The number of taxis operating in the Dublin region will double to almost 6,000 by May 2000 in a new licensing regime approved by the Government. The decision is a compromise between the Government parties, with the Progressive Democrats favouring greater liberalisation.
There had been significant opposition by several Fianna Fail backbenchers in Dublin to the issuing of new licences. ail backbenchers in Dublin. The PD Minister of State, Mr Robert Molloy, accepted that if the Government had implemented his party's philosophy then the entire taxi market would have been deregulated.
Under the new arrangements, one new licence will be offered to each person who currently owns one of the 2,700 taxi licences in the city. An additional 500 will be made available for existing drivers, the so-called "cosies", who do not own the licence for the car they drive.
Some 500 new licences will be allocated for wheelchair-accessible taxis, with the balance for ordinary licences. There will be a fee of £2,500 for the ordinary licences with a reduced £500 fee for the wheelchair-accessible taxis in recognition of the more costly investment. The licences for wheelchair-accessible taxis will be determined by lottery. The new licences will bring the total number in Dublin to more than 5,800. Existing licence-holders must apply for their second licence by the end of January, with the licences being processed by May.
To ensure this latest attempt to address Dublin's taxi problem is implemented quickly, the Government will remove from local authorities the power to issue licences. Mr Molloy said that if the pace at which licences are currently issued continued, the present demand would not be met until 2008.
Groups representing Dublin taxi-drivers last night expressed their "shock" at the proposals. Despite their objections, however, Mr Molloy said the new arrangements had been introduced "in a way that is very friendly to existing taxi-licence holders".
Defending the Government's measure, he said that not only did the present inadequate taxi supply in Dublin risk harming the capital's reputation in the eyes of international business people, it also was a source of frustration to city residents.
While Fine Gael and Labour welcomed the decision, both criticised the delay in announcing the measures.
The Fine Gael spokeswoman on traffic, Ms Olivia Mitchell, said that because of Government inaction over the past couple of years it would be next Christmas before people in Dublin would see any benefit from the extra taxis. She said it had taken "public anger" to push ail and its the Government into action.
The Labour Party spokesman on public enterprise, Mr Emmet Stagg, said the Government could have increased the number of licences it proposed to issue.