CORK taxi drivers have reported one of the quietest Christmas and New Year’s periods on record.

Cutbacks by Cork punters has led to many of the city’s taxi drivers relying on Cork Penny Dinners to get by, it has been claimed.

Bobby Lynch, chairman of the Cork Taxi Council told The Echo: “I was working on St Stephan’s night myself and I came home early because there was just nothing happening around the city. Many of the lads that were working on New Year’s Eve told me that the pubs were quiet.”

The lack of revellers across the city, on what are usually seen as some of the most popular nights, led to many taxi drivers making a loss across the Christmas period.

“Lots of people that I spoke to in the taxis have said that because the drink prices have gone out of control, they’re going to the off license instead and staying home.

“A lot of taxi drivers took that night off and the ones that were on were just sitting on the line doing nothing, not making money. There’s nothing more frustrating than that. We have had a lot of our taxi drivers relying on Penny Dinners this year. We had 12 last year and that’s gone up a crazy amount now this year,” Mr Lynch revealed.

NIGHTLIFE

The chair of the Cork Taxi Council said that many punters feel there is no incentive to go out in the city anymore.

“The city needs an injection of life to start bringing people back for the nightlife. The city is dying, and we’ve seen it. Over the last few weeks, on the run up to Christmas, I was asking people if they were going to go out in the town over Christmas and most of them said no, they were going to stay at home because it was so much cheaper and better craic.”

He continued: “You would imagine for special occasions like that, there would be entertainment, especially since this is the first year that things are really back to normal after Covid. There was a big difference this year compared to other years before Covid.”

From his experience, Mr Lynch has said that as well as spikes in the prices of drink, many don’t feel safe going out in the city.

“We also need a safe city so that people feel comfortable going out here. The streets are dangerous at night. There are very little guards around the streets at night.”

He called on the council and other bodies to help regenerate Cork nightlife, especially when so many rely on its prosperity.

“We need the powers that be in Cork to get their act together, to keep the city safe, to entertain the people in Cork and the people that are coming into Cork for the venues.

“A few people visiting the city for a night out have said to me that they expected the city to be hopping, the second biggest city in the country, but it just wasn’t.”