Become an INDEPENDENT Taxi Driver (how to)

[Theoneandonly]

I've been reading over the posts recently both here and on social media and notice a lot of complaining about the taxi apps, fixed prices and charges being the main source of contention.
Unfortunately there is sweet fuck all anyone can do to stop them.
You however do not have to participate, you can free yourself from the need to use the apps, not overnight but certainly over a relatively short period.
You need to build up a group of personal customers who offer you some repeat business
1- The largest independent taxi grouping at present are the Keshies they pay whatever yearly to the DAA and are probably guaranteed 5 meaty jobs every day? (€200 per day?)  join them if you can. Mind you they are currently in the sights of the App companies who are targeting their business with gusto.
2- STEAL, Talk to your app company customers find out if they use the service daily at the same time, ask if they get a taxi back home in the evening, offer to cover at the same price the app company gives you (20%-30%) less than the customer pays the APP (I know it's a discounted rate but you get repeated business and if you are any good you will get him/her going on holidays and business trips to the airport and word of mouth referrals) 4 or 5 of these and you are on your way.
3 - Find a Niche , I do fixed fares to and from the Airport, started to get worried when I saw some of the prices quoted on here but then realised that's not what the customers are paying and relaxed a little) I also do discounted long distance job and recently targeted folk going to expensive resort hotels and castles (reckon if they can afford to pay their rates they can afford a taxi down .....and they can!! Other possible targets include golfers, large multi nationals shopping centres , (a website offering deals would be useful here
4 School runs, I don't do these myself but know a few that do and they tell me that HSE are crying out for taxis to cover this work. just keep an eye out and tender when the time comes.
5 - get online, wordpress is a simple (free) easy way to make a website and offer multiple (often free) plugins for forms and booking systems, just play with it for a while and you'll be surprised what you can achieve.
I'm sure those on here who are tech hobbyists would be more than happy to help those that need it, those of you that know me are more than welcome to reach out and I'll help if I can.
To end I feel certain that the only way to free yourselves from the app companies is to do just that, they aren't going away'
I'd like to say Tap a Taxi is the answer but I remember a time when Halo actually had a bit of a halo, not sure I'd get sucked in again, anyway strangely enough it's the PPJ option that suits me better than the weekly one considering how rarely I need  a dispatcher offer.
See yiz about

[mercenary for hire]

The best thing about this job is the ability to come and go as I please. The last thing I want is someone trying to book me when I'm not available or on holiday.

The only independent drivers are the ones who work when they want.Aiprort work is overrated IMO. The lads that cover it never seem to factor in their dead milage and wasted time hanging around.

[Rat Catcher]

Good advice but a lot of the men on here are very much tied to the meter. The mentality you're up against, at least to some extent, is that they'd prefer take €28.80/38 mins and pay 10-15% commission on it than to take €60 or €70 in the same time... provided the arbitrary figure thrown up by a Dublin centric meter assures them that €28.80 is the maximum they are permitted to charge by law for that 38 mins work.

I don't consider boxing off work from the multinationals to be stealing. You're self-employed, if you can offer the client a better deal and/or a better quality or more reliable service do so. The problem, to date, is that Uber heavily subsidises it's fares making it impossible to beat them on price but, as suggested, it's not all about what the price might be. If the client likes you and trusts you and you can get away from the meter with a consistent fare for a regular journey they mightn't be too bothered if that's a few euros above what Uber might charge... although Uber's prices do go up and down with discounts varying between 10% and 30+% from week to week depending on how it wants to manipulate demand on any given week in question.

IMO, Tap is a no brainer for any full time driver. Having a fixed base fee is advantageous insofar as it discourages the part-time scum and, coupled with the affiliation to a co-operative society, ought to encourage men to make it their first choice when all the apps are busy (as I believe still happens from time to time up above in Dublin) as there's no incremental cost involved in covering a job. In my case I happily do far longer run ins that I would for the commercial apps even though I know I'm not maximising takings... being a shareholder give you a sense that the co-ops clients are your clients whereas clients of commercial firms are not your clients.

