A COMMITTEE has been formed by the Commissioner Western's Office to look into the issue of touting of passengers and private vehicles illegally operating as taxis in Lautoka.
This was revealed by the Commissioner Western, Commander Joeli Cawaki at the Fiji Taxi Association's Lautoka branch annual general meeting yesterday.
The committee will be led by Cdr Cawaki and consist of members of the Fiji Police Force, Land Transport Authority, Lautoka City Council and the Fiji Taxi Association.
FTA president, Raben Bhan Singh said illegal operators were a growing problem in Lautoka City.
"This is something that all authorities concerned need to address and I am grateful to the Commissioner Western for taking the step in the right direction by setting up this committee," he said.
"I will also be part of this committee and one of the things we will also address is when cruise liners arrive into Lautoka.
"Tourists coming into the Lautoka port will always be a positive sign for businesses and also for taxis. We want to ensure that these tourists, if they demand for a taxi, get serviced by only Lautoka-based taxis."
Mr Singh said the issue of touting by other taxi operators from other districts was also a concern for the association.
According to the LTA Act for Public Service Vehicles, taxis are only allowed to enter another district if they are transporting the passenger from their base to that district and upon their return to their base, if a passenger is also travelling back, then they can also hire them. No taxi is allowed to go to another district without a passenger.
He said the committee will meet on a monthly-basis to discuss issues concerning taxis in Lautoka.
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