The Tribune

By YOURI KEMP

Tribune Business Reporter

ykemp@tribunemedia.net

The Nassau Cruise Port's (NCP) new taxi call-up system has been branded as “smooth”, with a union president voicing optimism that it will end hustling and 'hacking' for fares by drivers.

Wesley Ferguson, the Bahamas Taxi Cab Union's president, told Tribune Business the new facilities for taxi drivers were tested and approved by his membership one day before the Nassau Cruise Port's official opening on Friday.

"We were negotiating with the Nassau Cruise Port for the past two years on the taxi call-up system. They were very upfront with the taxi union and we have a good working relationship with them," Mr Ferguson said.

"We have it. We ran the new system on Thursday and it was smooth. Taxi drivers are enjoying their new facilities. They have a negotiated system - where taxi drivers don't have to be hustling - where they steer the passenger directly from the cruise ship straight to the taxis. There is only one lane where you are going for taxis, so once you get in that lane you automatically know you are going to get a taxi.”

This new system also facilitates cruise passengers wanting to take tours around New Providence, while allowing them to choose their preferred mode of transportation when they reach the taxi terminals. There are 20 parking spots in the holding area allocated for taxis, and eight for tour busses, along with one spot for handicapped-adapted vehicles.

Mr Ferguson added: “It still needs a bit of tweaking, but they are working along with us. For example, on one day we may run 1,500 passengers, but what happens when we run 2,500 passengers-plus? Then that would create different things and more people to be in place, so we have to work on these things.

“No system that you have is going to work seamlessly the first time out. Some things we didn’t encounter on Thursday we may encounter on another day this week.” There are more than 200 taxi drivers dedicated to the cruise port because it is busier than Lynden Pindling International Airport (LPIA) given the volume of cruise passengers arriving at the facility on a weekly basis.