Letter to NTA, Tariff 3.

[Rat Catcher]

The taxi fares are fucking ridiculous a fare in Galway that used to cost from the square to lurgan pk/murrough drive used to cost max with the 18 with worst traffic but its gone to over 24 euro according to my mother the taxi she took from big o on the rank the guy wouldn't go through renmore pk he stuck to the main road all the way in a traffic jam to get there. Those fuckers are giving the taxis who will look for the best route a bad name. My mother now is on bus only from now on. Another taxi customer lost.

The removal of Hackneys from rural areas is a problem, no doubt about that. Trade like bringing your mother and many others on regular runs at reasonable rates is being lost. Back in the good old days you wouldn't see a taxi beyond Dublin Airport and even when they arrived following entry liberalisation it took a number of years to replace budget friendly fixed fares with relatively extortionate metered rates. Essentially we're charging city prices in every parish in the country.... not unlike a rural publican looking for €10+ for a pint of plain. Something has to give.

In recent years the apps have made up the difference giving substantial discounts out of their pockets to obtain dominant positions in the market. All very well for the young computer literate hipsters but not much use to the older lady who just wants to ring her local firm or driver... and all very well until the discounts are withdrawn or have to be covered by drivers... drivers who don't remember when a €3 local was €3... drivers who are put under extreme financial pressure with all the new rules - essentially artificial barriers to entry/participation - introduced by a bunch of penpushers in NTA who couldn't give a flying fuck about the poor old bachelor stuck on his isolated farm without any chance of social intercourse from one end of the year to the other.

[mercenary for hire]

Can we be sure that it's tariff 3 effect and not just more drivers working later nights since the slow down in taxi business and in the wider economy.Tourism was down 10% last year which is huge and most pubs are empty during the week from what I have seen.

When there are fewer taxi jobs it seems like there are always enough empty taxis floating around.
Business doesnt always slow overnight ,it can be a gradual thing that's been happening for months and the recent higher fares may well have been disguising lower passenger numbers in our earnings.

The data that Uber and Freenow have may well have flagged lower demand and that's why they're trying to bend us over with fixed fare discounts.

Doomed we are.

[Bob Shillin]

Weekday night work has slowed considerably since I started back in mid June. All was good before I went away for 5 weeks at the start of May.

[Rat Catcher]

Bollix... I was gonna do a bit of that this week and next week to try to compensate for taking the weekends off!

To be fair last night c.18:30-c.00:00 wasn't a disaster... apart from finishing in fucking Neilstown... for the 2nd night in a row... except the M50 entry lane was closed last night so I went through the city.... and got fuckall that I wanted off either Uber or Free Now the whole way home.

[Belker]

Weekday night work has slowed considerably since I started back in mid June. All was good before I went away for 5 weeks at the start of May.

I have found the mid week game (especially Mon/Tues/Wed) to be very poor since 1st Jan this year, hence I now focus most of my working hours on long weekend shifts.

P.S. Thanks to all that contributed on the Tariff 3 issue, I have edited my letter to the NTA after reading your responces.
 

[Rat Catcher]

Indeed. I've ended up with 42.06+% of my eggs in the Saturday basket for the last 3 weeks, not to mention Sunday afternoons which means no wine with one's Sunday luncheon. I doubt many clients appreciate the sacrifices we make. Alas, weekends probably aren't an option for the next couple of weeks.

[Belker]

Indeed. I've ended up with 42.06+% of my eggs in the Saturday basket for the last 3 weeks, not to mention Sunday afternoons which means no wine with one's Sunday luncheon. I doubt many clients appreciate the sacrifices we make. Alas, weekends probably aren't an option for the next couple of weeks.

The Office parties will kick off the weekend after next (21st Nov) and will keep us night drivers busy on weekends untill the absolute mayhem kicks in fer 2 weeks straight on 19th Dec.

[Dr. Martin Gooter Bling]

i fuckinnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn hate christmas.
i fuckinnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn hate when i hear a cunt say "Stevensiz Day" instead of Stephen's Day.

[Rat Catcher]

Indeed. Sounds horrendous, Ken. I generally don't work much, if at all, in December but as I have to buy a car that I don't want or need early next year I reckon I'm gonna have to pitch in.

I won't do Christmas day though and I doubt I'll work Boxing day.

[Jack Meoff]

Think they should be a tarrif 3 between 6am and 8am.
Big shortage of taxis at that time

[taxi1990]

The taxi fares are fucking ridiculous a fare in Galway that used to cost from the square to lurgan pk/murrough drive used to cost max with the 18 with worst traffic but its gone to over 24 euro according to my mother the taxi she took from big o on the rank the guy wouldn't go through renmore pk he stuck to the main road all the way in a traffic jam to get there. Those fuckers are giving the taxis who will look for the best route a bad name. My mother now is on bus only from now on. Another taxi customer lost.

