STABILITY IN TAXI FARES GIVE QUEENSLANDERS PEACE OF MIND

Published on: January 19, 2018Category: Media Release

Media Release
​19 January 2018

From this week onward, it is an offence for drivers from ridesharing companies to operate without a booked hire service license as enforced by the Department of Transport and Main Roads. This call for change followed concerns expressed by Queenslander’s on the safety of sharing rides with drivers who were not issued with a governmental authorised taxi license.

The continuous tug-of-war over state guidelines and regulations have significantly impacted ridesharing businesses, causing ever-increasing price hikes and surging which has a direct impact on consumers.

Last December, Uber announced an increase to their fares and an additional ‘waiting fee’ for Queensland customers, with the aim of putting more money in the pockets of their drivers.

In contrast, taxi companies such as Yellow Cabs and Black and White Cabs have and will continue to provide consistency and stability in fare pricing so customers always know approximately how much it will cost to get to their destination.

Taxi Council Queensland CEO Blair Davies said the reliability and convenience of taxis outstand the service of any other operator.

“Taxis have been serving Queenslanders for many years. We are trusted and depended on to get our customers to their destination safely and affordably,” said Davies.

“There are no price hikes or surges when choosing to travel with our cabs, as we are committed to ensuring our valued customers enjoy a seamless and hassle-free journey without any nasty surprises.”

Online fare estimators and options such as pre-paid and fixed fares are available to taxi customers, allowing them to budget their money and plan ahead of time.
ENDS

QLD TAXI DRIVER OF THE YEAR ANNOUNCED IN PRESTIGIOUS AWARDS

Published on: December 12, 2017Category: Media Release

Media Release
12/12/2017

Mount Tamborine local, Michael Smith, has been announced as the State’s Taxi Driver of the Year (Conventional Vehicle) in the prestigious Taxi Council of Queensland’s (TCQ) Industry Awards, held at the Easts Leagues Club on Wednesday 22 November 2017.

The 40 year veteran of the industry is renowned for offering fantastic service to each and every one of his customers, and doing his job with a smile and helpful nature every time.

He has received multiple commendations from the public and his peers, and also boasts a pristine driving record with no at-fault speeding or traffic infringements.

Michael Smith said he was originally attracted to work in the industry by the flexible hours and the ability to be his own boss, however his passion for his customers has kept him here.

“From business people to the elderly and everyone in between, I love getting to know the people who step into my cab,” he said.

“You can get of pretty good idea of anyone’s life story after half an hour of chatting.

“I always make an effort to make my customers feel a little bit special, even if it’s simply by hopping out of the car to open their door for them.”

In addition, Michael participates in the Yellow Cabs Ambassador program and plays an ongoing hands-on role as a mentor for new drivers.

“I think every new driver should have a mentor that they can call on to assist with answering the questions that only come to mind once they start driving.

“Some new drivers have mates in the industry, but others have no one to ask.” Mr Smith said.

TCQ CEO, Blair Davies, congratulated Michael on winning his award and on the outstanding contribution he continues to make to the industry.

“We need our experienced taxi drivers like Michael helping new drivers to learn the ropes because better drivers mean better service to our customers. In the end, everyone wins with better service because it’s one of the keys to seeing more fares, more often for every driver,” said Mr Davies.

Full list of 2017 Taxi Council Queensland Industry Awards is as follows:

  • Driver of the Year (Conventional Vehicle) – Michael Smith
  • Driver of the Year (WAT) – Alan Tucker
  • Customer Service Award – Lorraine Kamp
  • Significant Achievement Award – Jan Butterworth
  • Operator of the Year 1-20 – Tejinder Dhother
  • Operator of the Year 21-100 – Ronnie Woods
  • Operator of the Year 100+ – Sacha Moore & Zara Trengrove

ENDS

TOP SERVICE REWARDED AS CAIRNS TAXIS PUNCHES ABOVE ITS WEIGHT

Published on: November 29, 2017Category: News

By Hayden Smith, The Cairns Post
November 29, 2017

ALAN Tucker was driving his cab through the Cairns CBD one evening and spotted a handicapped man in need of a ride.
​
“He had no money and needed to get to Woree, so I took him home anyway,” he said.

“There was no way I could just let him stay there by himself all night.”

This level of customer care and service is why Mr Tucker was one of two Cairns Taxis team members to recently land major industry gongs.

The Mooroobool resident was named Driver of the Year – Wheelchair Accessible Taxis at the recent 2017 Taxi Council Queensland Awards.

