Uber highlights need for taxi industry reform
Complaints about the standard of service and the cost of fares have dogged the WA taxi industry for years but it may take an interloper in the form of ride-sharing company Uber to finally push the industry into the 21st century.
Since launching in Perth a year ago, Uber has gained considerable public support, courtesy of slick marketing that has tapped into dissatisfaction among many taxi users.
But Uber and its drivers are operating illegally, picking up fares without licences, insurance or security protections for drivers or passengers. Their substantially lower cost base enables them to undercut taxis.
About 300 angry taxi drivers protested at Parliament House on Tuesday, and their frustration is understandable. The industry is highly regulated with rules that date to the 1950s. Licence plates are tightly restricted, keeping their cost prohibitively high.
The Government has been slow to respond to the entry of Uber. It has always considered its operation to be illegal but it launched the first legal action against a driver only this month. Transport Minister Dean Nalder promised taxi drivers at the protest rally that more prosecutions would follow.
But Colin Barnett is sending a more conciliatory message. While not exactly endorsing Uber's operations, he suggested the world was changing and that people were looking for choice. "As long as it's safe, reliable and well managed, we will be supporting them in that choice," he said.
The Premier's words are encouraging but the industry needs certainty and assurances that the Government has a clear plan to end the inequity. The needs of customers should be central to taxi industry policy. No one is well served by rules which increase costs and make taxis harder to access. Strict regulation hampers innovation and competition.
The recent national competition review chaired by Ian Harper highlighted the need for taxi reform. Professor Harper found limiting taxi licences simply protected the investments of plate owners. His review estimated that restrictions accounted for as much as 20 per cent of the cost of fares.
Mr Nalder is promising a Green Paper on the taxi industry which must address these issues. Driving Uber out is not the answer. Freeing taxi owners and drivers of the regulatory shackles should create a fairer industry which can benefit drivers and their long-suffering passengers.
Housing damage a disgrace *
Access to public housing should be seen as a privilege but, clearly, some tenants see it as a right that they can abuse. The images of damaged houses filled with rubbish in this newspaper yesterday illustrate vividly the lack of regard some State housing tenants have for their homes. The damage bill reached a record $12.7 million last year, a cost that has to be carried by the Government, limiting its ability to invest in new housing for more people. This should not be tolerated. The Government must make every effort to recover this money and ensure the offending tenants are not given the privilege of State housing in the future.
