January/February 2008

OFFER THE RIGHT PRODUCT AND THE PUBLIC WILL BUY

December 2007 and January 2008 could go down in the history of the Victorian taxi industry as a most hectic period of change, and for many a worrying and possibly life changing time.

At one level there was the introduction of the taxi industry accreditation regime.

At another level work began on development of a new fare setting arrangement for the next three to five years.

At yet another level the taxi industry was rattled by a huge and potentially ongoing rise in the price of LPG. (See separate article)

Oh, and for good measure the Disability Discrimination Act Standards kicked in on 31 December.

I hesitate to even mentioning the start of the new driver training arrangements for the metropolitan area which was due to be implemented on 1 January but which was sensibly delayed for a few months.

There are many other matters in the melting pot that continue to be addressed. Two of great importance are the provision of WAT services and taxi licence assignment administration.

Despite all this change to law and process, the measure of success or otherwise will be what happens out there on the road. It will be the public who will decide whether things are getting better or worse, and it will be the public who decides whether or not they will use taxis.

The public has already (and often) registered its performance requirements from taxis; these being:

• A clean taxi (both inside and out);
• A roadworthy taxi;
• A taxi without dents, scratches and bits hanging off, and a taxi in which everything works as it should;
• A taxi that smells clean and fresh;
• A driver who is accredited as a taxi driver;
• A driver who drives lawfully, safely, calmly and courteously;
• A driver who assists passengers when needed with their mobility and their luggage/parcels;
• A driver who will take them to their required/stated destination by the most appropriate route;
• A driver who is dressed in a clean and pressed taxi driver uniform, is well groomed, and who does not smell of body odour;
• A driver who does not act fraudulently concerning fares and fare payments; and
• A driver who complies with the comfort requirements of passengers (air conditioning, radio/music and conversation);
The public’s expectation of a taxi service is really nothing different from what it expects of all transport services, whether they are buses, trams, trains or aircraft. Likewise, the expectations are really nothing different from what the public expects of any other personalised service providers such as in a cafe, bar, motel or restaurant, or by a doctor, a dentist or a lawyer.

Because most taxi drivers and operators are doing the right thing and do meet the public’s expectations and requirements, it follows that those who are not are the ones which are negatively influencing/establishing public opinion, and are the ones that should (and hopefully will) be the target of the accreditation regime and be the focus of attention of the VTD’s compliance resources.

The VTA has made it clear to the Government and the VTD that accreditation auditing and compliance must identify and target poor performers and not take a “shot gun” approach that burdens the good performers and more likely than not misses the poor ones.

It seems that the new VTD management team has a similar view to the VTA, and indications are that as VTD compliance resources come on stream, taxi hot spots such as Melbourne Airport, Collins Street, Southbank and Exhibition Street will be targeted for high level compliance activity.

Really, it’s not rocket science – provide the service the public wants and the public will support and use taxis.

Neil Sach
VTA CEO