His colleague Tejinder Dhother took out the award for Operator of the Year (1-20 cabs), while Jacqueline Sykes was also a finalist for Driver of the Year – Conventional Taxis.

After years in the banking sector, Mr Tucker said driving cabs specifically designed for handicapped passengers had given him a new perspective on life.

“I like the sense of community … but it can also be quite sad sometimes, seeing people in all sorts of different predicaments,” he said.

Mr Tucker said he decided to become a taxi driver because of the “opportunities”.

“I have a family to look after and also enjoy being my own boss,” he said.

Mr Dhother, a Bentley Park resident, has operated two taxis for the past six years.

Amid the rise of controversial ridesharing company Uber in the Far North, he said local cab drivers were working “harder than ever”.

“I’ve always tried my hardest,” Mr Dhother said.

“I can see a good future for myself in the industry.”

In taking out the awards, Mr Dhother and Mr Tucker edged finalists from Queensland taxi powerhouses such as Black and White Cabs Brisbane and Yellow Cabs Brisbane.

Cairns Taxis fleet services manager Chris Balsom said having three locals in contention for state awards was “unheard of”.

“And for two to come back with awards, we’re just ecstatic,” he said.

“There has been a change in the quality of service … as an organisation, we are all about continual improvement.”
​
Originally published as Cairns taxi drivers win fare share of awards

TOP SERVICE REWARDED AS CAIRNS TAXIS PUNCHES ABOVE ITS WEIGHT

Published on: November 29, 2017Category: News

By Hayden Smith, The Cairns Post
November 29, 2017

ALAN Tucker was driving his cab through the Cairns CBD one evening and spotted a handicapped man in need of a ride.
​
“He had no money and needed to get to Woree, so I took him home anyway,” he said.

“There was no way I could just let him stay there by himself all night.”

This level of customer care and service is why Mr Tucker was one of two Cairns Taxis team members to recently land major industry gongs.

The Mooroobool resident was named Driver of the Year – Wheelchair Accessible Taxis at the recent 2017 Taxi Council Queensland Awards.

His colleague Tejinder Dhother took out the award for Operator of the Year (1-20 cabs), while Jacqueline Sykes was also a finalist for Driver of the Year – Conventional Taxis.

After years in the banking sector, Mr Tucker said driving cabs specifically designed for handicapped passengers had given him a new perspective on life.

“I like the sense of community … but it can also be quite sad sometimes, seeing people in all sorts of different predicaments,” he said.

Mr Tucker said he decided to become a taxi driver because of the “opportunities”.

“I have a family to look after and also enjoy being my own boss,” he said.

Mr Dhother, a Bentley Park resident, has operated two taxis for the past six years.

Amid the rise of controversial ridesharing company Uber in the Far North, he said local cab drivers were working “harder than ever”.

“I’ve always tried my hardest,” Mr Dhother said.

“I can see a good future for myself in the industry.”

In taking out the awards, Mr Dhother and Mr Tucker edged finalists from Queensland taxi powerhouses such as Black and White Cabs Brisbane and Yellow Cabs Brisbane.

Cairns Taxis fleet services manager Chris Balsom said having three locals in contention for state awards was “unheard of”.

“And for two to come back with awards, we’re just ecstatic,” he said.

“There has been a change in the quality of service … as an organisation, we are all about continual improvement.”
​
Originally published as Cairns taxi drivers win fare share of awards

UBER WARNING

Published on: October 17, 2017Category: News

A CURRENT AFFAIR, 17 Oct 2017

When Uber launched in Australia, taxi drivers hated the competition and customers loved the cheaper fares.
But some now claim passengers’ safety is at risk.

TAXI COUNCIL CALLS ON STATE GOV TO FORCE UBER TO PUT CAMERAS IN CARS

Published on: October 2, 2017Category: News

Alexandria Utting and Emily Selleck, Gold Coast Bulletin
October 2, 2017

THE Queensland Taxi Council have called on the State Government to force Uber drivers to fit security cameras in cars after a 20-year-old woman was allegedly raped by a ride-share driver on the Gold Coast.

The calls come as transport reforms announced yesterday by Main Roads Minister Mark Bailey requiring cameras to be fitted in vehicles with a “certain risk profile” does not cover Uber.

Only vehicles where drivers deal with cash and completely anonymous customers must comply, a spokesman for the minister said yesterday.

On Saturday, the Gold Coast Bulletin revealed a local Uber driver allegedly locked the doors of his car and raped a 20-year-old woman in Surfers Paradise in the early hours of the morning.

