Irish taxi drivers are calling for regulations of the industry to be updated - which they claim do not keep pace with the rise of app-based dispatchers.
Dublin city was hit by widespread disruption yesterday as over 1,500 taxi drivers from across the country gathered at the gates of Leinster House, driving in slow protest of Uber's recently announced fixed price model.
Introduced at the beginning of this month, the system allows Uber passengers to pay an upfront price calculated by the app’s own algorithm as an alternative to the National Transport Authority’s (NTA) regulated meter fare - similar to a hackney service.
The up-front price is dictated by factors, such as route, traffic, weather and time of day. It cannot go above the taxi’s maximum fare price, but it can go below it.
Around a third of Ireland’s 17,400 licensed taxi drivers currently use the dispatch service - many of which have been switching off their Uber app over the past two weeks.
Jim Waldron, spokesperson for the National Private Hire and Taxi Association, believes that the NTA’s regulated fare system ensures transparency for both drivers and passengers - and is now under threat.
"The National Transport Authority set the fares at a level that they believe is both affordable for the passenger and sustainable for the drivers, it’s set by the Government.
"It’s reviewed every two years following a public consultation - and our meters are sealed; we can’t change it.
"Uber is basically trying to interfere with that fare process and in our opinion and in drivers' opinion, create a culture of fixed fares.
"They want people used to paying a fixed fare, get the driver used to accepting a fixed fare and we believe then that the NTA's meter system will then be deemed as unnecessary, and we won't have a system anymore.
"Taxis have to operate on the meter. The driver is permitted to give discounts if he wants, but that's up to the driver himself.
"This situation is preventing the driver from giving a discount himself. It's making it compulsory that he gives a discount. And that's what the problem is," he said.
Mr Waldron added that the potential dismantling of Ireland’s regulated fare system, could lead to "chaos" in the industry.
"It's the goal of Uber to get control of the pricing system and this is the first step. It's their playbook.
"We've seen it all over the world. That's the step they make to introduce fixed fares, they bring them in at a lower price, and the customer looks at it and say 'I'm saving money, what's wrong with that’?
"They don't realise that down the line, the taxi industry will falter, supply will fall, we won't be able to survive, and we won't have what you call a professional small public service vehicle sector."
Yesterday’s demonstration was organised by a group of taxi drivers through Facebook, Whatsapp, and Telegram groups.
Taxi driver and protest co-ordinator, David Mitchell said Uber’s announcement has unified the community "in a way that has never been seen before".
"There are around 18,000 taxi licenses out there, that's 18,000 drivers, most of whom have families.
"Ask yourself this, do you want to see your husband or your wife going to work an extra 20 hours a week to make up for the shortfall with these new fixed fares? Nobody would.
"If Uber gets away with this and undermine the fare system, then it becomes the wild west, because there's no regulation on how little they can charge.
"We're obviously here to fight Uber and fight the fixed fares and show unity but we're also asking that Minister O'Brien and the NTA come out and do something to fix this - and update legislation to reflect the industry as it is today."
Fixed price offer does not breach fare regulations - Uber
In statement sent to RTÉ, Uber said their fixed price offer does not breach fare regulations outlined in the Taxi Regulation Act 2013 - noting that riders are "much more likely to book a trip" if they know what the fare is going to be, creating "more earning opportunities" for drivers.
The company added that drivers can see their estimated earnings before accepting a job - as well as various algorithmic factors that influence it.
The NTA said that while charging in excess of their maximum fare can lead to a prosecution, "charging below the maximum fare is permitted".
In addition, they noted that the NTA is not "party to commercial or contractual arrangements between SPSV drivers and their dispatch operators, nor does it have a role in the assessment or approval of such matters".
"Taxi drivers are not obliged to be affiliated with a dispatch operator in Ireland. Where they choose to do so, taxi drivers are free to engage with any dispatch operator," they added.
Speaking on RTÉ's This Week, Dr Ciarán Mac Domhnaill, Transport Economist in University College Dublin, said that Uber is currently using a rule that allows taxi drivers to negotiate a lower fare with passengers, to act as intermediary in those negotiations.
Dr Mac Domhnaill stressed that while Uber is acting "within the letter of the law", the 2013 Taxi Regulation Act is now out of date.
"Uber wants to become the dominant platform, in that when somebody wants to get a taxi, they go to Uber. They're doing that by offering a cheaper fixed price."
"This is something that customers would like. It's not the most comfortable sitting in a taxi, not knowing what the price is going to be, watching the meter tick up. And this is one way for Uber to attract more and more customers.
"It's certainly an example of the wider trend of Uber entering the market, disrupting the market and challenging regulations and finding loopholes in regulations that are legitimate.
"It is very much in line with the letter of the law, but when these regulations were set out, Uber and other ride hailing services were less dominant, were only emerging.
'Time for a discussion over what we want from the taxi industry'
"So it is perhaps time for a discussion over what we want from the taxi industry and how can we use public policy in order to set that and do we need to update regulations to account for the fact that these ride hailing platforms are now becoming more powerful players," he said.
Dr Mac Domhnaill warned that while Uber’s new policy may be pro-consumer in the short term, it could have long term consequences.
"The reason for that regulated price is to ensure that taxi drivers have a sufficient income to make a living from this.
"If there is going to be a lower price than that going forward, then it's not going to be worthwhile for some taxi drivers to continue and ultimately the supply of taxis will decrease, especially in low profit areas and off-peak times.
"Consumers might get a fixed price, but they may have to wait longer for their taxi," he added.
This is not the first time Uber has faced pushback from a taxi industry.
In 2016, Barcelona’s Asociación Profesional Élite Taxi brought a case to the European Court of Justice arguing that Uber should be regulated as a transport service rather than an online platform.
Ireland formally intervened in the case, supporting the position that EU member states must retain the power to regulate operators like Uber under national transport law.
Calling for NTA intervention at yesterday’s protest, People Before Profit TD Richard Boyd Barrett said that Ireland backed the Catalonians at an EU level in their case against Uber.
"So, the Government say they're in favour of a regulated industry, so they should enforce it.
"Uber can get away with this fixed fare; they are essentially undermining the meter. That will lead to a race to the bottom in terms of the livelihoods and incomes of taxi drivers.
"And in the end, the customers will also lose out because these for-profit firms will be able to dictate the fare prices.
"We should get these for-profit operators out."
