Taxi fares have now been officially raised, but some Corporate Area taxi drivers were informally charging passengers higher fares in the face of rising operating costs, ahead of the announcement of a staggered fare hike for drivers by Transport Minister Daryl Vaz on Tuesday.

The long-delayed 16 per cent rate increase owed to public passenger vehicle (PPV) operators by the Government since 2023 was officially approved in two batches of eight per cent over June and July 2026.

But some cabbies told the Observer they had already implemented an increase.

Those operators argue that the unauthorised adjustments, which vary across routes, were made as the regulated fares prior to the increase were unsustainable in the existing economic climate characterised by rising fuel and maintenance costs.

“We take fare increase two times already without anybody giving us increase,” said a hackney carriage operator on the Half Way Tree to Spanish Town route who only identified himself as ‘Shortman’.

Another hackney operator on the same route, Junior, explained: “When we were supposed to get the 16 per cent, the last increase they didn’t give it to us, they put it on pause, but the driver[s] already gone ahead and put it on it.”

In 2023, the government approved a 35 per cent fare increase for operators, but up to June 1 had only delivered on its first phase of 19 per cent.

The remaining 16 per cent was scheduled to take effect in April of 2024, but the Government last month asked for more time to finalise its decision, culminating in the June 2 announcement of the staggered increase.

However, with some cabbies having already implemented the unauthorised increases, there was a lack of consensus within the public transport sector between operators who had maintained the regulated fares and those who had hiked their prices illegally.

The upshot is that some cabbies argue for the formal fare hike while others are against it.

“I would be joyful for the little increase because its only bus fare and taxi fare alone take long to raise in Jamaica, and when it raise nuff people [fight against] it…but it’s because they don’t know the cost of a vehicle to maintain,” Dennis, a driver of over 27 years who operates on the Papine to Half Way Tree route, told the Observer. “Even people who own a private vehicle, sometimes if you’re not rich, you can’t afford two tyres one time.”

A driver who identified himself as Lloyd, on the Half-Way Tree to Papine route, told the Jamaica Observer: “Obviously, we would be interested in getting the 16 per cent because gas prices have been constantly rising since the Iran war started. We are paying more for stuff; tyre raise, oil raise and all these things to do with the car raise.”

Another cabbie, who identified himself as Richie, shared a similar sentiment even while expressing solidarity with passengers who are also having it tough amid rising costs.

However, commenting on the operations of route taxis, Shortman was against the formal increase being applied.

“Some of them want increase, but I don’t see what the increase is about right now because most of them aren’t collecting the recommended [fare]; everybody [collecting more] it so what are you bawling for an increase for?” he questioned.

On some routes, covered either by route taxis or hackney carriages, commuters were already being asked to pay increased fares where the Transport Authority lists fares as lower, the Observer was told.

Multiple drivers who spoke to the Observer indicated that with their fares already informally set at $200, which they say passengers are willing to pay, they were not currently interested in more.

Junior, who is against an increase being applied by the government at this time, also cautioned that the implementation of the 16 per cent rise in fare, some drivers might start charging 16 per cent in addition to the already informally hiked prices.

“Based on what’s going on, yeah, that’s what they are gonna do because if they are standing [up for] an increase obviously they are gonna add more to it, which it’s not supposed to be because they already took the increase,” he said.
Whether they were interested in a fare increase or not, by far the most common concern from the drivers who spoke to the Observer was increasing fuel prices worldwide.

Geopolitical tensions have resulted in fuel prices increasing by more than 25 per cent locally since the start of the year, and the National Council of Taxi Associations have noted that operational costs were eating up 60 per cent of the drivers’ income

“The little raise, if it is going on, it can go on, but we would love the price of the gas to come back down, every week gas raise,” Dennis said, adding “Everybody say taxi and bus make money but it’s gone back. Gone back into gas, anywhere sells auto parts, that’s where the money is gone back.”

While split on whether the 16 per cent increase on fares should have been applied, all the cabbies expressed empathy for the passengers.

“I still have to remember the people, minimum wage no raise, and they still haven’t gotten any money yet,” Richie said. “Sometimes people take the car, and they don’t have the $200, so we still nah disrespect them.”

Another cabbie who identified himself as Howard Livingston, operating on the Half Way Tree to Papine route, added: “Things are getting very expensive, oil, parts, tyres and such, but at the end of the day we have to consider that the world is going through an oil crises and the government has nothing to do with what is going on…we as the taxi operators can consider both the government and the passengers.”

Dennis, a longtime Taxi Operator on the Papine to Half Way Tree route, says while the increase interests him, Gas prices are more pressing.

Taxi Operator on the Papine to Half Way Tree route, Lloyd said he was interested in the increase while indicating he would not overly pressure passengers

Howard Livingston operates on the Papine to Half Way Tree route