The removal of Hackneys from rural areas is a problem, no doubt about that. Trade like bringing your mother and many others on regular runs at reasonable rates is being lost. Back in the good old days you wouldn't see a taxi beyond Dublin Airport and even when they arrived following entry liberalisation it took a number of years to replace budget friendly fixed fares with relatively extortionate metered rates. Essentially we're charging city prices in every parish in the country.... not unlike a rural publican looking for €10+ for a pint of plain. Something has to give.

In recent years the apps have made up the difference giving substantial discounts out of their pockets to obtain dominant positions in the market. All very well for the young computer literate hipsters but not much use to the older lady who just wants to ring her local firm or driver... and all very well until the discounts are withdrawn or have to be covered by drivers... drivers who don't remember when a €3 local was €3... drivers who are put under extreme financial pressure with all the new rules - essentially artificial barriers to entry/participation - introduced by a bunch of penpushers in NTA who couldn't give a flying fuck about the poor old bachelor stuck on his isolated farm without any chance of social intercourse from one end of the year to the other.

All the taxis and hackneys where I work charge regular customers fixed rates, 7 to 10 euro for short trips and everything else discounted. Strangers pay the full metered fare for all short trips. There is no bachelors stranded because taxis are too expensive.

I havent worked a night since june bank holiday weekend, I will do a few of the busy nights at Christmas, have to get my camera installed though, I wouldnt work a night without it. Then im going to charge all the drunks every last cent of the metered fare because I know them dickheads who are out drinking hate us and think we are all ripping them off, going by online comments im seeing lately. 

[John m]

1990 you sound like a right fucking no good prick .Complaining about illegals then  Then you say "All the taxis and hackneys where I work charge regular customers fixed rates, 7 to 10 euro for short trips and everything else discounted. Strangers pay the full metered fare for all short trips. Then you say " Then im going to charge all the drunks every last cent of the metered fare because I know them dickheads who are out drinking hate us and think we are all ripping them off, going by online comments im seeing lately. "

Your own words .You do not respect the industry giving Discounts but you consider Service users who have also created work for local bar workers as Dickheads .Its DICKHEARD like yourself who undermine this industry .Any body west of the Shannon with the exception of Galway Should be fucked out of this industry undermining it for everybody else .

ALL YOUR OWN WORDS YOU USELESS CAN OF PISS .

[Belker]

Final draft of letter sent to NTA;


To whom it may concern at the NTA.
From Kenxxxx xxxxxxx, Cork city night time taxi driver, Badge number xxxx.

Firstly congratulations to whomever at the NTA solved the almost unsolveable age old problem of taxi shortages in Irish cities on weekend nights by introducing the Weekend Tariff 3, Take a Bow !  It was brilliant and works perfectly.

But unfortunately ye missed a spot, that being the Sunday night/Monday morning midnight to 4am of Bank holiday weekends to also include 17th and 18th March, which hopefully Tariff 3 will be applied to during the next fare review.

Taxi drivers in general are creatures of habit and very set in their routines, and a lot of them especially those that live outside the cities will not work any Sunday night regardless if it's a Bank holiday weekend or not. Tariff 3 on those very busy nights mentioned above might change their minds.

Best, Ken.

[Belker]

To mention, I did not send that letter to 'Feather my own Nest', but instead fer the betterment of the whole Taxi community to include Drivers and more importantly Customers whom still get stranded looking fer a Taxi on the nights mentioned above.

[taxi1990]

1990 you sound like a right fucking no good prick .Complaining about illegals then  Then you say "All the taxis and hackneys where I work charge regular customers fixed rates, 7 to 10 euro for short trips and everything else discounted. Strangers pay the full metered fare for all short trips. Then you say " Then im going to charge all the drunks every last cent of the metered fare because I know them dickheads who are out drinking hate us and think we are all ripping them off, going by online comments im seeing lately. "

Your own words .You do not respect the industry giving Discounts but you consider Service users who have also created work for local bar workers as Dickheads .Its DICKHEARD like yourself who undermine this industry .Any body west of the Shannon with the exception of Galway Should be fucked out of this industry undermining it for everybody else .

ALL YOUR OWN WORDS YOU USELESS CAN OF PISS .

  That is rich coming from you as you work for the app companies, so you are undermining all taxi drivers in the Country but you don't care as you are near retirement age.

Because we charge fixed rates for regulars, its actually why we can compete with the illegals in general and only lose mostly the dregs of the town.

I just have always had an issue with drunks while working, they are all that is wrong with Irish society and they are the reason most taxi drivers hate working nights and I wont apologise for that.