A NSW taxi company says rideshare companies have been granted the upper hand as fuel prices rise and government bodies do nothing to increase rank and hail fares.
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Earlier this week, Uber Australia introduced a temporary per-km based surcharge for customers so that the company or its drivers would not be left to absorb the impact of unprecedented fuel increases.
However, taxi companies, including Wagga Radio Cabs in NSW's Riverina region, are unable to introduce surcharges or increase fare rates as they are regulated by "strict" guidelines and government agencies that Wagga Taxis board chairman Mark Walsh said are unwilling to budge on the issue.
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"It just goes to show that there's one system for us and one system for the part-time rideshare businesses - where we have no flexibility, but they can just [increase rates]," he said.
Mr Walsh said that, unlike rideshare businesses, taxis had been left with no other choice but to absorb the cost of rising fuel prices, which can equate to an additional $100 - $200 a week per cab.
Recently, NSW Taxi Council chief executive Martin Rogers wrote to the Security of Transport for NSW, requesting an increase in rank and hail fares to offset the increase of fuel prices.
In a statement, The NSW Taxi Council said: "One of the major costs in running a Taxi is fuel. A reduction in fuel excise would help alleviate the pressures of the increased costs.
"Unlike Rideshare, in the rank and hail space, Taxis are unable to increase their fare structure as that is set by the NSW Government.
NSW's transport and roads agency has said that it is currently reviewing the Taxi Councils' concerns.
Passengers feeling the pinch
NSW resident James Snow has been surprised by the difficulty of organising transportation around Wagga Wagga after losing his license to a mobile speed camera.
While he said he is in a position to afford ride fares, the "unreliability" of available Taxi and Uber drivers had made it difficult for him to find his way to work.
"I've had to call up once or twice saying, 'Hey, where's my taxi?' And they say, 'oh yeah, there's about three or four jobs in front of you, and we only have one taxi'," Mr Snow said.
"I mean one taxi for 60,000 people, that's not gonna work especially when there are no buses on after a certain time."
Mr Snow grew up utilising taxi services, and now without a licence, he said he never thought he would experience the issues he has faced while booking rides.