Mackay taxis: 'Bring on Uber'

Taxi Council QLD said they will welcome Uber if offered the same playing field and rules by the government.

BRING IT ON: Mackay taxi drivers said they will welcome Uber if the government allows them an equal playing field. Picture: Amanda Balmer

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.”

Mr Davies said the government needs to enforce regulations that will bring ride share apps like Uber onto an equal playing field as taxis, in terms of fees such as CTP insurance, having safety equipment in place and not allowing them to reject less desirable trips.

He believes if such measures were in place, the two services could compete more harmoniously in both bigger cities and regional towns like Mackay.

"We've already seen government officers saying to a number of our drivers that they'd be better off to hand back their taxi licence and go and work under a booked ride share service because that will save them $4500 a year in CTP, and the maths of that is quite accurate,” Mr Davies said.

"The trouble there though for the community is that the taxi operator continues their service 24/7, they can't refuse to deliver service, it has to be accessible even at 3am.

"These are some of the issues with the new regulatory regime that the government has in place, we pay $4500 and our major competitor has to pay only $400-$500, that's simply not fair.”

"We are more than happy to try to compete, but it is simply not reasonable to think that we can with them right now, we say bring on the competition but bring it on when we are on the same playing field to the same set of rules.”

While Mr Davies said Taxi Council will welcome Uber, Mackay taxi drivers themselves have shared a different view stating under current regulations Uber hold a huge commercial advantage that would lead taxi drivers out of jobs.

Taxi Council Queensland president and former chairman for Mackay Whitsunday Taxis Max McBride said over 300 drivers in Mackay would be affected by the changes under current legislation.

"Hundreds of drivers are concerned that there incomes will take a hit, we work on such slim margins and our costs are much higher than ride booking,” he said.

"It would be difficult on many families and it doesn't need to be that way.

"It's important that the government act to level the chances, all we're asking for is a fair crack not anything outlandish, if they can do that, then it will have less of a negative impact on regional areas too like Mackay.

"I think drivers will still be concerned for their jobs overall but will see them take less of a hit.”

Originally published as Mackay taxis: 'Bring on Uber'