To ask the Minister of the Environment to detail the tariffs for newly installed taxi meters; and the criteria for setting the tariffs.

The model for the maximum fare allows for three different flag drop fares (£3 for 6am-8pm Monday-Friday, £3.40 for 8pm-6am Monday-Thursday, and £4.20 for weekends), £0.20 for every 224 yards travelled or for each 73 seconds while the vehicle is stationary, the addition of tolls and other direct charges, the addition of £1 to the flag drop for the 5th and each additional passenger, and a maximum soiling charge of £75. The fare is broadly in line with the current regulated fare for Belfast Public Hire vehicles. It should be noted that the fare is a maximum fare and drivers can chose to use reduced tariffs in their taximeters. This is particularly pertinent in rural areas. The Department is currently making two amendments to the maximum tariff in relation to the waiting time and an enhanced fare to cover the Christmas and New Year periods. These changes have been accepted by the Environment Committee and will be relayed to the industry in early course.

PA Consulting Services/Transport Research Institute carried out research on behalf of the Department in both rural and urban areas of Northern Ireland on the costs of providing a taxi service. The analysis identified the key elements that contribute to taxi driver costs, such as; fuel, vehicle capital & maintenance, insurance and of course the labour cost of the taxi driver and how these could be recouped to reflect the cost of supply. The tariff then is constructed to recoup these costs using a charge for distance and time and also provides for an unsociable hours premium (e.g. night times and weekends), an extra passenger allowance, direct journey expenses (airport parking tolls etc) and a soiling charge.