Taxi Driver Online

Alright, time to call time on the slanging match, productive debate from now on, hope you'll see it that way as well.

Is that a firm round your way? We don't have one called McLoud Cars.

Group says plan to make all city taxis wheelchair-accessible will not be met


The Accessible Taxi Consortium, a coalition of support groups, said about 5 per cent of taxis were wheelchair-accessible now.


A PROMISE in the programme for government that all city-based taxis would be wheelchair-accessible by 2010 will not be met, and the best that people with disabilities may hope for is a target of 20 per cent nationally.

That is the opinion of the Accessible Taxi Consortium, a coalition of support groups for people with disabilities, which said the percentage of wheelchair-accessible taxis fell from about 20 per cent a decade ago to about 5 per cent now.

In a submission to the Oireachtas Committee on Transport, members of the consortium called for urgent changes to rules governing accessible taxis, including tax reliefs to encourage drivers to opt for wheelchair-accessible vehicles

The committee heard the costs of setting up an accessible taxi were so prohibitive that there was a danger there would be a dearth of such taxis within a few years, particularly in rural areas, instead of targets being met.

Michael Doyle of the Irish Wheelchair Association called for tax relief up to a maximum of €15,875 for operators purchasing wheelchair-accessible vehicles.

He said public contracts such as health service contracts for patient transport should only be awarded to accessible taxi owners – and he asked that the reduced licence fee, €125 as opposed to €6,300, be retained for accessible vehicles. Tony Maher of the consortium told the committee that take-up of wheelchair-accessible licences was so low that in some rural areas, they were virtually non-existent. He said in Tipperary there were just four such taxis, while in Cavan and Monaghan there were about 10 to 12. They could find none in Clare.

Fine Gael TD Frank Feighan, who supports the group, called for a meeting with the Minister for Finance before the budget.

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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin

Protesting taxi driver group aims to choke city traffic


Noel Dempsey: Taxi Drivers for Change were not invited to meeting


PROTEST GROUP Taxi Drivers for Change is planning to disrupt Dublin city traffic for up to six hours tomorrow in its latest demonstration against the number of taxis in the capital.

The group claims that up to 3,000 drivers will travel in two separate convoys from the Liffey Valley shopping centre in Clondalkin and the Airside retail park in Swords to the Commission for Taxi Regulation on Fitzwilliam Square, where a meeting of the commission’s advisory council will be taking place.

The convoy is due to start at 8am and finish outside the regulator’s office at 2pm, which could bring traffic from the north and west of the city to a standstill throughout the morning rush hour. The group is asking drivers not taking part in the protest to stop working from 8am to 2pm in a gesture of solidarity.

This will be the group’s seventh protest in recent weeks and is expected to cause the most disruption, according to Jim Waldron, one of the group’s founders. Drivers’ anger had increased following an economic review of the industry carried out by Goodbody Economic Consultants on behalf of the Taxi Regulator. It recommended there should be no moratorium on the issuing of licences, Mr Waldron said.

Taxi driver unions last week met with Minister for Transport Noel Dempsey to discuss the report, but Taxi Drivers for Change, which is not a union, was not invited. The group is also without representation on the advisory council to the regulator. The Irish Taxi Drivers’ Federation, trade union Siptu, the National Private Hire and Taxi Association, the National Chauffeur Driver Association, the National Taxi Drivers’ Union and the Taxi Company Owners’ Association are members of the council which will meet tomorrow.

In a statement yesterday, the commission urged the protesting drivers not to prevent others from working and not to disrupt traffic.

“The commission recognises the right of members of the industry to express their views. It cannot, however, condone any action which causes inconvenience to potential customers or other road-users. It would also expect those taking action to respect the right of drivers who wish to continue to work.”

The Garda is not expecting 3,000 drivers to take part in the protest and estimate the figure is likely to be about 1,000.

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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin

I'd like to see the Garda had underestimated the figures but only time will tell.



I can't help but think that every member of the above group would benefit financially from having more drivers on the road with the exception of the Chauffeur Driver Association

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Note to self: Just because it pops into my head does NOT mean it should come out of my mouth!!

Maybe they are run by the members?

CC

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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin

Fahey rejects findings of report on taxi industry

COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORT: THE RECENT Goodbody review of the taxi industry was rejected by members of the Oireachtas Committee on Transport yesterday, with committee chairman Frank Fahey telling the report’s author to “go away and rewrite it”.

Mr Fahey said he did not accept the “methodology” of the report which found that deregulation and market forces were achieving a balance between supply, demand and economic viability in the industry.

Nor did he believe the report had properly addressed critical issues including taxi sharing by drivers, fraudulent licences, the livelihoods of drivers and the issue of a moratorium on new licences.

Mr Fahey expressed particular concern that the report’s author Brendan Feeney was unable to tell the committee how many public service vehicle licences had been issued, but, he said, was able to draw conclusions including conclusions about drivers’ incomes.

“One of the problems is the huge numbers of drivers driving one car and no proper control,” he said. He maintained illegality was “almost impossible to detect” and told Mr Feeney: “I cannot accept the conclusions.”

He said two years’ work on the part of the committee were at variance with the Goodbody report. Mr Fahey said the committee now saw a situation “where people in the taxi industry cannot earn even a minimum wage”, which was preventing the introduction of the higher standards required by all.

To this end the committee had supported a call for a moratorium on the issuing of new licences.

Addressing taxi regulator Kathleen Doyle, Mr Fahey expressed doubt she was given the resources to regulate the industry properly. He said there were just nine enforcement officers available and when one arrived at taxi ranks in Galway, “about half the taxis disappear from the rank”.

Labour TD Tommy Broughan said “we don’t have regulation of any kind” and added “nine people to regulate 30,000 [taxi drivers]. It seems ridiculous.”

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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin

Are the 30,000 in all of Ireland or just one place in Ireland

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Note to self: Just because it pops into my head does NOT mean it should come out of my mouth!!

Just sefton

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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin

Theyre all on Craggy Island of Father Ted fame..heres the proof:

FFS you just can't get a sensible answer when you want one

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Note to self: Just because it pops into my head does NOT mean it should come out of my mouth!!

Sorreeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee...but it was me

anyway...try the link on the taxi door..hic!

http://www.feckinwhiskey.com/

Thanks but I don't do whiskey. In fact I can't do anything more than a small glass of wine

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Note to self: Just because it pops into my head does NOT mean it should come out of my mouth!!

And I dont do whiskey either...not even a glass of wine..I scunnered myself on the real stuff several years ago..