[Theoneandonly]

The best thing about this job is the ability to come and go as I please. The last thing I want is someone trying to book me when I'm not available or on holiday.

The only independent drivers are the ones who work when they want.Aiprort work is overrated IMO. The lads that cover it never seem to factor in their dead milage and wasted time hanging around.

A typical Taxi driver response one I used when i was a Boss taxi driver like yourself and one I use from time to time now/
However typical taxi drivers start at the same time every day finish at the same time or when /if a target is reached and hang around the same area / hotel or whatever
I get the not wanting to be contacted by folk at all hours or for people to expect you to be at their beck and call. this is something that can be overcome.
I for example only accept bookings from the booking engine on my site which is only available for specific hours and days ( I admit there are one or two old customers who text me (No calls) but they know my routine)
It's nice to know today what you are doing tomorrow, or last week having a good idea what your doing next week, that makes your free time knowable and plannable .
Also it's nice to sit at home or wherever without the app on between jobs.
Some drivers I know pick the same job from The APPS prebooks to start them off every day. or pick one at the time or in the area that they like to start the day.

If you do generate enough work yourself you can pass on work to other drivers when double booked or when you need time off. customers also are happy enough if you let them know in advance that you cannot cover a job

I do not agree however that you are in any way independent if you are relying on apps to generate your income, or having to strive for whatever colour badge in order to see decent work or covering your car in their livery thereby supporting the very idea the posters seem to be raging about.
Carry on though. I get it .... I was that soldier.

[mercenary for hire]

Those longer jobs that pay well aren't consistent enough to build a wage from.You need some of PA behind the scenes to juggle all the jobs.You'd be bouncing all over the map trying to keep clients happy.Eh no thanks.You can't be in two places at the one time especially as the traffic is so unbelievably shite.

There's plenty of lads from the Kesh who gave their passes back and are on the ranks BTW.

Next you'll be telling us we'd be better off driving a bus or a truck.I coudmt imagine a worse type of hell.

There's a good reason we're driving taxis and it's nothing to do with being thick cunts.

Oh sorry just seen your reply..

There's a hand full of serial moany bastards on here.It's not an accurate sample though.The rest are getting on with it making money covering the discounts.The economy is still ok for now.

The whole build you own business thing doesn't make you more independent if you're constantly answering emails and texts.You already has a taxi business and you made it more complicated.I can sleep well tonight not caring about where I'm supposed to get to a 5am.... probably cause I don't start until lunchtime some days.

Sounds a lot like a real job to me.Why would I want that?

[Theoneandonly]

Good advice but a lot of the men on here are very much tied to the meter. The mentality you're up against, at least to some extent, is that they'd prefer take €28.80/38 mins and pay 10-15% commission on it than to take €60 or €70 in the same time... provided the arbitrary figure thrown up by a Dublin centric meter assures them that €28.80 is the maximum they are permitted to charge by law for that 38 mins work.

I don't consider boxing off work from the multinationals to be stealing. You're self-employed, if you can offer the client a better deal and/or a better quality or more reliable service do so. The problem, to date, is that Uber heavily subsidises it's fares making it impossible to beat them on price but, as suggested, it's not all about what the price might be. If the client likes you and trusts you and you can get away from the meter with a consistent fare for a regular journey they mightn't be too bothered if that's a few euros above what Uber might charge... although Uber's prices do go up and down with discounts varying between 10% and 30+% from week to week depending on how it wants to manipulate demand on any given week in question.

IMO, Tap is a no brainer for any full time driver. Having a fixed base fee is advantageous insofar as it discourages the part-time scum and, coupled with the affiliation to a co-operative society, ought to encourage men to make it their first choice when all the apps are busy (as I believe still happens from time to time up above in Dublin) as there's no incremental cost involved in covering a job. In my case I happily do far longer run ins that I would for the commercial apps even though I know I'm not maximising takings... being a shareholder give you a sense that the co-ops clients are your clients whereas clients of commercial firms are not your clients.

