Dáil Éireann debate -
Thursday, 5 Apr 2001

Vol. 534 No. 2

Written Answers. - Taxi Licences.

Ruairí Quinn

Question:

13 Mr. Quinn asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the number of cases where repayments have now been made in respect of those who purchased taxi licences at the £15,000 rate; the number of cases where repayments are outstanding; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10144/01]

Ruairí Quinn

Question:

26 Mr. Quinn asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the number of new taxi plates issued in Dublin and the rest of the country since the new licensing regime came into operation; if his attention has been drawn to concerns expressed by commuters that the additional licences have not led to any significant reduction in waiting times, especially at peak periods; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10143/01]

Minister of State at the Department of the Environment and Local Government (Mr. Molloy)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 13 and 26 together.

The Road Traffic (Public Service Vehicles) (Amendment) (No. 3) Regulations, 2000, establish a revised regime for taxi licensing. The regulations do not place or authorise any restriction on the numbers of new taxi licences which shall be granted by local licensing authorities. Under the regulations, the granting of taxi and wheelchair accessible taxi licences continues to be the responsibility of individual local licensing authorities to whom applications for taxi licences are made.

I am advised that some 2,784 additional taxi and wheelchair accessible taxi licences had been granted by Dublin Corporation under the new regulations by end March 2001 and that satisfactory increases in licence numbers are also taking place in the rest of the country.

My Department issued instructions to taxi licensing authorities on 15 February 2001 regarding arrangements for the refund of certain taxi and wheelchair accessible taxi licence fees on the basis of the difference between the default fees specified in the Road Traffic (Public Service Vehicles) (Amendment) Regulations, 1995 – £3,000 for an ordinary taxi licence, £100 for a wheelchair accessible taxi licence – and any higher fee received by a licensing authority prior to 21 November 2000. I understand that at least 320 wheelchair accessible taxi licence fee refunds have been made by Dublin Corporation to date, with a further 340 refunds approved for payment in the near future.

In line with the allocation of responsibility for taxi licence administration outlined above, further requests for statistical information regarding the granting of taxi licences under the new regulations or the refund of taxi licence fees may be appropriately addressed to the licensing authority concerned. Dublin Corporation, as the major taxi licensing authority in the country, will shortly put in hands a customer service assessment so as to compare current service levels with those obtaining during the last such assessment in 1998 and to identify potential areas for further service improvement.

I look forward to a rapid improvement of taxi services under the new arrangements. In addition, it is intended to consult extensively with representatives of consumer groups, of disabled persons, of taxi service providers and others to develop further quality improvements for taxi services in the medium term.