The deadline for taxi service operators to comply with the order to ensure their vehicles are sprayed in ‘corporate yellow’ has been extended to September following a meeting between their representative body and President Bharrat Jagdeo yesterday.
President of the Guyana Taxi Service Association Patrick Brassington told this newspaper that that was the most substantive decision emerging from the meeting. He added that President Jagdeo reiterated the need for the services to comply with the ruling.
“The President …said that it was non-negotiable,” Brassington said.
The President, he said, also indicated that more incentives for the taxi services would be discussed in September. However, a date for the next meeting is still to be decided. Owners of taxi services who comply are to receive a waiver of fees for revenue licences, road service licences, fitness certificates and radio spectrum for a two-year period. However, Brassington said, “99 per cent of the operators” had already bought revenue licences and queried whether the waiver offer would still be available when the new system is in place.
The Ministry of Home Affairs said the agreed colour, corporate yellow, applies only to taxi services and taxis associated with a service. The re-spraying mandate does not apply to the owners of personal hire cars, minibuses and tapirs that are being used for public transportation, it added.
Last year, President Bharrat Jagdeo met the owners of taxi services countrywide to discuss measures to modernise the service. Several proposals were made including installing meters to determine mileage and cost, uniform, installing flex glass, banning passengers from the front seat and installing the services’ official logo.
The meeting agreed that all taxis should have one colour, while the other measures would be optional. Government also plans to fund training sessions on first aid and customer service for taxi drivers.
In the meantime the Guyana Tourism Authority has issued a public advisory urging visitors and tourists to “use the services of the yellow cabs/taxis for their safety, security and comfort during their stay in destination Guyana.”
