Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 26 February 2026
255. Deputy John Paul O'Shea asked the Minister for Transport if he will commit to a national taxi strategy to address key issues facing the taxi industry, including supply and barriers to new entrants; the timeframe he would envisage for the completion of such an exercise; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15870/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe regulation of the small public service vehicle (SPSV) industry is a matter for the independent transport regulator, the National Transport Authority (NTA), under the provisions of the Consolidated Taxi Regulation Acts 2013 and 2016. I have no role in the day-to-day operations of the SPSV sector.
In relation to SPSV supply, vehicle and driver licence numbers have been on the rise since the Covid-19 pandemic. As of 5 February 2026, the number of licensed drivers in Ireland is 27,955. This represents a 10% increase on the 2021 figure of 25,426 and is higher than the number of licensed SPSV drivers pre-Covid 2019 (27,328). Likewise, the number of licensed SPSV vehicles has also been on the rise since Covid with 21,170 vehicles licensed in the fleet as of 5 February 2026, representing a 11% increase on the 2021 figure of 18,946, when numbers were at their lowest.
In relation to barriers to entry, quantitative restrictions, which led to an undersupply of SPSVs in the past, have been removed from the SPSV sector and there are no barriers to entry to this industry other than the obligation to use a wheelchair accessible vehicle (WAV). As a result of this requirement, significant WAV and eSPSV grants have been provided to SPSV operators to enable them to upgrade their vehicles. In the case of eSPSVs, €52,709,700 has been provided since 2018 and for WAVs, €37,392,500 has been provided since 2014.
With regard to key issues facing the taxi industry, the structure of the taxi and hackney market has undoubtedly changed since liberalisation of the market took place, and more notably in recent years in relation to the role of dispatch operators. In response to this issue, I have requested the NTA to conduct a regulatory assessment of dispatch operator licensing in Ireland in the context of ensuring that the regulatory framework for this element of the overall sector, is sufficiently up to date and robust to respond to developments since the enactment of the Taxi Regulation Act 2013.
The NTA has informed me that they are developing a Call for Inputs on the dispatch operator licensing framework as a priority, and expects to publish the Call in late February/early March and intend to seek views from stakeholders as part of this process. Details of public consultations on SPSV matters can be found on the SPSV Latest News page on the NTA’s website and all stakeholders are invited to make a submission at the relevant time. A sustainable taxi sector is an important element of our transport system, and I encourage all stakeholders to take the opportunity to feed into this important piece of work, as input from stakeholders will inform the NTA's process and decision-making in revising the current dispatch operator framework.
