Taxi Driver Online

A three-hour protest by taxi drivers is under way at several locations around the country.

Drivers have withdrawn services at some airports, bus and train stations.

In Dublin city centre, dozens of taxis are taking part in a go-slow protest.

AdvertisementThe drivers, members of the Irish Taxi Council, are also not taking passengers at the rank on O'Connell Street.

Drivers are calling for the full implementation of 11 recommendations contained in a report by the Oireachtas Committee for Transport last year.

Frank Byrne, a spokesman for the ITC, says the Council wants Transport Minister Noel Dempsey to introduce new legislation to put a three-year moratorium on the issuing of taxi licences.

It also wants extra rank spaces to be provided in the country's main cities, the practice of renting or leasing licences discontinued and wants insurance certificates to be checked in 'real time' to reduce the number of fraudulent ones.

The ITC says it has around 14,000 members across the country.

It gave notice of this protest last week and it is planning an all-out stoppage on Monday.

The protest in Dublin began at Parnell Square was to travel through O'Connell Street, D'Olier Street, College Green, Nassau Street, Kildare Street, Molesworth Street, Dawson Street, Suffolk Street, Dame Street, Westmoreland Street and back to O'Connell Street.

Traffic disruption was expected in Cork between 2pm and 3pm when the drivers planned to drive from Cork Airport through the city centre.

Taxi services at Cork Airport, Kent Railway Station and in the city centre were also expected to be affected.

A spokesman for the Department of Transport said 'this disruptive action is not the way forward'. He said progress on this can only be achieved through consultation and discussion.

Exactly what our lot say's....... They know we are divided up and down the land, so we get what they want.......

We get exactly what we ask for..... Strife, disfatisfaction, frustration, apathy, division and contention....

They are certainly keeping it going, Good for them


TAXI SERVICES around the country are likely to be curtailed on Monday when supporters of the Irish Taxi Council (ITC) withdraw services for 24 hours.

Separately, Siptu will today announce a resumption of a campaign on behalf of its taxi-driver members to include “strategically placed protest at various locations, transport hubs/taxi drivers’ places of work and effective limited withdrawals of service at strategic times”.

Small numbers of ITC drivers took part in a three-hour protest in Dublin and other cities yesterday which had only a minor impact on traffic. Fewer than 40 drivers staged a go-slow through Dublin during the protest and blocked a number of city centre ranks.

Services were withdrawn from Dublin and Cork airports, and train and bus stations.

The ITC said supporters also stopped work in Cork, Limerick, Carlow, Naas, Athlone, Mullingar, Westport and Ballina.

The ITC originally planned a major withdrawal of services yesterday but postponed its action until Monday because most politicians are out of the country for the St Patrick’s Day festivities.

Yesterday’s three-hour protest was billed as a “goodwill gesture” to forewarn politicians about the level of anger among taxi drivers.

One driver participating in the protest told The Irish Times that the intention was to block Luas lines and the Dublin Port tunnel during Monday’s protest. Successive cars would “break down” on the lines and in the tunnel, effectively forcing their closure.

However, ITC president Frank Byrne insisted next week’s stoppage would be peaceful and would not disrupt traffic. “If anyone wants to block roads, they’ll be doing it on their own.”

The ITC is a relatively new organisation which claims to represent the views of almost 15,000 taxi drivers. It is not subscription-based, and as such does not have members. It claims to be an umbrella group for 27 local associations.

The National Taxi-Drivers Union (NTDU) discouraged members from participating in yesterday’s action.

“We are in continuing dialogue with the taxi regulator through dialogue to achieve a satisfactory outcome for all,” read a text sent to members expressing opposition to the stoppage.

Meanwhile, Siptu is planning to resume a campaign for the establishment of an appeals process to decisions made by the taxi regulator and a ban on “double-jobbing” by part-time drivers.

The ITC is demanding new legislation that would put a three-year moratorium on the issuing of taxi licences. It also wants checks on insurance certificates in real time to expose fraudulent copies, and more stringent tests for licence applicants.

Other demands include proficiency in the Irish and/or English language.