Dodgy Cabs Ltd.

dirtynosebeps

just saw an ad on t.v. prime times investigates will be doing a programme called dodgy cabs Ltd next mon at 21.35 on R.T.E.1 . it should make some interesting viewing and hopefully it will be a wake up call for the powers that be.

AlekSmart

At this stage,the "Authorities" have had so many wake up calls it simply makes this one another in a lonnnng list with about as much hope of achieving a result as those which have gone before.

It's noteworthy that since the arrival of THE Taxi Regulator we have seen little actual improvement in the nature of the Taxi service other than unregulated expansion of numbers.

dirtynosebeps

AlekSmart wrote: »

It's noteworthy that since the arrival of THE Taxi Regulator we have seen little actual improvement in the nature of the Taxi service other than unregulated expansion of numbers.

i thought there was some sort of agreement between the unions and regulator that there would be no new entrants into that game in exchange from the taxi drivers not to hold the cities to ransom.

Losty Dublin

dirtynosebeps wrote: »

i thought there was some sort of agreement between the unions and regulator that there would be no new entrants into that game in exchange from the taxi drivers not to hold the cities to ransom.

No such agreement existed or ever existed. Bad and all as the Taxi Regs office is, the unions wouldn't be able to plan a meal in a hotel such are their incompetence.

lost marbles

dirtynosebeps wrote: »

i thought there was some sort of agreement between the unions and regulator that there would be no new entrants into that game in exchange from the taxi drivers not to hold the cities to ransom.

those soo called "holding the city to ransom " protests were the genuine taxi drivers trying to voice their concerns as to what this programme will expose next monday .

Spook_ie

I for one will have the Skybox set, wonder if it'll just be a pissing in the wind exercise though. After all did we not promote all these problems to the powers that be, before they got out of hand, to no avail

AlekSmart

Spook_ie wrote: »

I for one will have the Skybox set, wonder if it'll just be a pissing in the wind exercise though. After all did we not promote all these problems to the powers that be, before they got out of hand, to no avail

I'd agree 100% with Spook here,oul Bobby Molloy has swanned off with a big fat pínsín,leaving as his legacy a steaming mountain of impossible to regulate Dung....what exactly was this man thinking ?

So far all we have to show for it is a big increase in colouredy stickers,card holders,fire-extinguishers,baby seats and first-aid kits...oh and I almost forgot a 300+% explosion in cab numbers,each of which HAS to be facilitated with a Rank Space available 24-7.....within a KM radius of An Lar .....Maybe the oul Queen will Knight Bobby for his services to anarchy...?

Hotblack Desiato

Yes, let's get back to the good old days of punters queueing for hours in the cold/rain just looking to get home, what were they thinking, that we lived in some sort of a market driven economy? :rolleyes:

AlekSmart

ninja900 wrote: »

Yes, let's get back to the good old days of punters queueing for hours in the cold/rain just looking to get home, what were they thinking, that we lived in some sort of a market driven economy? :rolleyes:

No Ninja900,lets NOT get back to those days,but rather lets get to someplace where a realistic balance can be struck between a Taxi for everybody whenever required and a sustainable industry which encourages and rewards quality.

There is nothing "Market Driven" about the Taxi scenario which is played out each day in Dublin,and which worsens each day...Empty Taxi's queuing interminably along every inch of available kerbspace or driving aimlessly in circles with ever more desperate drivers making wild swoops on any pedestrian looking as if they might provide a fare.

What we have now is just a chaotic mess,which has no chance of developing into anything except an even bigger mess.

Many appeared to reinvent the Taxi,during the bountiful era,as an everyday means of public transport for the masses.

It was never that and was never intended to be.

The Taxi was always a SMALL Public Service Vehicle available for PRIVATE hire rather than the far eastern image of fleets of Tuk-Tuk's flying about the place in vast numbers.

The essential reason the Taxi "Shortage" of the late 90's and early 2000's became an issue was the failure of mainstream Public Transport to cater for the demand.

