TAXI SERVICES

Otago Daily Times, Issue 23004, 6 October 1936, Page 7

TAXI SERVICES

COMMITTEE OF INQUIRY SITTINGS IN DUNEDIN Great interest has been aroused among taxi-owners and drivers in the sittings of the Committee of Inquiry appointed by the Government to investigate the conduct of taxi and carrying businesses in the Dominion. The committee, which consists of Messrs P. M. Butler (Wellington). James Walker (Mastcrton) and H. B. Smith (Transport Department, Wellington), will commence its Dunedin sittings ut the Council Chambers to-day. In the course of its sittings in the north the committee has heard a great deal of evidence, particularly with respect to the position of taxi services and the conditions under which employees work While there will be no lack of witnesses who will be prepared to place before the committee their views on existing forms of transport, inquiries which were made by a Daily Times reporter yesterday afternoon indicate that most taxi firms and employees are satisfied with conditions as they exist in Dunedin. It is apparently considered that the industry has no outstanding problems which require tion, and it was openly stated that taxi companies have reaped highly satisfactory profits, while the earnings of the drivers, particularly among single men, have in most cases been high. If any proposal is made to the committee that taxi fares should be raised in Dunedin it will be strongly opposed by a number of the companies, the proprietors of which consider that the great extension of their business that has occurred in recent years is attributable solely to the reduced fares now ruling. The manager of one firm even went so far as to say that if fares are altered in any way there should be a further reduction. It is stated that a section of the owners favours the installation of meters in all taxis, but this proposal will also have strong opponents, who point out that the high initial cost of the machines would have to be recovered from the public. They are also of the opinion that the configuration of Dunedin, with its contrast of flat areas and steep hills, does not lend itself to the meter system of charging. Most taxi drivers in Dunedin at present arc paid on a commission basis receiving from a majority of firms one-third of their takings. This arrangement, it is held, allows drivers to make wages ranging from £2OO to £3OO a year. Several companies have declared their willingness to pay the 1931 award wages of £4 12s 6d a week but a condition of this oner is that it holds good only if fares are not raised the contention of those who have made it being that the result of increased fares would be a reduction of the amount of business offering. One point on which taxi owners as a whole appear to be agreed is that there should be a limitation of the number of taxis allowed to operate in the city. They contend that the financial soundness of the Dunedin companies would be endangered by any substantial increase in the number of operators. It was stated yesterday that no taxi company in Dunedin has yet closed its doors owing to financial difficulty, and naturally those firms which declare their satisfaction with their present earnings are anxious to retain their positions. One taxi to every 1000 inhabitants is considered to be a reasonable proportion. Private taxi owners will also place their views before the committee. These men operate principally from ranks in the city streets, and their primary concern apparently is to ensure that they should not be deprived of their existing rights. They claim that the service which they render offers a high degree of safety because they are not tempted to hurry as a driver on commission might be, and they also declare that the service which thev render is of a more personal nature, because it is carried ,out amons people who are mainly known to them and whose requirements cannot be adequately met by company drivers. , i( The wide scope of the inquiries which the committee is permitted to make will enable it to obtain a. full statement of the views of taxi drivers and carriers, and it will also be able to hear the opinions of local bodies and any other party which may be interested in these services.