OTHER SERVICES SUCH as Uber and Lyft should be looked at to help address the taxi shortage, the Tánaiste Leo Varadkar has said.
Speaking to reporters, he agreed that it is difficult to get a taxi at the moment due to a “snap back in demand” after the pandemic.
He said a lot of systems are struggling to cope, citing Dublin Airport and the Passport Office, stating that taxis are a third example of that.
“One thing I would like us to look at again quite frankly in Ireland is the whole issue of Uber and Lyft for example,” he said.
“The big difference that I find going to other parts of the world is that it is much easier to get a ride essentially – to get a car ride.
Quickly realising his comment, the Tánaiste laughed, telling reporters: “I’ll do that again.”
“What I find is, when you go to other countries you have other options than a taxi – whether it is public transport and you also have things like Uber and things like Lyft.
“They are just not available in Ireland in the same way and maybe we need to look at that again and see if we can liberalise that.”
The question on taxi drivers was posed to the Tánaiste on the back of Festival Republic Managing Director Melvin Benn warning people not to rely on taxis when travelling to the series of gigs at Marley Park this month.
Taxi shortages
The Journal reported this month that there has been a drop-off in active taxi drivers since the pandemic and the industry has failed to recover following the lifting of restrictions.
According to the National Transport Authority, currently there are 25,336 taxi driver licences, 18,849 of which are active.
A number of readers shared their experiences of trying to get home after nights out socialising in the city centre, with some stating they waited hours for a taxi, while others decided to just walk home.
Some said they had tried to use the public transport options that were available, but these too were full to capacity.
It has, some readers said, turned them off socialising in the city centre unless they have a lift home lined up.
Controversy
Uber, which facilitates paid-for lifts in private drivers’ cars, has run into heavy resistance from taxi companies in several jurisdictions over the years.
The Irish Government took an interest in a court case when Uber tried to move into Barcelona in 2014, with Asociación Profesional Élite Taxi complaining to a local court that the US firm was in breach of competition rules.
The court was unsure as to how the law should be interpreted, so the case was referred to the ECJ. Ireland was one of seven EU member states to get involved in the case, where it argued that national taxi laws need to be upheld.
In Ireland, Uber was treated like a dispatch operator, which means it is required to provide bookings only to a licensed driver using a licensed vehicle.
When the National Transport Authority opposed Uber’s pilot plans in Ireland, the Taxi Federation welcomed the decision in 2017, stating that the cost of setting up a taxi business huge and that Uber would bring “totally unfair competition”.
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