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Cabbies may be an obstacle to airport transport system
(archive article - Saturday, February 24, 2007)
GOVERNMENT plans to look at the possibility of operating bus services, from the airports to town centres are commendable. There has been a need for a cheaper, alternative form of transport to taxis, for some time now, as cab fares have been steadily rising.
With air fares to certain destination falling significantly, it is now possible for a passenger to pay more on cab fares, to and from the airport, than on the actual air ticket. This is no exaggeration. Someone living in Limassol, for instance, could buy a return ticket to Athens for ?60 and pay ?70 in cab fares to and from Larnaca airport, which does not make any financial sense. If someone will be away for a few days, it is cheaper to drive to the airport and use the car-park, but for a week’s stay abroad, or longer, the parking costs could be higher than the cab fare.
Of course, the government has only undertaken to explore the possibility of running bus services. At present nobody knows whether such a service would be financially viable, given Cypriots’ irrational dislike of using the bus. There might not be adequate demand to justify the operation of a regular and prompt service, especially during the slow winter months. Although the project would be financed by EU funds it would still have to be economically viable to go ahead.
If the research showed that such a service would be viable, it could be in place by the start of next year. However, before they start calculating prices, buying buses, hiring drivers and organising time schedules, planners should consider one very important factor – the reaction of the cab-drivers, who are unlikely to welcome the bus service with open arms. Cab-drivers do not react in a very reasonable fashion when their earnings are being eroded by competition. It suffices to mention the violent way in which Ayia Napa cabbies reacted to a rickshaw service - started by a group of enterprising Poles – that was taking business away from them.
They might not be able to cause damage to the buses, as they had done in the case of the rickshaws, but we doubt they will sit back and allow an airport bus service to reduce their earnings. The authorities should be prepared for angry protests and dynamic measures such as the blocking of roads, without ruling out the possibility of violence. Cabbies defending their livelihood are a force to be reckoned with.
Copyright © Cyprus Mail 2008
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