The current drive to pare back the NiteLink operation is further evidence of that failure with Dublin Bus still stuck in an outmoded scenario of what constitutes a Night Bus service.

Having a regular,reliable 24 Hr bi-directional Bus Service along the main corridors should not be the stuff of alchemy but instead seen as a normal part of a Capital City's Public Transport system.

With even such a basic system in place,the requirement for Taxi usage would swiftly reduce to manageable levels which could be realistically catered for.....what we have now,all too visibly,is incapable of being regulated in any meaningful way.

With the NTA now responsible for Taxi Regulation it is to be hoped that their fresh pair of eyes will allow them to see what the foregoing Taxi Regulators chose to ignore...:rolleyes:

Hotblack Desiato

OK so on the one hand we have the self-employed champions of private enterprise (hah!) badge holders convinced the State owed them a living, and on the other the State employees convinced that they had a God-given right to control all transport activity :rolleyes:

Clearly the rational solution is to satisfy neither interest group but rather satisfy the public.

The DB et al. unions have massively failed in this regard and really can't bitch about the current situation. Neither can the taxi unions who milked the public mercilessly and deserve even less than the little residual sympathy they may get.

Alek, on the contrary to your analysis the situation in Dublin with regard to Taxis at the moment is clearly entirely market driven! When new entrants can no longer make a living there will not be any more new entrants. It's really not that hard to understand. It's not in any way detrimental to the consumer interest, either, PROVIDED the regulator is willing and able to enforce reasonable minimum standards.

I've been in far more ropey cabs pre-dereg than I've even been in since.

mikemac

How many taxi unions are there, at least three or four.
And one of those voted to leave SIPTU

If the drivers have a case they're clearly failing to organize themselves. And on radio shows like Newstalk I've heard union reps seem to spend more time arguing with each other then joining together. :rolleyes:

I can't find it on youtube but there was a driver who took around a camera and reporter and they edited it to show all their grievances.
The driver was bald and wore glasses. Anyone remember this?
He was incredibly articulate and well spoken and I found myself agreeing with him. He then gave a presentation to the regulator.

The drivers need him or someone like him to do the talking.
Not rants and car stickers "I was at the Phoenix Park 2005"

Run_to_da_hills

I heard of a guy that loaded two Technics 1210 record decks into the boot of a taxi, went back into the shop where he purchased them to collect a mixer only to find that the taxi dissapeared when he got back out. The Taxi driver was not Irish.

slavetothegrind

alek what would you see as a solution?
geniunely have yet to hear a reasonable one from either side

coylemj

AlekSmart wrote: »

The essential reason the Taxi "Shortage" of the late 90's and early 2000's became an issue was the failure of mainstream Public Transport to cater for the demand.

No it wasn't. The shortage of taxis was caused by a population with progressively more disposable income who wanted to use taxis more often because they could afford it but thanks to an effective taxi lobby and a spineless local authority there was barely any increase in the number of plates issued despite a huge increase in demand, especially in the city centre at the weekends.

The result was longer and longer queues and an ever-increasing price on a taxi plate if you wanted to buy one. IIRC the price of a plate reached somewhere in the region of 80k punts (>100k euro) by the time the artificial bubble was burst by order of the courts.

AlekSmart

slavetothegrind wrote: »

alek what would you see as a solution?
geniunely have yet to hear a reasonable one from either side

Sheesh...there's a question !!

I suppose the ideal would have been not to have required a solution in the first place ?


Ninja900 makes a valid point here....

The situation in Dublin with regard to Taxis at the moment is clearly entirely market driven! When new entrants can no longer make a living there will not be any more new entrants. It's really not that hard to understand. It's not in any way detrimental to the consumer interest, either, PROVIDED the regulator is willing and able to enforce reasonable minimum standards.

I've been in far more ropey cabs pre-dereg than I've even been in since.