I would love to support Tap a Taxi but could not justify the freight for possibly one or two jobs a month.
Earnings per hour is what motivates me, dead miles don't bother me, I ate them up in the "good" old days cruising around or racing back to nuts corner.
I reckon most still drive back from a drop to where the work is 

[Theoneandonly]

Those longer jobs that pay well aren't consistent enough to build a wage from.You need some of PA behind the scenes to juggle all the jobs.You'd be bouncing all over the map trying to keep clients happy.Eh no thanks.You can't be in two places at the one time especially as the traffic is so unbelievably shite.

There's plenty of lads from the Kesh who gave their passes back and are on the ranks BTW.

Next you'll be telling us we'd be better off driving a bus or a truck.I coudmt imagine a worse type of hell.

There's a good reason we're driving taxis and it's nothing to do with being thick cunts.

I'm surprised at just how consistent long jobs can be, I launched my "hotel and castle transfer page" last August https://irishtaxi.org/hotel-transfers/ (shit I need to rethink that background colour) and  have been to Dromoland castle twice and have lost count how many times I've been to Kilkea (they added me to their suggested methods of how to get there) I've also given a number of similar jobs away because the timingd did't suit or was double booked(one to Bantry at 7pm at night) very very easy to dispose of these jobs) actually there was one this morning from Carlow (cars in for a servive hence I'm a keyboard warrior for the day)

[Theoneandonly]

Those longer jobs that pay well aren't consistent enough to build a wage from.You need some of PA behind the scenes to juggle all the jobs.You'd be bouncing all over the map trying to keep clients happy.Eh no thanks.You can't be in two places at the one time especially as the traffic is so unbelievably shite.

There's plenty of lads from the Kesh who gave their passes back and are on the ranks BTW.

Next you'll be telling us we'd be better off driving a bus or a truck.I coudmt imagine a worse type of hell.

There's a good reason we're driving taxis and it's nothing to do with being thick cunts.

Oh sorry just seen your reply..

There's a hand full of serial moany bastards on here.It's not an accurate sample though.The rest are getting on with it making money covering the discounts.The economy is still ok for now.

The whole build you own business thing doesn't make you more independent if you're constantly answering emails and texts.You already has a taxi business and you made it more complicated.I can sleep well tonight not caring about where I'm supposed to get to a 5am.... probably cause I don't start until lunchtime some days.

Sounds a lot like a real job to me.Why would I want that?

Actually you are correct, the administration is a pain, I am constantly replying to bookings whether it be sorry texts or confirmations and it can eat into the "free" time. I don't really know the answer to this problem (yet) considering "office hours" for bookings but feel I'd be kicking myself in the arse.
However if you want to start at lunchtime and finish at 2pm and you know where the work is you can capture more of it for yourself and your mates and cut out the APPs,

[Taxi driver42]

The jobs fuvked
More changes coming

[Rat Catcher]

I do derive some satisfaction from minimising battery usage as a % of takings. Using precisely 33% of my battery on a shift makes me very happy as that's pretty much what I can replenish on my EV rate from 02:00-05:00!

Obviously, working up above in Dublin when one gets a job dropping there is beneficial in that respect as we use very little power crawling around in traffic but then there's the frustration of how little the meter values time in traffic... so, on balance, the less thought one puts into it the better, probably... just try to derive satisfaction from one thing or the other i.e. achieving a reasonable hourly wage or using fuckall battery... which are generally mutually exclusive outcomes.

Maybe next time you have time to waste on tinternet you could share your experience with running the ID4 over longer shifts in kilometreage terms e.g. your charging policy, battery depletion rate if known, etc...

[Rat Catcher]

The jobs fuvked
More changes coming

Blokes who got post entry regulation plates are in a great position to get out. Help wanted ads are at a record high so, even for those with no merchantable skills, getting another job will never be easier. Plates are achieving up to €5,000/year on the rental market so you will recoup your investment with a very healthy return within two years and there doesn't seem to be any slowdown in men wanting to join the trade as evident in both the record plate rental prices and the fact that recent lotteries for WAV subsidies have been hugely oversubscribed.

