TAXI DRIVERS HAVE called on the government to introduce a range of measures to support the industry as they deal with the ongoing effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Many of the drivers here today were off the road for months and say they now have about 20% of their normal business. Some of them, like Ishtiaq Ahmad, worked all night and came straight here. #taxiprotest pic.twitter.com/SVLAGb8BD5Tom McGeown, who has been a taxi driver in Dublin for 20 years, said drivers are facing “a lot of issues”. He was off the road for three and a half months and since he returned has only been getting about one-fifth of the work he did before the pandemic.
“When all other transport entities are in their beds, we’re driving people home. We need to be recognised a little bit more.”McGeown said proposals to ban taxis from using some bus lanes in Dublin at certain times “would absolutely kill our business that’s already dead”. Jackson said taxi drivers were here before many buses and the Luas but are the “ones to get pushed out” despite many people relying on them.