The key here is probably what constitutes "making a living".
On a personal level I'm no great fan of the Taxi industry at all,but I do see it as having a role to play,albeit not as a front-line Public Transport method,but as a premium rated backup,which in some ways it was,up until deregulation.

Coylemj also focuses on one of the core issues here....

The shortage of taxis was caused by a population with progressively more disposable income who wanted to use taxis more often because they could afford it but thanks to an effective taxi lobby and a spineless local authority there was barely any increase in the number of plates issued despite a huge increase in demand, especially in the city centre at the weekends.

A valid point,although as we are somewhat belatedly learning,that level of disposable income was unsustainable,a situation which is now being painfully and rapidly addressed....for everybody.

What appears to have occurred is Taxi Deregulation being viewed through a very tight-focused lens,again parallelling the greater economy,whereby providing a huge increase in base numbers was viewed as a result of itself ?

We can almost use the vast stock of recently constructed,but empty,dwellings as the yardstick to match the Taxi industry to.

Oddly enough the Bus based Public Transport sector has been the first to be forced into a recognition of the new "Real-Politik",with the CIE companies rapidly shedding hundreds of vehicles and staff in an attempt to cope with dwindling ridership.

The private sector operators have also been reducing their assets but not in as large scale a manner as the CIE companies.

So...,In my opinion Dublins Taxi industry as presently structured is on a course of self-destruction unless the Rergulator actually decides to Regulate,ie to impose some form of operational order on 17,000 self employed individuals each with an individual take on their own working arrangements......:)

To answer the the first posed question....you'd want to be some slave to the grind,to take this job on now...but since the Government of the Day introduced the present arrangement,it's incumbent on the current Government to modify and enforce that modification to suit the long-term continuance of the service as a whole ?

2qk4u

I really hope that this program shows the real problems facing real taxi drivers and the genuine safety issues for the taxi customers.

Chris_5339762

I saw a taxi the other day with completely bald tyres and outdated tax and insurance.

The Taxi Regulator was promptly informed of this. I got an automated emailed response.

Outkast_IRE

Chris_5339762 wrote: »

I saw a taxi the other day with completely bald tyres and outdated tax and insurance.

The Taxi Regulator was promptly informed of this. I got an automated emailed response.

I saw a taxi, today and within 5 minutes of driving i seen 3 examples of what i would class as blatent dangerous driving , and 6 examples of breaking basic rules of the road , and speeding.
What do you do in such a situation ? if you report the number the gardai prob cant do anything anyway as they didnt witness it themselves.

dirtynosebeps

remember prime time investigates 9.35pm tonight. saw a snipet from 6-1 news and it looks like it's going to be a real eye opener. hopefully the relevant authorities will take immediate action and get alot of these death traps off the road.part of the snipet was a car failing it's N.C.T. e.g. no front brakes working and the guys being paid back handers to pass the N.C.T.

leincar

feelingstressed wrote: »

How many taxi unions are there, at least three or four.
And one of those voted to leave SIPTU

If the drivers have a case they're clearly failing to organize themselves. And on radio shows like Newstalk I've heard union reps seem to spend more time arguing with each other then joining together. :rolleyes:

I can't find it on youtube but there was a driver who took around a camera and reporter and they edited it to show all their grievances.
The driver was bald and wore glasses. Anyone remember this?
He was incredibly articulate and well spoken and I found myself agreeing with him. He then gave a presentation to the regulator.

The drivers need him or someone like him to do the talking.
Not rants and car stickers "I was at the Phoenix Park 2005"

I think I know the guy you mean. He is a near neighbour of mine down here in Carlow, but works in Dublin. I regard him as a good friend and use him when I need to get to the airport or back. He has been through hell and back with the taxi industry. He was asked to appear on the Frontline tonight, but he said no as he is also now back in Trinity studing Political Science and History and has exams.

