New age limits for car rentals in North Cyprus will kill off Taxi drivers’ jobs

A proposal to lift the age limit for rental cars has met with outrage by licensed taxi drivers.

The “Amendment to the Regulation on Passenger and Freight Transportation by Motor Vehicles” has been prepared to eliminate the age limit for rental cars.

If this amendment comes into effect the maximum age limit of ten years for rental vehicles will be lifted. The vehicle licence plate will be identified with a “Z”. This means that any car of any age can be registered as a “Z” rental car.

 President of the Famagusta Taxi Drivers Association, Muhammet Biberoğlu, spoke to Kibris Postasi and said that, “The country is filled with rental cars, aren’t taxi drivers citizens of this country?“

Biberoğlu said that, fearing for their livelihood, his association had visited the Ministry of Transport on many occasions and written many letters to the ministry to plead for regulation against illegal taxi drivers.

Taxi driver’s cars are generally between 1998 and 2002 models, he said noting that, “They allowed rental cars to be imported aged between 5 and 15 years… They are trying to fill the country with rental cars“.

Biberoğlu pointed out that the forthcoming regulation for rental cars has shocked all taxi drivers, especially as third-country nationals engaged in ‘illegal’ taxi services using rental cars, are undermining the businesses of legitimate taxis.

Biberoğlu also highlighted that insurance costs for taxis have increased from 2,000 TL to 6,500 TL, asking, “Is their intention to kill taxi services? A taxi driver cannot replace their taxi, and maintenance is already expensive“. He added that the proposed ‘taxi’ laws they have suggested and requested have not been passed.

“The sector has become dead. The government should recover and clear the way for our community“, said Biberoğlu, once again requesting an extension of the age limit for legitimate taxis.

Kibris Postasi, LGC news