THE TAXIS FOR Ireland Coalition has warned people who plan on socialising throughout the Christmas period to ensure they take steps to get home safely – warning of an increased demand in taxis and safety concerns given a shortage in available taxis. 

The Christmas period is one of the busiest of the year for taxi drivers, particularly in areas where public transport is not available. 

The coalition, which was formed in the latter half of 2023, counts the Restaurants Association of Ireland, Vintners’ Federation of Ireland, Licensed Vintners’ Association, Irish Tourism Industry Confederation, Association of Irish Festival Events, Bolt and Uber among its members.

A statement released by the coalition said that the availability of taxis is expected to fall far short of the demand. The coalition warned that this not only inconveniences travellers but also raises serious safety concerns, as individuals may resort to “unsafe travel alternatives” or face extended wait times in vulnerable situations.

It added that rural areas are particularly affected by the lack of sufficient taxi services, as there is often no public transport alternative. 

The coalition reiterated its previous call on newly elected TDs to work towards an increase in taxi numbers across the country. Representatives from a number of political parties, including Fianna Fáil, Fine Gale, Labour and the Social Democrats had supported this call during the general election campaign, it said. 

CEO of the Vintners’ Federation of Ireland, Pat Crotty, said that increased taxi number would enable people to socialise safely and responsibly.

“We don’t want people resorting to unsafe practices – whether that be drink driving or unlicensed taxis – due to the lack of transportation,” he said. “There are many small and large towns that do not have bus services and if they do, they do not run throughout the night. This demand on taxis will certainly be exhausted over the Christmas period.”

The coalition stressed that while further development of public transport should be supported, taxis should not be left out of the equation

The coalition is not seeking deregulation of the industry, only an increase in taxi numbers in response to increased demand, it added.

Increased fares

On 1 December this year, an increase of 9% on taxi services was applied by the National Transport Authority, which said the increase is to reflect the “rising costs” of operating a taxi service. 

The fee for pre-booking a taxi – including through an app – will increase by one euro, moving from €2 to €3 from now. 

A “special rate” that is applied to weekend nights between midnight and 4am will see taxi prices rise to €2.20 per kilometre.

This rate also applies to taxi journeys taken on Christmas Eve, from 8pm to 8am on St Stephen’s Day, and during the same time from New Year Eve to New Year’s Day.

There is an initial charge of €5.40 on “special rate” taxi fares. Standard rates, which apply Monday to Saturday from 8am to 8pm, are set at €1.32 per kilometre. There is a €3 booking charge in place for all taxis booked online and over the phone. 

A number of representatives of various taxi companies, including Uber – a member of the Taxis for Ireland Coalition – and FreeNow, strongly criticised the increase, with Uber saying the move will impact the night-time economy and fails to address the ongoing taxi shortage.