You are right though, he is an excellent speaker and I sometimes think he would make a good regulator.

mecanoman

Frighten stuff, i really hope Mr.Oiari is investigate for fraud. People live him enforce sterotypes of Dodgy-Nigerians.

leincar

Tonights programme raises many questions about passenger welfare and safety not just in a taxi, but having seen the carry on of the driver who is also a Dublin Bus driver, I'm quite happy I don't live in Dublin and have to use their service. I think Dublin Bus will now have to take a hard look at their drivers, in case there are many more at the same game.

It could do untold damage to Dublin Bus drivers.

dermo88

The problem occurred with the botched deregulation of the taxi industry.

Ireland went in typical fashion, from too little, to too many, and a fair amount of the "too many" are Nigerian, a country whose reputation has become increasingly tainted over the past 30 years due to the antics of a fair proportion of its migrant community

I can tolerate the antics of foreign fraudsters where it can be expected knowing the hardships experienced by those from a country where economic collapse has lead to a disintegration into a need to live on wits, graft. A country where hard work is tantamount to slavery because of the overpopulation, the corruption, the inflation, the raping of national resources.....which leads Nigerians to be......well.....Nigerian.

I can expect that, I know the background, the history, the oppression. But then when it is one of our own, it is more painful.

Bobby Molloy held 3 taxi plates, and I believe it was Mary Harney who was the catalyst behind the decision to deregulate so suddenly.

Taxi plate prices had risen to IEP80,000, and subsequently plunged to less than IEP5,000.

6 weeks prior to deregulation, Bobby Molloy was able to sell them.

Future fast forward

It is 2011. Deregulation has been botched, and the shortages of the 1990's have been replaced by a glut. Taxi meter rates have been raised above inflation. Ireland went down the Singaporean route, where as the economy faltered, more taxi drivers are on the road, chasing less customers. You can always tell how well the economy is doing by the amount of taxis on the road. They tend to be inversely proportional to each other.

Meanwhile, Dublin Bus has cut nightlink services. The city centre has raised parking rates and introduced anti-congestion measures, there are competing agencies with overlapping agenda's, and none of them want to give up power. Dublin Bus is chasing money with higher fares and fewer customers. Dublin Corporation are also chasing a shrinking pie with increased business rates, parking rates, and driving commerce from the city. They also want a congestion charge for "environmental" reasons. They also release a pile of taxi plates, and there are now 'too many' taxis. The truth truly is stranger than fiction.

The customer suffers, the taxi drivers suffer, the city suffers. Nobody wants to be accountable when it goes wrong. The problem is a lack of integrated policies designed to provide an optimal holistic solution.

DWCommuter

Just remember if you fail your NCT tomorrow, wave 100 euro around their office and demand a pass!

None of it was surprising, but perhaps the powers that be will be jerked into a reaction. For now I will continue to run the wrath of the Boards morality crew as I tried to get a vehicle through the DOE in a legitimate fashion while it remains untaxed. :eek: (apparently I was driving a vehicle unfit for the road):rolleyes:

I think there are more pressing cases far far ahead of my 6 year old van that failed on very basic and easily fixed aspects, none of which made it unsafe, just not up to the standard of a genuine and fair test result.

"Dynamick", I'm talking to you. Do you remember?:D

All that said, the corruption is just a kick in the head to those of us who are ready and able to play fair.

nevsky

leincar wrote: »

Tonights programme raises many questions about passenger welfare and safety not just in a taxi, but having seen the carry on of the driver who is also a Dublin Bus driver, I'm quite happy I don't live in Dublin and have to use their service. I think Dublin Bus will now have to take a hard look at their drivers, in case there are many more at the same game.

It could do untold damage to Dublin Bus drivers.

Agree totally. I use Dublin Bus all the time. The thought that a driver is bringing me home possibly into his 20th hour of driving is frightening.

kelko1916

leincar wrote: »

Tonights programme raises many questions about passenger welfare and safety not just in a taxi, but having seen the carry on of the driver who is also a Dublin Bus driver, I'm quite happy I don't live in Dublin and have to use their service. I think Dublin Bus will now have to take a hard look at their drivers, in case there are many more at the same game.

