Taxi drivers and passengers ‘satisfied’ with fares since London tariffs were increased

Feedback from taxi drivers suggests a general satisfaction with London taxi tariff which arrived in April.

Sam Houston, Senior Representative at the Licensed Taxi Drivers’ Association (LTDA), provided an update on the recent taxi fare adjustment and how the new fares were being perceived by drivers and passengers alike.

Houston noted that while he doesn't actively inquire about passenger satisfaction, he has not encountered any complaints or a drop in tips. This indicates that the fare increase has not negatively impacted customer sentiment. The taxi industry lacks the comprehensive data analytics found in other sectors to evaluate such changes precisely. Despite this, early indications point to the fare adjustment being reasonable.

Demand for taxis is influenced by a variety of factors beyond price, such as weather, convenience, and economic activity. Without the tariff adjustment aligning with the Cost Index, drivers would have faced the burden of rising operational costs on their own.

Houston said in TAXI Newspaper: “It's been two months now and most drivers I speak to seem satisfied with the recent tariff adjustment.

“I'm not in the habit of asking my customers if they're happy with the price but I certainly haven't had any complaints or a reduction in tips.

“Our industry is rather short of the data that other businesses use to assess this sort of thing and it is still early days, but initial signs indicate the adjustment to have been reasonable.

“Demand for taxis is affected by lots of different factors. Price is obviously an important one but there are plenty of others, like weather, convenience, general and localised economic activity, the list is endless. What is certainly true is that had the Tariff not been adjusted in line with the Cost Index, it would have been drivers left alone to absorb the increased costs, along with all the other higher prices elsewhere in the economy.

“I've also taken quite a lot of taxi journeys myself since April and I think the rise is similar to other industries and products. Indeed, some stuff in the supermarkets seems to have gone up significantly more than our tariff. And I’m not only thinking about olive oil...

“As always, everyone has a different opinion on this, but the current status quo is that whatever figure the Cost Index produces is either applied to the tariff that year or is lost forever, so it really was a question of use it (or in this case take it) or lose it.“