Minsk taxi drivers hold spontaneous protest


Drivers of all dispatching services of the capital said that the Uber was the last straw. The capital’s taxi drivers gathered to discuss how to work in the face of fierce competition and lower fares, TUT.by reports.

As explained by the taxi drivers, they have to pay taxes, higher insurance, toll fare twice a year, the monthly fee for the dispatcher service, and also carry a number of other expenses. The Uber is free from such a financial burden and can therefore reduce prices.

Drivers complained that the state “squeezes out all the juices from them, penalizes, punishes them and gives nothing in return.”

The last time taxi fares were raised when the dollar rate was Br 8,000. Now the fare is 6,500 Br per kilometer. Some dispatching services tied the tariff subscription fee for the taxi drivers to the dollar rate, which has grown significantly.

Participants of the meeting did not rule out mass protests. They threatened to go to the Ring Road and “stop the city.”

Taxi drivers require:

– Equal working conditions for everyone who carries passengers in Minsk;

As explained by the taxi drivers, they have to pay taxes, higher insurance, toll fare twice a year, the monthly fee for the dispatcher service, and also carry a number of other expenses. The Uber is free from such a financial burden and can therefore reduce prices.

Drivers complained that the state “squeezes out all the juices from them, penalizes, punishes them and gives nothing in return.”

The last time taxi fares were raised when the dollar rate was Br 8,000. Now the fare is 6,500 Br per kilometer. Some dispatching services tied the tariff subscription fee for the taxi drivers to the dollar rate, which has grown significantly.

Participants of the meeting did not rule out mass protests. They threatened to go to the Ring Road and “stop the city.”

Taxi drivers require

– Strengthening the responsibility for illegal taxi drivers;

– Creating legal taxi ranks in all districts and close to all sites of mass recreation of residents of Minsk;

– Increase tariffs for transportation to the economically profitable ones;

– The weakening of control over their activities by competent authorities.

It should be noted that this year’s wave of protests against the Uber has swept across the world: in France, taxi drivers blocked roads and burned tires, in Hungary more than 100 taxi cars blocked one of the main streets of the capital.

About 6,000 legal taxis are running in Minsk today.

 

belsat.eu, tut.by

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”105141″][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”105145″][/vc_column][/vc_row]

TWITTER