WORLDWIDE TAXI FOCUS from Saudi Arabia
80 NEW WOMEN CABBIES EMPLYED AS CABBIES AT 4 MAJOR AIRPORTS
Over 80 female taxi drivers will soon be employed in the four main airports of Saudi Arabia: King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh; King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah; King Fahd International Airpor in Dammam; and Prince Muhammad International Airport in Medina. This is part of the “Woman’s Track” phase of an initiative launched by Saudi Arabia’s
Transport
General Authority (TGA) and the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development (MHRSD) to empower women in the transport industry. The TGA will sign three agreements with major companies licensed to operate airport taxis to employ these women drivers. The second phase of the initiative will expand to include all other airports in the Kingdom. The initiative includes collaboration with a specialised driving centre to develop a training programme for acquiring basic skills in driving cabs, as well as soft skills such as customer service, decorum, first aid, and English language. The Tawteen Program-2 will provide support to empower national cadres and improve the experience of visitors and travellers. The TGA is committed to supporting job creation and promoting the role of women in Saudisation programmes in the transport sector to promote GDP growth. The authority and the MRHSD aim to localise jobs in the transport and logistics sector, with this initiative being one of several nationalisation initiatives to
empowerment of women in various fields. from Ireland
SHARP DROP IN NUMBER OF IRISH CABBIES WORKING NIGHTS
There has been a sharp decrease in the number of taxi drivers working evenings and nights over the past year, according to the results of a new survey.
PHTM APRIL 2023 support the
Research on the taxi industry commissioned by the National Transport Authority (NTA) shows just 50% of licence holders reported working 6-8pm at the end of 2022, compared to 59% at the start of the year. While almost 60% of taxi drivers operated between 8pm and midnight in early 2002, less than half were working during the same period by September / October. The fall-off was even more pronounced after midnight with only 38% of taxi drivers stating they worked between 12 midnight and 4am at the end of 2022 – down from 51% in February last year. The situation was even more acute in Dublin where just 35% of taxi drivers in the city said they worked in the hours after midnight. The results mirror complaints from the public over the past year about difficulties in getting taxis in major cities and towns at night-time. The findings are part of new research published by the NTA on the taxi industry which conducted surveys among almost 670 drivers plus over 1,000 consumers last September/October. More than 80% of taxi drivers who currently do not work in the hours after midnight said they had given up working nights including 21% who had ceased night-time shifts in the past three years. Almost half (48%) cited concerns about their personal safety as the reason for stopping working nights, while 23% said it was for their personal health and 13% said it was not financially worthwhile. Asked what might encourage them to work nights, 31% of taxi drivers said nothing would persuade them to work night shifts. Almost one in five drivers said working such hours was too dangerous but they might consider it if there was better safety and a greater garda presence on the streets, while 8% said they would work nights for the opportunity to earn more money. The latest Irish National Private Hire and Taxi Association survey shows a predominantly older profile among taxi drivers with almost three-quarters of all licence holders in Ireland aged over 50 years with just 6% under the age of 30. The NTA said a total of 1,219 new licences had been issued in the 12 months to the end of January – more than double the number granted over the previous 12- month period, of which almost two-thirds were for Dublin. A NTA spokesperson said an increase in the level of new applications seemed to coincide with the launch of its recruitment campaign last summer.
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