Aberdeen Airport taxi drivers say they are being treated “like debt collectors” as they protest a new fee to be charged to passengers.
More than 20 drivers switched off their ignitions today to fight against a price increase for those looking for a taxi from the airport.
The new system will force drivers to pass on a £7 charge for customers looking for a cabbie from the Dyce runway.
Drivers were told by airport staff today that they would not be able to clock on for work unless they agreed to the new rules.
The subsequent protest – staged at a nearby park-and-ride – left people arriving in the city today facing ‘huge queues’ at terminals.
Aberdeen airport at standstill with taxi protesters
Representative for the protest, and cabbie for over 25 years, Iain Hamilton said talks between drivers and the airport are at a standstill.
He said: “We were told if we hadn’t signed up to this new payment scheme by today then we weren’t allowed to work at the airport.
“But it is worth it to prove a point to them. These airport charges are getting out of hand.”
He added: “We have had three meetings with the airport. We as taxi drivers held the meeting with them first to see if we could have an amicable agreement.
“The airport listened to us but then just ignored us completely.
“We have since made two attempts to meet but they have refused to speak to us.
“We have given them a few different alternatives, but they have came back and said we haven’t.
“All of the drivers in the protest have agreed that all future talks with the airport must involve the union representative.
“That is the stumbling block essentially – they will not listen to us if the union rep is there.”
‘We are doing it for the public’
Aberdeen Airport has a fleet of specially registered drivers who have exclusive rights to pick up at the rank.
They are self-employed and used to pay £200 a week for access, but that has now been dropped.
Now anyone getting into an airport taxi has to pay £7, which is handed back to the airport.
The drivers says it feels like the airport is trying to squeeze every last penny out of passengers.
Andrew Mulloy from Balmedie, a cabbie for more than 41 years, claimed that he and his colleagues are acting as “debt collectors” for the airport.
He said: “Every time we go through the barrier, they charge us £7 and we must pass that on to the customer – essentially making us into their debt collector.
“I don’t know any other time where we have been asked to collect someone else’s money, it doesn’t make any sense.
“We are all losing money here today at this protest and potentially into the rest of this week.
“But we are doing it for the sake of the public.
“If the airport wants to charge people for walking through the terminal, then they can go ahead – but don’t ask us to collect the money for them.”
‘We’ve been left with no choice’
Iain said he couldn’t guarantee the protest wouldn’t fall on deaf ears but that they “had been left with no choice.”
“We don’t know how this protest will turn out now – but we know the one we staged last month hurt them,” he continued.
“We don’t want to be affecting the passengers, but we think that this is the only way to get our message across to them.
“We have been left with no other choice.”
Aberdeen Airport released a statement asking those affected for patience while the protest continues.
A spokesman for Aberdeen International Airport said: “We have plans in place to minimise the impact on customer service.
“We appreciate our customers’ patience in any circumstance where a longer than the normal wait time is experienced.”
Conversation