Taxi Driver Online

Devine demands fares cap to end airport taxis 'rip-off'

AN MP is demanding action to cap Edinburgh Airport taxi fares after he was quoted nearly £50 for a 16-mile journey. Livingston MP Jim Devine needed a taxi from the airport to his home in Blackburn, West Lothian, but was appalled when he was told it would cost £49.

He pointed out that if he was taking a cab from his home to the airport the fare would only be about £20. The Labour backbencher said the "rip-off" fares could deter tourists from visiting the Capital.

He is to write to the Taxi Licensing Office of the city council demanding the fares are capped. He said: "I came back on Monday last week and asked for an airport taxi to take me to my home in Blackburn. I asked what the fare would be and they told me £49.

"I told them I was going to Blackburn in West Lothian, not Blackburn, Lancashire, and they agreed to knock £10 off. "But if I was going the other way from my home to the airport it would cost between £15 and £19.

"This is simply unacceptable. I think the airport taxi fares are nothing short of a rip-off. I can afford it but many of my constituents couldn't, and tourists coming to Edinburgh will be staggered at the fare. It might put many of them off coming back.

"This is not good news for local people or for the Scottish capital's tourism industry." Equivalent journeys around Scotland cost far less, the Evening News found.

A spokeswoman for Edinburgh Airport said it had no control of prices charged by taxis to and from the airport. Labour transport spokesman Ricky Henderson said customers were paying over the odds to get to and from Edinburgh Airport. He said: "The prices do seem to be higher than elsewhere.

"I think they have to be controlled rather than capped. Presumably the companies in association with the council set the rates, so they should be looked at. "It's in the interests of the taxi firms as well because if they keep going up people will just take public transport instead."

Conservative transport spokesman Mark McInnes said: "It is completely wrong that taxis from Edinburgh Airport travelling the same distance are more expensive than in Glasgow and Aberdeen.

"It is also wrong if any company is taking advantage of the fact people are at the airport." Taxis in Edinburgh are thought to be among the most expensive in the world. Recent studies have found that while the pick-up fee is relatively low, the mile-by-mile tariffs are high.

But city taxi driver Keith Bell said it wasn't within the council's jurisdiction to limit fares outside the city. He said: "The law clearly states that if a taxi is going outwith the council region - which it would be if it was going to West Lothian - it can charge whatever it likes.

"Why didn't Mr Devine arrange for a West Lothian cab to come and pick him up - supporting the business of one of his constituents in the process and getting himself a cheaper journey?"

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IDFIMH

I suppose it makes a change from the 'go get a bus' suggestions.

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IDFIMH

Either way, he seems to be saying that punters should avoid the airport taxis because they're a rip off.

Not good publicity for the trade.

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