The effects of the Act on Transport Services are being monitored

The goal of the survey is to regularly assess the experiences and views of citizens and taxi industry actors on the changed made to the taxi industry and the transport market. The opinions of particular groups were investigated in more detail with separate surveys. 

The survey that has now been published was conducted immediately after the reform between August and September 2018, when the previous rules were still in the minds of most and a spontaneous comparison could be made. The first survey was made around one year before the legislative reform entered into force, and the next survey is set to be conducted in 2020.

The information included in the taxi pricing index that is used to supplement the monitoring of general taxi traffic was gathered between October and December 2018.

Citizens are well-acquainted with the reform

Of the citizens who responded to the survey, almost 90 % were satisfied with the quality of taxi services as a whole. The changes brought to the taxi sector by the Act on Transport Services that entered into force in July 2018 were well-known, especially among those that regularly use taxis. Taxi availability was considered to be good by three out of four of respondents.

For special groups requiring taxi services, the reforms have generated discussion, and problems of accessibility and long waiting times are prominent in the results of the survey for special groups. Opinions on the quality of taxi services given by respondents belonging to special groups were sharply divided: 47 % were satisfied and around 40 % were unsatisfied. Special groups are well aware of the liberalisation of the taxi market. 

In a survey conducted before the reform was made, citizens expected availability to improve. After the change had been enacted, most felt that there had been no change in availability. 

According to the survey, respondents felt that the safety level of taxis was good, and 85 % thought that this level had been maintained following the changes to the law. In the capital region, however, one fifth felt that the safety level had dropped, and there were fears on issues such as overpricing. For special groups, the most key areas of concern from a safety-oriented perspective were the lack or inadequacy of aids required by specific individuals, as well as an inadequate level of safety present in accessible vehicles. 

One objective of the Act on Transport Services has been to create customer-orientated transport services, and the survey indicates that new transport service packages, in which the user creates their own combination of, for example, public transport, taxis and shared cars, were familiar to over 40% of respondents nationwide, and 60% of respondents in the capital region. Around a few per cent of respondents were already using this kind of service package, and around one in eight had considered using one.

Taxi industry feels that reform benefits larger operators, safety and availability were highlighted

Respondents from the taxi industry felt that the Act on Transport Services that entered into force at the beginning of July 2018 had especially benefited larger operators. However, opinions within the industry have simmered down somewhat when compared to the survey conducted before the reform. Other transport industry operators were more positive towards the reform than the taxi industry.

According to the survey, the safety of taxi traffic concerned over half of both taxi operators and drivers. An equal share of respondents felt that the liberalisation of the taxi market had had a negative effect on the availability of taxies, especially in smaller municipalities. However, over 40 % of newer operators felt that availability had improved. 

“For the purposes of safety and availability, the opinions of the taxi industry were mostly along the lines of the opinions given in the survey that was conducted before the reform. New practices are still being fine-tuned, but it is clear that matters related to safety and availability must be further emphasised in the future,” notes Director General of Road Transport Marko Sillanpää. 

Industry liberalisation support personal career paths 

According to the survey, the liberalisation of the taxi industry seems to have provided more opportunities for combining both entrepreneurial and driving activities within the taxi industry with the career stage of each individual operator. Based on the survey, it seems that many of the new operators who have entered the field plan to retire within the next few years, i.e. that they want to work for a few years on their own terms before retiring.

“It seems to be the case that the Act on Transport Services has enabled the taxi industry to accommodate a more free-form model for work that can be fitted to each person’s life situation, and this applies to both the entrepreneurs and drivers in the taxi industry,” says Special Adviser Hanna Strömmer.

Opinions on the reform vary both within the industry and among citizens

According to the survey, the respondents from all groups were sharply divided when it came to the liberalisation of the taxi industry. The responses from citizens as well as bus and transport industry entrepreneurs were evenly divided among those who were positive, neutral or negative towards the change. Three out of four respondents from special groups felt that opening the market up for competition had been a bad choice. Two out of three taxi operators felt that the change had been bad. An exception to this was new taxi operators, and two out of three felt that the liberalisation had been a positive change.

“The survey was conducted immediately after the change, and the results provide a clear picture of how these different groups felt about the change at the time We will continue to monitor how their opinions will develop in the long term, and the survey will be repeated in 2020,” says Strömmer. 

Supplementary pricing monitoring follows regional developments

It is vital that the taxi industry’s pricing developments are monitored closely, and for example Statistics Finland publishes the pricing-related data of the taxi industry once a month as part of its consumer pricing index, which is also published monthly by Statistics Finland. Traficom will continue to monitor pricing developments based on the data received from taxi dispatch centres as well as with the help of a supplementary quarterly information collection method that supports the monitoring of the effects of the Act on Transport Services and the transport market, especially from a regional perspective. 

The information included in Traficom’s supplementary pricing monitoring report that has now been published was collected during the last quarter of 2018. 

According to the monitoring, prices have gone down in six regions, especially in Tavastia Proper and Southwest Finland. Generally, the reduction in prices is the result of the introduction of zone-based pricing.

The largest increases in pricing have occurred in Kymenlaakso, Uusimaa, Kainuu, Päijät-Häme and Pirkanmaa. The pricing increase in Kainuu is due to the increase in basic fees and the increase in per-kilometre pricing in Pirkanmaa. The change in Päijät-Häme, Uusimaa and Kymenlaakso was due to the introduction of per-minute pricing.

“Prices vary between different companies, and the better that the market develops, the more options will be available to consumers. All prices must be presented clearly and the customer must be informed of the price of their taxi trip, or how its pricing is determined, before the trip takes place. We have also issued a regulation on the total price of a taxi ride, meaning that if the price of the ride exceeds 100 euros, the driver must clearly agree on the price with the customer beforehand. The burden of proof is then on the driver, in case of any disputes,” emphasises Sillanpää. 

“We except that the taxi industry will act responsibly, and we believe that it is in the interest of the companies to serve their customers in the best way possible. We have also initiated a common taxi monitoring scheme with the police and the tax authorities that will be implemented regularly. If necessary, Traficom can also issue more detailed regulations for the taxi industry,” notes Sillanpää. 

Further information:

Marko Sillanpää, Director General of Road Transport, tel. +358 29 5345 210, marko.sillanpaa(at)traficom.fi, Twitter @MarkoSillanp
Special Adviser Hanna Strömmer, tel. +358 29 5347 053, hanna.strommer (at) traficom.fi (research)