The planned Dublin taxi protest should be called off ahead of a report on the viability of the taxi industry.
A disruptive protest will lose the sympathy of the very people whose support the taxi drivers need. The taxi unions and representatives have been very successful in identifying issues that need to be addressed.
These include:
- role of the Taxi regulator and its huge surplus despite it regulating a cash strapped industry.
- the working conditions of drivers.
- safety concerns for passengers.
- the need to better implement existing law.
These problems should be addressed. The Goodbody report will play a vital role in providing facts in a charged and often emotional debate. By pre-empting this report with disruptive action the taxi drivers run the risk of being their own worst enemy.