Book ahead if planning a taxi

For a second year, Danielle Ormond, director of Unicorn Cleaning Services, and her daughters Elsie, 3, Lola, 9, and Yvie, 11, are reaching out to 22 local people who would otherwise spend Christmas Day alone.

The family smashed its original £350 fundraising target last month and the total amount raised now stands at £725.

TAYSIDE’S decimated taxi trade has been driven “off the cliff edge” by the latest tightening of coronavirus restrictions brought in this week.

Moves aimed at halting the spread of the Omicron variant have already hit the hospitality trade in the lead up to Christmas.

There was further bad news yesterday when a three-week shutdown of nightclubs from next Monday was announced.

And the knock-on is being hard felt by a taxi industry left in crisis by the pandemic.

It will mean thin ranks as an already depleted driving force decide to stay at home rather than chasing trade which is not there.

So people going out on Christmas Day have been warned they may face a bit of a wait.

And the advice for festive revellers or folk heading to see loved ones is to book ahead to make sure they are not left standing in the cold.

There are already 500 fewer taxis in Tayside than before the pandemic.

Drivers left the industry in droves when lockdown struck and have not returned.

Unite union drivers’ representative Chris Elder – a Dundee cabbie – said: “Things have now fallen off a cliff edge with this latest situation.

“We’ve seen what it has done to the hospitality trade with bookings being cancelled.

“And if people are not going out for Christmas parties then they’re not needing to book taxis.

“And it doesn’t look like getting any better.”

Anddy Lothian of Ace Taxis, Perth, said: “My concern is that we will go into another lockdown.

“Our trade is going to be decimated with these restrictions.

“We need to stop all the lockdowns – it’s too political.

“The government’s damned if it does and damned if it doesn’t.

“We just have to live with Covid.” Meanwhile, Fife revellers can expect long waits if they plan to travel home by taxi this Christmas.

Driver numbers have plummeted by 40% since the start of the pandemic and firms are struggling to recruit.

Methil-based Magnum Taxis has half the number of drivers it would usually expect at this time of year.

And other firms are in the same boat.

Sam Green of Magnum said: “This week, I would normally have 13 drivers out but at the weekend I had six.

“Last week with it being Black

Friday, we had a lot of pick-ups from pubs.

“But we’d turn up and within 10 seconds there was someone in the cab and there were queues and queues of people waiting.

“Every company we spoke to said the same thing.”

Long-time Forfar operator Mitch Murray said the local night-time trade is now barely there.

“A lot of drivers are just not wanting to work late any more.

“With the Covid situation it’s just not been worth it – and a lot of the young ones coming out are not for taking in your taxi.

“We stopped working Christmas Day a few years ago.

“There will be some who are operating, but the level of bookings is just not there.”