You’re waiting for a taxi – but cheer me on as long as it takes. Have you experienced this lately? Then you are not the only one. There is a shortage of taxi drivers in Norway at the moment. Ivar Haugene drives a taxi in Bodø. He is desperate about the situation and comes with a clear message to the Ministry of Transport. – It does not work, he says about the wait. Ivar Haugene drives a taxi in Bodø. He believes the new taxi reform is not working. Photo: Kåre Riibe Ramskjell / news – The exchanges must have a larger board system on how to handle the approval of drivers, quite simply. He believes the scheme, as it is now, does not work. – There are screaming cries from all over the country that things must start to happen. Haugene believes that the idea after the taxi reform in 2020 was probably good, but that it can not be implemented as it is intended. – Norway is an elongated country. People have to go to the cities to drive up, and there is a long waiting list. Many want to drive a taxi In November 2020, Norway introduced the taxi reform. Then it became easier to get a taxi license, but stricter requirements to be allowed to drive a taxi. And here lies the bottleneck: Because it is only at 19 of the 72 traffic stations that you can get this taxi certificate. According to the Norwegian Taxi Association Central, it can now take 4-6 months to become an approved taxi driver. Before, it could take as little as two weeks. There are not too few who want to drive a taxi in this country: In 2021, 589 taxi tests were taken. The figure for 2022 is already up to 653. This corresponds to an increase of 122 percent so far this year. The high numbers have meant that the waiting time to get a taxi license is longer than ever. – Screaming shouts from all over the country In June 2021, the Labor Party promised to reverse the taxi reform within 100 days if the party won the election. They have not fulfilled that promise. When Haugene himself started driving a taxi, all he had to do was get a doctor’s certificate, training at the central office and a driving license from the police. – Then it was just to hop in the car and really learn to drive a taxi. Because it is when you get into the car that you really learn, and realize that it is the customers you live off. Do not believe in lower quality Jon Ragnar Nilsen is the contact person in the Norwegian Taxi Association Nordland. He has been driving a taxi for over 30 years. He believes that the practical test taken at the Norwegian Public Roads Administration should be removed. – The exchanges are good at training their drivers, and have done so for all years. – Is there a danger that the quality of the drivers will be worse if you take the practical test away? – No I do not think so. We have had very little feedback that we do not handle what we are supposed to as drivers. If you take a regular certificate today, you will learn several essential things you need to know. Surprised by increase Heidi-Kristin Herbst is section manager in Trafikant nord in the Norwegian Public Roads Administration. She tells news that as of today they have the first available practical taxi test in week 34. In other words, it gives a nine-week waiting time. Before the practical test is carried out, the theory must be approved. Heidi-Kristin Herbst is section manager in Trafikant nord in the Norwegian Public Roads Administration. She talks about the nine-week waiting time for a practical taxi test with them. Photo: Norwegian Public Roads Administration – When it comes to theory tests, the ordering time there will vary both with demand and where the test is conducted, but it is not atypical that it is around two weeks. In addition, Herbst says that they have delivered several driving tests on a national basis, which contributes to longer waiting times for taxi drivers. Compared to last year, there is an increase of 4,000 driving tests so far this year (all classes). – This increase came as a surprise to us and must probably be linked to the corona. There are simply more people who now want a driver’s license, and this also affects our capacity for taxi tests. Will look at the regulation State Secretary in the Ministry of Transport, Mette Gundersen, tells news that there was great agreement in the hearing to introduce a driving test for drivers so as to increase drivers’ competence. – When the new scheme was established, there was great uncertainty associated with how many people would take the taxi driver test at the Norwegian Public Roads Administration. State Secretary in the Ministry of Transport, Mette Gundersen. Photo: Ministry of Transport and Communications – This was primarily related to the industry being hit hard by the covid-19 pandemic, with a sharp decline in the number of passengers. In addition, many people already had a driving license when the new regulations were implemented. According to the Secretary of State, it appears that the test capacity is large enough, although some may find the distance to the test site too long. – The Ministry is following the development in the taxi industry and will in its further work focus on facilitating that the public receives a good offer, and to contribute to good conditions in the industry. Gundersen says that a committee has been set up to look at the regulation as a whole. It will start in the autumn and will submit its report after one year, ie the autumn of 2023.
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Eight times as long waiting time to become a taxi driver – the industry is despairing – news Nordland
