V L Srinivasan
Manama (Bahrain), April 21:
Registered taxi owners have sought a clampdown on the mushrooming illegal taxi services in the Kingdom.
While the number of tourists have dwindled during the last two months, the plying of these illegal taxis have been affecting their operations, the taxi drivers claimed.
The total number of registered taxis in Bahrain is about 1,300 including 967 white and orange coloured ones, 300 London-style vehicles and less than 50 radio-metered ones. Another 1,000 private taxis are said to be running, especially at shopping malls, theatres, airport and crowded areas like Manama and Gudaibiya.
“We need to have an exclusive and special department within the General Directorate of Traffic which can focus on curbing of these illegal taxis. We brought the matter to the notice of concerned officials and are awaiting their response,” Bahrain Taxi Online Administrator Waleed Fakhroo told DT.
According to him, these illicit taxis are not only eating into the income of regular taxi drivers but also resulting in a loss to the government in the form of insurance, registration fees etc which would be
hundreds of Bahraini Dinars.
“Most of these illegal taxi drivers are expats from Asian countries and they have a network through which they operate in two shifts earning between BD800-1200 per month. Some of them do not even bother to keep their vehicles in good condition resulting in road mishaps,” he said.
He said that during normal times, hundreds of tourists would have been in Bahrain and the Government should permit more taxis on the roads to meet their demand. “Shortage of registered taxis is also one of the reasons for mushrooming of these private taxis,” he added.
When contacted, Interior Ministry officials said that there is a separate section in the traffic department and a hotline (No 17782828) has been set up to receive complaints upon which action is taken.
“Besides complaints from general public including taxi drivers, civilian police keep a watch on places frequented by these private taxi operators to catch them red handed. Once they are caught, they would be referred to the Public Prosecution. The court will impose a fine on the illegal taxi drivers and in case they are expats, they can even be deported from Bahrain,” the official said.
Inspections are also carried by the police officials along with their counterparts in the Labour Market Regulatory Authority (LMRA).
On the number of these illegal taxis, the official denied they were in hundreds. “They are much less than what the taxi owners claim and it is not an issue,” he added.
Manama (Bahrain), April 21:
Registered taxi owners have sought a clampdown on the mushrooming illegal taxi services in the Kingdom.
While the number of tourists have dwindled during the last two months, the plying of these illegal taxis have been affecting their operations, the taxi drivers claimed.
The total number of registered taxis in Bahrain is about 1,300 including 967 white and orange coloured ones, 300 London-style vehicles and less than 50 radio-metered ones. Another 1,000 private taxis are said to be running, especially at shopping malls, theatres, airport and crowded areas like Manama and Gudaibiya.
“We need to have an exclusive and special department within the General Directorate of Traffic which can focus on curbing of these illegal taxis. We brought the matter to the notice of concerned officials and are awaiting their response,” Bahrain Taxi Online Administrator Waleed Fakhroo told DT.
According to him, these illicit taxis are not only eating into the income of regular taxi drivers but also resulting in a loss to the government in the form of insurance, registration fees etc which would be
hundreds of Bahraini Dinars.
“Most of these illegal taxi drivers are expats from Asian countries and they have a network through which they operate in two shifts earning between BD800-1200 per month. Some of them do not even bother to keep their vehicles in good condition resulting in road mishaps,” he said.
He said that during normal times, hundreds of tourists would have been in Bahrain and the Government should permit more taxis on the roads to meet their demand. “Shortage of registered taxis is also one of the reasons for mushrooming of these private taxis,” he added.
When contacted, Interior Ministry officials said that there is a separate section in the traffic department and a hotline (No 17782828) has been set up to receive complaints upon which action is taken.
“Besides complaints from general public including taxi drivers, civilian police keep a watch on places frequented by these private taxi operators to catch them red handed. Once they are caught, they would be referred to the Public Prosecution. The court will impose a fine on the illegal taxi drivers and in case they are expats, they can even be deported from Bahrain,” the official said.
Inspections are also carried by the police officials along with their counterparts in the Labour Market Regulatory Authority (LMRA).
On the number of these illegal taxis, the official denied they were in hundreds. “They are much less than what the taxi owners claim and it is not an issue,” he added.
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