On the latter, it's a shame NTA are allowed run lotteries - although, to be frank (as clearly illustrated through their shambolic administration of the 2026 EV subsidy scheme) NTA oughtn't be allowed run anything more complex than a bath.

If they want to attract younger men there ought to be a system in place to allocate grant aided WAV plates based on the number of years experience the men have driving a rented taxi, particularly given that NTA recommends the rental market to new entrants. We had a points based system prior to entry liberalisation which was known as Bertie's Forum and, back then, allocated NON-SUBSIDISED WAV plates to cosies. Of course, such a system would eliminate brown envelopes from the equation which is unlikely to find favour with the establisment.

[Taxi driver42]

Looking at renting plate next yr
Take a yr or 2 off to try small building jobs again
Could never work for someone again as in help ads u say are everywhere
There will be a Slowdown next yr
Also im 57  next yr too so I should slow down
Uber fucked us over and the rest of the world too its not just here

Italy started fixed fares but the fix at MAXIMUM not minimum as here
Anyway few months till Christmas see the recession after that I think
Ur right rats we did well and can rent plate so le it go
Don't think the government will step in no matter what we do
Tap a taxi may work slightly but dublin a tourist town now anyone arrives they have own apps ie uber freenow lyft

[Octavia1]

I dont understand blokes sayin taps 120 a month is steep ...  especially wen ther paying way more than that to uber, bolt and lyft in commission and fare reductions   a month ....... I made almost 120  the other morning on tap   in a few hours  the rest o the month is all mine ... full meted fares .... also you need to factor in tips which yu wont get  on uber . if yur doing fixed fares on uber yuo not only dont get  the full metered fare or tips ....  but youll be setting yurself up for  even more reduction in yur % of  commission you pay in future as they turn the screw .
I havnt done the figures but im pretty sure    yur tips  for the month  will pay for yur  contribution to tap ....or at least pay a goid ammount of it .

All that falls  becomes insignificant  wen you think about wer uber is going to take  ther eating into yur entitlement.... you already got a taste of it in the quiet weeks in the summer wen apparently/ alledgedly  wen it was quiet the " fixed fares  payed out significantly less as blokes wer saying on here...
If ther is a downturn as 42 sez .... wat do yu think is going to happen to fixed fares ?  Uber will take more off of desperate drivers
....  . total  unlimited exploitation and extortion...
The strange part is that drivers dont have to take it ... they have a choice ... the fact they continue to  promote ther own slave  labour and fuck it up for themselves  is way beyond my comprehension.... I can only describe them as absolutely  fukin brain dead  . 
One more point ... im still getting newbies on tap ... they want this service ... lot them are dead wide to uber and corporate America... in fact they seem more aware  of wer it cud  go than the brain dead drivers  who continue to crawl down the dead end shoite pipe ... not only are these idiots fuking it up for all drivers  but ther fuking it up for the public .....


 

[Rat Catcher]

I tend to agree that Govt. won't step in. We have lots of unions but, frankly, there's barely a brain cell between them. The argument against Uber is quite simply that it's market manipulation is anti-competitive.

[Octavia1]

I tend to agree that Govt. won't step in. We have lots of unions but, frankly, there's barely a brain cell between them. The argument against Uber is quite simply that it's market manipulation is anti-competitive.

The " govmnt "   already said its ou ther hands rat as yu kno  ..... shame on them ... ther so sick wit  ineptitude an corruption ...its up to drivers   now to save themselves...for that reason  its not looking good but the only hope I see is  a driver run app / apps .


BTW  is that  Roy?  Hav ta say his site was so much better than yurs rat ... he had much more emoji tings  for blokes illiterat an had dissslexia an who are  on the spectrum  an suchlike to express themselves ....