Taxi customers in Thuringia have to dig much deeper into their pockets. Many municipalities have adjusted the tariffs. In East Thuringia, however, the taxi companies have problems driving to cover their costs.
Erfurt (dpa/th) - Taxi rides in Thuringia have become massively more expensive due to the high cost pressure in the industry. In many regions of the Free State, prices were increased by 20 to 25 percent this year, as the general manager of the Thuringia state association of the transport industry, Martin Kammer, told the German Press Agency. In addition to the fuel prices and high acquisition and maintenance costs for the vehicles, the increased minimum wage in particular weighed on the companies. The gross minimum wage was raised to twelve euros per hour in October.
"If personnel and vehicle costs rise, this has to be passed on through higher prices," said Kammer. Tariff adjustment requests have therefore been made in all regions. The basis for the prices for taxi rides is the tariff system, which is set by the districts and urban districts.
"In the Saale-Holzland district, the situation for the taxi companies is now threatening to exist because the district administrator did not follow our tariff recommendation and the fares were not increased," criticized Kammer. In Jena, too, the journeys are not yet cost-covering because the price increase was not sufficient to cover the higher minimum wages. According to the chamber in Jena, five kilometers of city driving have increased in price by 2.20 euros to 18.70 euros. "We thought EUR 22.90 was necessary."
The companies that could not regulate their cost increases through prices would have to live on the reserves. "However, these melted together during the corona pandemic," said the managing director.
Chamber referred, among other things, to the high vehicle prices. For example, up to 15,000 euros more would have to be paid for a new car within a year. Another problem is the lack of taxi drivers. It is difficult to find skilled workers. In some cases, the demand at times of low traffic such as weekdays in the evenings or on Sundays and public holidays cannot always be met.
