DRIVER SHORTAGES
PASSENGERS NOW WAITING 61% LONGER FOR TAXIS AS A DRIVER SHORTAGE PLACES STRAIN ON OPERATORS
Operators respond to new research that reveals 26% of British taxi users have missed or arrived late to a medical appointment and 72% have walked home alone from a night out due to the ongoing driver shortage.
Almost 70% of regular taxi users have struggled or completely failed in their attempt to book a taxi since December 2021 as a major driver shortage continues to impact operators across the UK.
This is according to new research commissioned by taxi technology company Autocab which reveals that almost three quarters (72%) of taxi users missed or were late for an important event due to the lack of availability – includ- ing more than a quarter (26%) who were trying to attend a medical appointment.
As a result of the shortage, passengers are now waiting 61% longer for a taxi to arrive and nearly nine in ten of those surveyed (89%) said they have needed to try several firms to secure rides. Alarmingly, 72% of passengers said they had to walk home alone from an evening out because they couldn’t take a taxi. Close to 60% said they have felt unsafe due to not being able to book a ride, and 43% admitted they are now worried about being stuck out late at night due to fears they won’t be able to get a taxi home.
IMPACT ON OPERATORS OPERATORS REMAIN OPTIMISTIC
The UK’s chronic shortage of taxi drivers was brought on when thousands left the profession due to plummeting job numbers during the pandemic. According to Autocab’s figures, private hire and taxi operators who are signed up to the iGo Network – which provides trips to drivers across the UK – have seen driver numbers drop by as much as 25% despite passenger job numbers returning to pre-Covid levels.
Safa Alkateb, CEO of Autocab, told PHTM: “The driver shortage is a big problem in the UK right now – not only for passengers, but for operators too. The reality is that the national fleet we serve is more than 20,000 drivers down right now, and there is no quick fix. As the country re-opens, the shortage will only become more noticeable,
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Despite the circumstances, many operators have remained optimistic and continue to innovate in response to the shortage. Amjid Javaid told PHTM: “As with all operators, the shortage has had a significant impact on us, but it has also led to great innovation.
The establishment of our own Driver Academy, for example, eliminates any apprehension candidates may have regarding the application process because we man- age it for them – making it easier to get new drivers out on the road. The Driver Academy costs £400 and is open to all new drivers applying. Once a driver completes 500 jobs for the group, the fee is fully refunded.”
MARCH 2022
placing even more strain on operators to meet the dis-proportionate demand.
“We know the operators we work with are doing every- thing they can to attract new drivers – including their own recruitment campaigns and initiatives – but it will take time.
“Today, they face new barriers to recruitment and reten- tion of their existing fleets – including HMRC tax checks and Clean Air Zone charges for drivers. These are barriers created by central government and local authorities, and while they serve an important purpose, they remain barriers at a time of crisis.”
When asked what support is needed from local authori- ties, Amjid Javaid, Director of DG Cars, told PHTM: “We understand that local authorities are under considerable financial and staffing pressures as many services begin to re-open, but the process of drivers obtaining a private hire licence must be streamlined. The current wait time is circa six weeks for a new licence and if we want more drivers on the road that must drop to four weeks as a maximum.”
Safa added: “Our industry clearly needs support now more than ever from local authorities – the bodies responsible for ensuring people have access to taxi trans- portation – to resolve this recruitment crisis.”
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