The 24-year-old Coombabah man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was refused bail in the Southport Magistrates Court at the weekend after being charged with rape and assault relating to a shocking incident that allegedly occurred at 1am in the heart of the city.

Police allege the Indian hospitality student, who had only been driving for the ride-sharing company for two months, stopped the car, locked the doors, reclined the woman’s seat and began kissing her before he raped her in the early hours of the morning.

Duty lawyer Sam Jackson, of Bamberry Lawyers, told the court the 24-year-old denied the allegations.

Read More: www.goldcoastbulletin.com.au/news/crime-court/taxi-council-calls-on-state-gov-to-force-uber-to-put-cameras-in-cars/news-story/b7524921e6c166e1f917c3a515e7873c

MACKAY TAXIS: ‘BRING ON UBER’

Published on: September 1, 2017Category: News

1st Sep 2017 8:38 AM
Daily Mercury

MACKAY taxi drivers and Queensland Taxi Council have said they would welcome the competition of Uber, even in regional towns, if the playing field was equal for both services.

Taxi Council Queensland CEO Blair Davies said at the moment Uber was a huge issue for both customers and taxis, with government regulations not ensuring Uber is safe and fair to consumers, or in the same competitive market as taxis.

“Uber is a huge problem and very much a problem for regional centres like Mackay, mainly because typically those booked hire services will cherry pick the good work and not be too interested in the work that is hard to do,” Mr Davies said.

“Consequently small centres that don’t have good public transport systems in terms of buses and trains will then rely on the taxi services.

“As we are put under financial pressure it can well be that the level of service taxis provide gets degraded because the money isn’t there to provide the service, it’s a bad cycle and a major issue.”

READ MORE

HUGE DROP IN DRINK DRIVING OFFENCES IN MACKAY

Published on: August 31, 2017Category: News

31st Aug 2017 1:06 PM
Daily Mercury
​
MACKAY motorists seem to be getting the message about drink driving with recent figures showing a dramatic drop in interceptions by police.

From July 2016 to July 2017 a total of 785 drink driving offences were recorded.

While that figure might seem high, it is a distinct decrease in the number of apprehensions from the previous two years.

From 2015 to 2016 Mackay police intervened in 954 drink driving offences, while in the year prior a whopping 1135 incidents took place.

This year from the 785 drivers caught, 70 were driving with a reading of 0.15 and higher, while 255 had a reading between 0.10 and under 0.15.

A further 395 were caught driving with a reading between 0.05 and 0.10, and 61 below 0.05, four failed to provide a specimen of breath of blood for testing.

Mackay Whitsunday taxi drivers believe the drop could be due to more residents choosing their services in recent years, particularly on their nights out.

“The greater amount of work for us is definitely during the night now, whether it be for meals, drinks or out,” driver Trevor Moore said.

READ MORE

FAILURE TO REPORT ATTACKS A CAUSE FOR CONCERN

Published on: August 23, 2017Category: Media Release

Media Release
August 23, 2017

The Taxi Council of Queensland (TCQ) has expressed alarm about recent news from the United Kingdom that indicates Uber has failed its duty in reporting sex attacks committed by its drivers.

The Telegraph newspaper reported that London’s Metropolitan Police was seriously concerned that the company was cherry-picking what incidents it reported to the police in order to protect its public image.

The Telegraph article quotes Inspector Neil Billany, head of the Metropolitan Police’s taxi and private hire unit, saying he had “significant concerns” about Uber’s behaviour and he believed that Uber were only notifying police of “less serious matters” that would be “less damaging to its reputation”.

Among the list of serious crimes that the company allegedly failed to report to police were a string of sexual assaults, two suspected public order offences, and one very serious incident in which a driver produced pepper spray during a road rage argument.

Given the recent spate of Uber drivers being charged with sexual and other offences in Queensland, it begs the question as to whether there may be more incidents coming to light in the future.

TCQ chief executive officer Blair Davies is particularly concerned that we may have only seen the tip of the iceberg.

“In the last month we have had three Uber drivers charged with very serious offences and the Premier’s only response has been to say Uber “needs to start accepting responsibility,” Mr Davies said.

“This is to the same company that was outed for pulling the wool over the Government’s eyes using its “Greyball” app enhancement, and now outed for irresponsible behaviour in relation to reporting crimes by its drivers in the UK.

“If anyone has to start accepting responsibility for the lack of safeguards protecting vulnerable members of the community using booked hire services, first and foremost it should be the Queensland Government.”
ENDS

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