There are now 61 fewer taxi operators and 1,895 licenced taxis on Northern Ireland's roads compared to two years ago, new figures show.
It comes just as many people are enjoying a night out in Belfast city centre over the festive season but face the worry that they may miss their last bus or train home and not be able to get a taxi.
The issue has become something of an ordeal over recent months, particularly at weekends, due to no late buses or trains outside the Christmas period and around 30% fewer taxi drivers than pre-pandemic.
Read more: How Belfast's transport bosses are gearing up for the festive rush
The NI Licensed Taxi Operators Association (LTOA) has claimed that "two years of inaction" by the Department for Infrastructure (DfI) has forced more taxi operators to cease trading, taking over 1,800 licensed taxis off our roads.
Latest figures indicate that there are currently 1,290 fewer taxi licences compared to two years ago, now standing at 8,077. There are 61 fewer taxi operators, now 1,260 in total and 1,895 fewer licenced taxis, now standing at 6,828.
The LTOA, which represents a group of mainly large private hire taxi operators here, says there are simply now too few taxis and taxi drivers to meet passenger demand across Northern Ireland especially during anti-social hours at evenings and weekends.
They add that the industry is also finding it difficult to recruit more because of the licence testing regime despite high levels of interest.
A LTOA spokesperson added: "This results in passengers being unable to book, delays for passengers who have booked, and a free for all for those passengers trying to hail taxis at peak times with the price bartering that occurs when taxis are in such short supply.
"Most taxi drivers are self-employed in Northern Ireland and many of them, like the rest of society, have looked at their work life balance during the pandemic.
"Drivers have decided it is not worth their while driving the extra hours especially evenings and weekends on the current DfI fare structure when there are additional challenges for working these hours."
Taxi firms have previously warned the industry here is in crisis due to a range of factors, including the introduction of tougher entry requirements for drivers in 2013 and the impact of Covid. A consultation with the industry over measures was held by DfI in September 2021.
The LTOA has been campaigning for over two years for changes to the process for becoming a taxi driver. Prior to 2014, prospective drivers needed to have three years continuous driving experience on a standard licence and pass a medical and an enhanced Access NI check.
But in 2014 a bespoke taxi theory and practical test was also introduced to help improve standards in the industry, increase road safety and provide additional assurance to passengers.
Currently only around 22% on average are passing the theory element, which the LTOA says "remains unacceptably low compared to other licence types".
Those in the industry say more taxi drivers are needed and the current testing process needs to be temporarily rolled back to where it was in 2013 to allow driver numbers to recover.
The LTOA added: "The taxi industry is doing everything it can to address these issues, particularly in bringing more drivers into the sector. We have responded to the DfI fare consultation with our proposals and we continue to engage with the Driver and Vehicle Agency (DVA) on driver enforcement.
"Operators are continually recruiting for more drivers and there is no lack of interest in the roles, rather a DfI blockage in getting new drivers through the licencing process.
"Taxi operators have a business model where their income increases when the number of drivers they have increases . In other words, it's in our interest to have more drivers and address these problems, but there is only so much we can do within the current legislation and in the absence of an Assembly
"Unfortunately, until we have an Infrastructure Minister in post, and one who is prepared to address these chronic problems, nothing will happen quickly, if at all."
In response, a DfI spokesperson said the department has no direct role in the recruitment or retention policies that taxi operators have in place but is responsible for the regulation of the taxi industry.
They added: “This role requires balancing the needs of taxi customers, including vulnerable passengers, as well as drivers and operators. DfI remains committed to working within this remit to play its part, alongside those in the taxi industry, to address the range of issues the industry faces.
“The taxi industry operates within the wider context of the existing economic situation and there are many factors that contribute to the current shortage of taxi drivers.
“As we recover from the Covid pandemic potential drivers will compare the industry to other driving jobs, including those that do not require them to be responsible for managing running costs, or that involve unsociable hours.
“All of these factors influence the attractiveness of the industry, both to existing licenced taxi drivers that are choosing not to drive for the industry at present, as well as potential new recruits."
Back in August, an eight week public consultation on an 2022 taxi fares review was launched by the then Infrastructure Minister John O’Dowd noting that many people may not be able to afford increased fares with the ongoing cost of living crisis.
In November last year, Mr O’Dowd's predecessor Nichola Mallon announced a 7.6% increase in the maximum fare as part of a post-Covid support package for the industry, and to encourage new drivers.
In addition, financial support schemes were made available to new drivers who successfully obtained their taxi driver licences from April 2021 to March 2022. To date, 74 new drivers have received refunds of their fees.
Ms Mallon also committed to initiating a further fare review in Spring 2022, based on updated data, which commenced in March. However, after May’s Assembly elections in which Ms Mallon failed to be re-elected to her North Belfast seat, taxi fares have remained unchanged.
The DfI spokesperson added: “The public consultation addressed issues such as increases in fuel, vehicle maintenance costs, depot fees and different fare bands for evening/weekends. DfI officials have prepared a synopsis of the consultation responses and a paper on the way forward.
“It is intended that the next steps regarding any decisions which were not able to be taken while the Minister was in office will now be considered in light of the Northern Ireland (Executive Formation etc) Act 2022 and related guidance.
“The process of obtaining a taxi driver licence is prescribed in legislation. The Taxi Driver Theory Test was introduced for new drivers in October 2014, to help improve standards in the industry, increase road safety, provide additional assurance to passengers, and raise the reputation of the industry as a provider of a quality service.
“Since its introduction, the Driver and Vehicle Agency has made a number of changes to the testing regime to help potential drivers into the industry. At 80% the pass mark for the taxi driver theory test is the lowest required pass mark of all vocational theory tests.
“Maintaining a meaningful standard, similar to that applying to other professional drivers, supports the overarching reasons for introducing the test in the first place and any further easements would render it ineffective.
“The DVA has significantly improved signposting where candidates perform poorly to help them focus on the areas where improvement is necessary before they sit the test again.
“The DVA has recently reviewed the available training material and a revision aid to help candidates prepare for their taxi theory test was published on 23 September.”
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