The taxi industry is changing a lot, with the advent of apps such as My Taxi (formerly Hailo) and Uber.
What does this mean for the future of the industry in Ireland?
Kieran Harte, General Manager of Uber Ireland, talked about what makes his company different: "In Ireland there are 1.9 million cars on the road and only about 20,000 of those are taxis. The aim of Uber is to try and turn as many of the private cars as possible into public good, which gives people greater reliability."
James Maguire of the Irish Taxi Drivers Federation says that such apps have had a positive impact on certain areas of the industry. "The communications end of the taxi business has gone from 30 per cent efficiency to 90 per cent."
At the same time, James says that about 6,000 taxis are now off the roads due to lack of finance. As a taxi driver himself, he has experienced his fair share of difficulties.
"I've had hard times. I've gone through so many recessions - 2008 to 2015 would have been the hardest. I remember waiting four hours at the airport for a job."
Listen to the full interview below:
