White taxis propose moving ride-hailing pick-up 260m from airport

White taxi operators are proposing that passengers who book ride-hailing cabs from the airport should be required to walk 260 metres away from the arrivals terminal to a designated pick-up point near the Kirkop tunnels.

The Malta Taxi Licensed Association (MTLA) argued that white taxis are at a disadvantage due to the “unregulated presence of Y-plate vehicles” at Malta International Airport.

As a group, white taxis pay around €130,000 annually to have their own stand at the arrivals hall.

“This change would restore competitive fairness, reinforce the value of the airport taxi licence, improve traffic flow, and reduce passenger confusion,” the white taxis association said in a proposal seen by Times of Malta.

It follows a joint statement by the MTLA and the Light Passenger Operators Association (LPOA) yesterday, in which they flagged vehicle congestion at the airport as a “serious issue”.

Currently, drivers for ride-hailing services like Uber, Bolt and eCabs can only accept rides if they are located 250 metres away from the airport but they are still allowed to pick up passengers from arrivals once a ride is booked.

The MTLA is proposing that rather than picking up their passengers in front of arrivals at the airport, Y-plate cabs should have designated parking spaces along the 280-metre stretch of road that leads towards the Kirkop tunnels.

This location they are proposing would start 260 metres from the airport, which the MTLA says is only a three-minute walk. Passengers whose cab is parked further along the road would need to walk further. 

What this means is that passengers who book a Y-plate, will need to walk from arrivals, past Skyparks and a petrol station, before arriving at the main road.

From there, the association is proposing that the stretch of road leading to Kirkop tunnels could offer up to 70 parking spaces including charging points for electric vehicles, rather than the 10 parking pick-up points located at arrivals.

Since the proposed pick-up points fall outside the current 250-metre no-waiting zone, Y-plates would be allowed to wait there, the MTLA said.

This new location will solve the alleged congestion issues and “improve the overall airport experience,” the MTLA claim.

The MTLA is also asking Transport Malta to implement geofencing technology, which uses GPS to indicate the boundaries of an area on a map, to “monitor and regulate vehicle activity within the designated airport zone”.

Last June Transport Malta asked ride-hailing platforms to introduce a new ride acceptance radius of around 250 metres in areas like the airport, the road next to the Phoenicia Hotel and Valletta cruise port.

Times of Malta contacted Bolt, Uber and eCabs for comment.

A Bolt spokesperson told Times of Malta it supports any solution that ensures passengers’ right to access reliable and quality mobility services to and from the airport, while promoting the coexistence of all existing transport options within the airport mobility ecosystem.