Just 32 taxis and licensed vehicles have been added to the capital city’s ranks so far this year, new figures released to Dublin Rathdown TD Neale Richmond show.
There have been countless incidents of social media users being left stranded in the city centre after a night out.
Deputy Richmond is calling for the costs of a taxi licences to be "slashed" to encourage more people to chose the profession.
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The Fine Gael TD was said the burden of the National Transport Authority's plan to increase fares by 12% could not fall on passengers.
He said: “The lack of taxis in Dublin is becoming a serious issue. Whether it is day or night, weekday or weekend, accessing a taxi in the city has become extremely difficult since the lifting of pandemic restrictions.
“Swift action is needed to increase the numbers of taxis in Dublin. People are left wandering the streets after a night out trying to hail a taxi in person or through an app, often competing with hundreds of people for a handful of taxis.
“According to figures released to me by the Minister for Transport Eamon Ryan, so far in 2022 there have only been 32 additional taxis and licensed vehicles added to our ranks, giving us a total of 10,087 taxis in Dublin.
“Not only do we have a lack of taxis, but drivers are choosing not to work when we need them the most. Only 29% of taxi drivers are currently working during the evenings, weekends or on bank holidays.
“The NTA are proposing a 12% hike in fares to make the industry more lucrative, however, we cannot let this burden fall on passengers who are already facing increased costs everywhere they turn."
Deputy Richmond called for the sector to be deregulated to make it a more attractive profession.
He said: “We need to help incentivise people to turn to this career; by reducing the costs of taxi licenses and slashing the cost of airport taxi permits, as well as removing unnecessary bureaucracy that makes it difficult for drivers with suitable vehicles to access these licenses.
“Deregulating the taxi industry and reducing the second mortgage cost of a taxi license was one of the great success stories for public transport users in Dublin. Similar action needs to be taken now to drive down the cost of running a taxi."
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