168 fewer taxis in Cork since pandemic

NEW figures released by the National Transport Authority (NTA) show a significant drop in taxi numbers in Cork since before the pandemic.

There were 26,360 taxis nationwide in 2023, a decrease of 1,033 from 2019, when it was 27,393. Cork is one of 23 counties with fewer taxi licences than before the pandemic.

There were 168 fewer taxis in Cork in 2023 compared to 2019, with the number of taxi licenses falling 7.09%, from 2,370 in 2019 to 2,202 last year.

Cork taxi-driver representative Bobby Lynch told The Echo that the NTA not allowing them to transfer licences is a huge part of the problem, as well as their general lack of support. “We had a lot of taxi drivers die during the pandemic, lots have had to retire, or people are giving up because it’s too dangerous.

Taxi drivers “have knives put to their throat or they get beaten up or robbed”, he said, and many drivers want to avoid the city at night, because “there’s people kicking the car if you don’t pick them up”.

“There’s nothing being done about it,” he said.

“Young Irish people don’t want to come into the industry, due to these safety issues and the lack of support, and the non-transferability makes it harder to replace the drivers who are retiring or just quitting,” he said.

“If I die, my plate dies with me and that’s wrong.

“All we want is, if we’re retiring, a fella can sell his plate, because, at the moment, if they pass it onto someone and they’re still alive, their name is still attached to the plate and the insurance,” Mr Lynch explained.

Mr Lynch said that as a representative, he has Cork taxi drivers and even their wives calling him constantly about how dangerous the industry has become.

“We shouldn’t be going to work scared,” Mr Lynch said.

“We should be able to go out, make a living, and come home safe to our families.”