Amy Tobin tries to avoid catching taxis but said it has come at the cost of her independence.
"You can be waiting anywhere from two to four hours to be picked up," she said.
"It is pretty nerve-wracking when you are on your own," she said.
The 28-year-old used to rely on wheelchair accessible taxis for work, medical appointments and social outings, but now uses her own van to avoid wait times.
"When I want to go out and I don't have a support worker to drive my van, I still rely on taxis," Ms Tobin said.
"But I don't really want to go out because I don't know when, or if, I'm going to get picked up.
"Then it's like, 'oh I am not doing very much with my life'," she said.
Queenslanders with Disability Network (QDN) said it received calls daily from people with disabilities stranded and waiting for taxis.
QDN CEO, Michelle Moss, said the situation was reaching "crisis point."
"The longest time we've heard is someone taking eight hours to get to and from a medical appointment," she said.
Drivers rejecting jobs
In the Taxi Council Queensland's latest annual report, it said drivers were not understanding their obligations and it was weeding out "the worst offenders" rejecting wheelchair taxi jobs.
Taxi Council Queensland's CEO, Blair Davies, said wheelchair taxi bookings should be a priority, but it wasn't always the case.
"We have so much demand, our cabs drivers are able to pick between jobs," he said.
"Some of our wheelchair cabbies are saying that they couldn't respond to a wheelchair taxi request because they were hired off a rank or they were flagged down on the street."
Transport Minister Mark Bailey said people with disabilities had a right to expect a taxi when they ordered one.
"Unfortunately, vulnerable members of our community are being left on the side of the road and that is unacceptable," he said.
Mr Davies said it had been explained to drivers "many times" that wheelchair taxi jobs needed to be prioritised.
Drivers are issued warning notices if they are caught not prioritising wheelchair taxi customers, and if the behaviour persists are "shown the door," he said.
"We are keen and serious about disciplining drivers who do the wrong thing but with drivers short in supply that doesn't help us," Mr Davies said.
"Until we can get all of our cabs out on the road more often, we are going to struggle to provide the service that we want to."
2032 Olympics and Paralympics Games should leave legacy of inclusivity
Brisbane is set to have an influx of visitors during the Olympics and Paralympics, and has only added two wheelchair accessible taxis since 2012.
The number of wheelchair accessible taxi licences remained almost unchanged across the state in the last 10 years.
Ms Moss said she hoped the 2032 Games would leave a legacy of inclusivity.
"It's a fundamental right to be able to access your community," she said.
"We have got residents of our state who can't get taxis and can't get to where they need to get to.
"What does that mean for visitors coming to our state," Ms Moss said.
Mr Davies said government needed to release more licences.
"The market has grown for taxi travel, but the supply of wheelchair accessible taxi travel hasn't grown at all," he said.
The number of taxi service licences for each area is fixed by the Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads.
"There are currently 645 taxi service licences that require the holder to provide a wheelchair accessible taxi service in Queensland," the department said.
But the department said it was aware several licences were not being used "further reducing the availability of services".
Mr Bailey did not respond to questions about whether the state's wheelchair taxi fleet would be equipped to handle the 2032 Games, but he said the taxi licensing framework was being reviewed.
Wheelchair taxi roundtable
The transport department held a roundtable with the taxi industry and the disability community to discuss challenges with wheelchair accessible taxis in February, chaired by the transport minister.
"It was an opportunity to bring both groups together to identify where improvements can be made to wheelchair accessible taxi services," Mr Bailey said.
The department said it was reviewing several options discussed at the roundtable and was determining the most appropriate action.
"[The department] plans to review its mandatory training requirements for drivers in conjunction with taxi companies and disability sector representatives," it said.
It was also looking at incentives for drivers to prioritise wheelchair taxi bookings.
Ms Moss said it was crucial for people with a disability to be a part of the conversation.
"We have seen from the taxi roundtable, that by including people with disability in the conversation from the beginning we know that we will get better outcomes," she said.
