Waterford taxi-drivers disagree with chamber on car-free area

Taxi-drivers in Waterford have clashed with the city's Chamber of Commerce over the organisation's support for further pedestrianisation…

Taxi-drivers in Waterford have clashed with the city's Chamber of Commerce over the organisation's support for further pedestrianisation.

The chamber has written to Waterford City Council, urging the local authority to proceed immediately with extending Waterford's car-free area to Broad Street so that this work will be completed in time for Christmas.

With over €2 million already spent on modernising the city- centre streetscape, the chamber president, Mr Bobby O'Keeffe, feels the concerns of taxi-drivers - who believe they are being forced out of the city centre - are unjustified.

"The work will mean moving the existing eight taxi-rank spaces from Broad Street and the creation of 18 taxi spaces nearby in Patrick Street, Peter Street and Michael Street.

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Both Patrick Street and Peter Street are two-way streets and they will provide 10 taxi bays. There will be a further eight bays in Michael Street, which is one-way in a southbound direction. The taxis are now in what is effectively a cul-de-sac in Broad Street.

"Additional business to the city centre means additional business for everybody operating in that area and this includes the taxis. While the chamber appreciates that the taxi-drivers are concerned about moving, I would urge them to look closely at the situation and I am sure they will realise that there are many advantages to the new bays."

However, Mr David O'Reilly of the National Taxi Drivers Union said poor traffic management and the cost of parking are the reasons why the city is losing shoppers to suburban centres.

"Paving a few streets is not going to remedy this. You have Lady Lane where a medieval street is used as the major thoroughfare from the city centre to the N25 while paving big wide streets. It is problems like that which need to be sorted before people come back to shopping in Waterford city centre. Parking in the centre is too expensive and people just can't afford it."

Mr O'Reilly believes the new scheme to move the existing taxi rank from Broad Street will store up future problems.

"When taxi drivers met the City Engineer last year we were shown a map of the future development planned for the city. One of the developments was a system like Gladstone Street with one half of Michael Street pedestrianised. This is the part they are putting the taxi rank on, so if that is going to happen in the future we are going to be back fighting the same battle again."