Coronavirus: No idle threat as cabbies in decimated taxi industry return plates

Sydney’s taxi industry has been hit hardest by the coronavirus with more than half of the city’s 5572 cabs deregistered.

Fleet owner Ali El-Ghoul, among his idle cars in Sydney, has returned 95 of his leased taxi licence plates. Picture: Jane Dempster

Sydney’s taxi industry has been hit hard by the economic impact of coronavirus, with more than half of the 5572 metropolitan cab fleet deregistered because of a dramatic slump in passenger demand.

The Australian has confirmed that 2815 taxi licence plates leased to Sydney taxi operators were returned over the past three months to NSW Roads and Maritime Services, the issuing authority.

Hundreds more Sydney taxis are believed to be working vastly reduced hours or have been “parked” by owners hoping to ride out the crisis and resume business when the economy recovers.

Industry sources said Melbourne’s taxi services were the next worst affected, with an estimated 40 per cent of the city’s fleet taken off the road in the early part of the COVID-19 crisis.

Conditions had since improved in Melbourne as cab operators diversified to areas such as food and parcel delivery, and there had been some pick up in suburban demand for largely unregulated services.

David Samuel, a spokesman for 13CABS, said Brisbane’s taxi industry had suffered but “not as terribly” as Sydney, where the market was much more dependent for survival on business from the city’s airport and entertainment districts, both effectively shut down as part of government efforts to limit spread of the virus.

Mr Samuel said cabs in Adelaide, Perth and Hobart had been affected, although smaller cities were less reliant on corporate travel or entertainment trade. Business came mainly from local fares to shopping centres, and cab drivers returning international travellers to their homes after spells in mandatory hotel isolation.

Nick Abrahim, deputy chief executive of the NSW Taxi Council, said his organisation had asked the state government for an aid package that recognised especially dire conditions for taxi owners and drivers in Sydney. Mr Abrahim said the main focus of requests for assistance put to NSW Transport Minister Andrew Constance was financial relief from annual CTP insurance premiums, which could cost operators up to $6000 for each cab, and targeted cash “hardship” funding.

He said taxi services were particularly vulnerable to a shutdown of the economy, but also deserving of help considering they were classified as essential services.

The taxi industry’s downturn had left hundreds of drivers out of work, many of them casual workers or non-Australian residents not entitled to government benefits such as JobSeeker or JobKeeper. “They’ve got no other source of income, but they have to pay rent and put food on the table,” Mr Abrahim said.

Ali El-Ghoul, a taxi fleet owner with more that 130 cabs in Sydney, said he was forced to return 95 of his leased plates to RMS because of the coronavirus downturn and many other cars were idle at his Tempe depot, near Sydney airport.

“All drivers started returning cars on March 15 — that’s when it really hit,” Mr El-Ghoul said.

“I still have cars on the road, but it’s reduced to just a few. About 200 drivers are sitting at home, earning nothing because there is not enough work for them. I’d estimate I’ve lost a few hundred thousand dollars since March; we’ve lost all business for our product.”

The NSW government is understood to be close to finalising a rescue package for Sydney taxis, although Mr Constance declined to comment on the impact of COVID-19 on the industry, its submission for help, what options were being considered or a potential timetable for aid.

Mr Constance’s office referred The Australian to his department. A NSW Transport spokesman said: “It has been an extremely difficult time for so many industries, including the taxi industry.

“We are aware of concerns raised by the Taxi Council and other stakeholders. We are currently in discussions about finding the best approach to providing support for the taxi industry during the COVID 19 pandemic.”