year v January.:)

Ruu_Old

I've been posting for bloody ages here and still no sign of them fuckin taxis! :eek:

Terry

The Commission has imposed a special Christmas and New Year premium rate for the first time this year.

Fair play.

The Christmas and new year we had last spring was a rough time for all, but at least they didn't put the prices up then.