It could do untold damage to Dublin Bus drivers.

why dont they introduce a standard taxi like in london black taxis or new yorks yellow cabs ?

dynamick

DWCommuter wrote: »

I think there are more pressing cases far far ahead of my 6 year old van that failed on very basic and easily fixed aspects, none of which made it unsafe, just not up to the standard of a genuine and fair test result.

If you drive your van without a certificate of roadworthiness you face a fine of 3,000 and/or 3 months in prison & 5 penalty points.
http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/2004/en/si/0771.html

Since you last told us that the Gardai should concentrate on sweet shoplifting by children rather than your own breaches of vehicle safety and taxation law, your 21 days for a retest have elapsed.

Your vehicle is liable to be seized by Gardai if it remains untaxed for more than 2 months
http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/travel_and_recreation/motoring_1/driving_offences/driving_offences.html

I love reading your posts -it's like watching an acrobat. The incredible flexibility in your judgement towards the morality of your own actions is lubricated by your indignation at the misdeeds of others. Do you honestly think that any judge would accept your argument that you know of a guy who did something worse then you? (Please say you do):pac:

DWCommuter

dynamick wrote: »

If you drive your van without a certificate of roadworthiness you face a fine of 3,000 and/or 3 months in prison & 5 penalty points.
http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/2004/en/si/0771.html

Since you last told us that the Gardai should concentrate on sweet shoplifting by children rather than your own breaches of vehicle safety and taxation law, your 21 days for a retest have elapsed.

Your vehicle is liable to be seized by Gardai if it remains untaxed for more than 2 months
http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/travel_and_recreation/motoring_1/driving_offences/driving_offences.html

I love reading your posts -it's like watching an acrobat. The incredible flexibility in your judgement towards the morality of your own actions is lubricated by your indignation at the misdeeds of others. Do you honestly think that any judge would accept your argument that you know of a guy who did something worse then you? (Please say you do):pac:

Im retested and passed. No backhanders. All above board. Vehicle is safe and legitimate. But thank you for the links of which I was well aware of anyway.

As for the sweet shop remark, well you may continue to misrepresent the point I was making if you so wish. I never said the Gardai should concentrate on sweet shoplifting over my breaches of law. Ive explained this to you already in your linked thread. I'm indignant because I try to obey the laws while others are happy to break them and to a very serious degree. (I now expect you to twist that point to suit your argument.)

Do you honestly think that any judge would accept your argument that you know of a guy who did something worse then you? (Please say you do):pac:

I don't recall suggesting that I would. This is just more misrepresentation.


Edit: The word "try" in my original post here, should have read "tried". That may help Dynamick understand a little more. Apologies.

dynamick

Keep it coming. You are occupying some kind of fantastic singularity in the space time continuum here where you can simultaneously be and not be. I am very jealous.

I never said the Gardai should concentrate on sweet shoplifting over my breaches of law

yet you suggest that your vehicle misdemeanours be

benchmarked against my little experience in the local shop this morning

...and...

I'm indignant because I try to obey the laws

but wait...

One of my vehicles currently has out of date road tax while awaiting repairs for a DOE, but still on the road

I'm only having a laugh. I don't care if you drive your vehicle without cert of roadworthiness or tax, I'm just amused that you can still manage to be judgemental about others.

BANZAI_RUNNER

the issue of 'double jobbing' in the taxi industry has been around for as long as I remember, I am a full-time taxi driver , and know a few guys who work in their 9 to 5 jobs and then jump behind the wheel of their taxi's for a nights work, I also know of one foreign national who works as a taxi driver under one name and works for a well known UK retailer under another name, but as usual the man on the street knows more about whats going on then the powers that be ,

n97 mini

leincar wrote: »

I'm quite happy I don't live in Dublin and have to use their service.

Those who live in Dublin don't have to use their service either. As you don't live in Dublin you don't have the choice!

I am glad I have the option of using DB's service. While it definitely has a lot of room for improvement last night's program won't put me off, and I doubt it will put anyone else off.