Fares hike for airport taxis
CAB trips from the airport are set to rise after drivers were slugged with a 10 per cent increase on fees paid to Cairns Airport.
Cairns Taxis chairman Layne Gardiner said a tariff automatically charged to each taxi that entered the airport had been increased from $4 to $4.40 in recent weeks.
Mr Gardiner said he expected a rise of 4 per cent and said the added cost would ultimately be paid by consumers.
“That cost adds about 20 per cent on a fare from the airport to the CBD and it has made it very difficult for us to compete,” he said.
“A 10 per cent increase is just outrageous in one hit. It is just greed. The driver is the person who is charged the fee and passes it on.
“Considering we have not had a fare increase in a number of years, it will have an effect on our business.
“And we don’t have any say in it because at the end of the day it is private property and they can do what they want.” OUTRAGEOUS: Cairns Taxis’ Layne Gardiner.
Mr Gardiner said he doubted Uber drivers were slugged with the same charge because they did not use the sanctioned taxi zone and could not be monitored via electronic tags.
A response from Uber was not received before going to print and Cairns Airport management would not comment.
A Cairns Airport spokeswoman said ground transport and access networks were regularly reviewed and taxi fees at Cairns Airport had remained the same since 2015.
“Cairns Airport works closely with Cairns Taxis as a key player in the airport’s ground transport operations,” she said.
“We also liaise with Depart- ment of Transport and Main Roads, Queensland Police, Australian Federal Police, Sun Palm Transport and all transport providers to and from Cairns Airport.
“Throughout the year the revenue collected from the taxi fees goes to ongoing maintenance and upgrades of the taxi amenities building, which I can assure you is a very well used facility. It also contributes to all airport infrastructure maintenance and development and aviation route development.
“With funding and plenty of hard work the latter can translate into new flights such as the China Southern service to Cairns from Guangzhou starting 18 December.”