Concert goers are being warned of the possibility of taxi shortages in Dublin this weekend.
The Taxis for Ireland Coalition, which is pressing for the greater provision of taxi services around the country, said the Taylor Swift, Longitude, Shania Twain and Fairview Park concerts, along with the Dublin Pride Parade and GAA Senior Football Championship quarter-finals will bring 600,000 people into the capital.
US superstar Swift is playing three sold-out concerts in the Aviva Stadium over the weekend, while Twain is playing in Malahide on Friday night and The Saw Doctors are playing in Fairview Park on Saturday.
It is predicting that this could lead to long waits for transport for those needing a lift home.
“With thousands of people arriving in Ireland for the general tourist season and huge events like Taylor Swift at the Aviva, we are set to see strong demand for taxi services,” said Eoghan O’Mara Walsh, chief executive of the Irish Tourism Industry Confederation.
“Taxis provide an essential service, particularly for tourists who often need to go door-to-door and can struggle with navigating the public transport system.”
The coalition, which is made up of a number of representative bodies from the tourism, hospitality and transport sectors, is seeking immediate action from the National Transport Authority and the Government to boost taxi numbers.
“The last thing we want people in Dublin to feel is stranded, waiting late at night for taxis in areas they may be unfamiliar with,” said Donall O’Keefe, CEO of the Licensed Vintners Association, which represents Dublin pubs.
“Taxis provide that extra layer of safety, particularly for visitors attending the city.”
“We want Dublin and Ireland to remain competitive when it comes to hosting large events, however, we need to ensure additional taxi availability for the nighttime economy in particular to enhance the experience of visitors to our Capital City.”
The coalition thinks there needs to be a one third increase in the number of taxis by 2030 to alleviate the problems around availability.
It also wants the Wheelchair Accessible Vehicle requirement for newly registered Small Public Service Vehicles (SPSV) to be removed.
It also thinks there should be a re-assessment of the SPSV driver entry test’s geography-based knowledge requirements.