Media Release | Taxi Council Queensland

Big Win for Queensland Cabbies on CTP

Media release
August 3, 2021

The Taxi Council of Queensland (TCQ) has welcomed the decision by the Motor Accident Insurance Commission (MAIC) to fix anomalies in Queensland’s Compulsory Third Party (CTP) scheme that have seen taxi operators paying up to $4,000 more per vehicle than their counterparts in the rest of the personalised transport sector.

Under reforms announced by MAIC:

from 1 October 2021, the “base insurer premium” that forms the substantive part of the total CTP insurance premium will be equalised for taxi sedans and wagons (Class 3), rental cars (Class 4), and booked hire vehicles (Class 26); and
from 1 July 2022, all other components of the total CTP insurance premium will be equalised for taxis, rentals and booked hire vehicles.

Currently, an ordinary Queensland cabbie (Class 3) pays 230% more each year in CTP than a full-time rideshare driver driving their own vehicle (Class 26) and that rideshare driver pay

2021 Notice of Annual General Meeting

Members are advised that the 2021 Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Taxi Council of Queensland Incorporated (TCQ) will be held as follows –

Time: 9.30am to 10.30am
Date: Monday 2 August 2021
Place: The Star Gold Coast, Broadbeach Island, Broadbeach

The Agenda for the AGM will be as follows:

Confirmation of the minutes of the 2020 Annual General Meeting
Receiving of the Annual Report
Election of the Councillors
Election of Office Bearers (President, Senior Vice President, Junior Vice President / Secretary / Treasurer)
Appointment of the Auditor
Notices of motion
General Business

All TCQ members are welcome to attend the 2021 AGM. However, only members who have pre-registered for the AGM by 4:30pm on Wednesday 28 July 2021 will be allowed admission into the meeting. To pre-register, please click here to access the AGM registration form.

If you have any issues completing pre-registration, please contact the TCQ office on (07) 3434 2100 for assistance.

Blair Davies
CEO
Taxi Council Queensland

2 July 2021

Selected Rules relating to the AGM in the TCQ Constitution
13.1 The Council of

Taxi industry says Cabbies deserve priority for COVID-19 vaccine

Media Release
February 19, 2021

With the COVID-19 vaccination set to roll out nationally within the coming days, the taxi industry has appealed to the Commonwealth and State Governments to prioritise its drivers for COVID-19 vaccinations for the collective benefit of the community.

The peak industry body, the Australian Taxi Industry Association, has recommended a similar approach be adopted to the one implemented by the US Centre for Disease Control (CDC) whereby taxi drivers and other public transit drivers are recognised as essential frontline workers.

This does not place taxi drivers ahead of the elderly, frontline medical and quarantine staff, but rather in the next high-priority category.

Mr Blair Davies, CEO of the Taxi Council of Queensland (TCQ) says, just as in the US, taxi drivers should be included in Phase 1B of the rollout, recognising them as ‘essential frontline workers’. He believes taxi drivers logically fall into this group as they provide essential mobility services

Visitors to Queensland urged to ‘grab a cab’ and support local business operators

Media Release
December 3, 2020

After eight months closed off from Australia’s most populous states, Queensland’s border restrictions lifted on Tuesday seeing 6,000 interstate visitors touch down in the Sunshine State on that day alone.

It’s a welcome sight for the frontline of the tourism industry, Queensland cabbies, who have well and truly felt the impact of reduced interstate travel during the most restrictive periods of 2020.

The Taxi Council of Queensland’s (TCQ) CEO, Blair Davies, has welcomed the State Government’s move to deliver on its promise and reunite families and welcome visitors from across the border. TCQ says travelers can have confidence that taxis are ready and waiting to help them to get to where they need to be.

“The day the borders opened was a huge milestone on the path to economic recovery,” says Mr Davies. “Cabbies all over Queensland welcomed an influx of passengers at major airports. It was a privilege to

Taxi industry urges Queenslanders to make safe travel choices this silly season

Media Release
November 27, 2020

As the year draws to a close, venues will be quickly booking up with work functions and celebrations aplenty. With the ‘silly season’ just around the corner, the taxi industry is getting ready for its busiest time of the year and its peak body, the Taxi Council of Queensland (TCQ), is issuing a timely reminder for party-goers to prioritise safety when planning their journeys to and from festivities.

TCQ CEO, Blair Davies, says grabbing a cab takes the hassle out of finding and paying for parking and removes the need for anyone to draw the short straw of designated driver. Taxis are more than just a convenient choice, it’s the extra level of safety taxis provide to passengers that makes them the obvious option when heading home after a big night out.

“As always, our drivers will be working around the clock to shuttle passengers across Queensland as social

2020 Notice of Annual General Meeting

Members are advised that the 2020 Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Taxi Council of Queensland Incorporated (TCQ) will be held as follows –
Time: 10.00am to 11.00am
Date: Wednesday 23 December 2020
Place: Zoom (virtual meeting place)

The Agenda for the AGM will be as follows:

Confirmation of the minutes of the 2019 Annual General Meeting
Receiving of the Annual Report
Election of the Councillors
Election of Office Bearers (President, Senior Vice President, Junior Vice President / Secretary / Treasurer)
Appointment of the Auditor
Notices of motion
General Business

All TCQ members are welcome to attend the AGM. However, only members who have pre-registered for the AGM by Close of Business on Friday 18 December 2020 will be able to access the meeting. If wishing to attend, please click here to fill in the online AGM registration form.

If you have any issues with the online registration, please contact the TCQ office on (07) 3434 2100.

Blair Davies

CEO

Taxi Council Queensland

24 November

Mark Bailey continues as Minister, ensuring wheels stay in motion with the taxi industry

Media release
November 13, 2020

On Wednesday, November 11, Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk unveiled her new-look Cabinet with a number of new faces, as well as continuance of many experienced ministers, including the Minister of Transport and Main Roads, Mark Bailey.

The Taxi Council of Queensland (TCQ) CEO, Blair Davies, says Minister Bailey’s retention of the transport and main roads portfolio is a ‘welcome’ development and means there will be no loss of momentum waiting on a new minister having to be brought up to speed on the industry’s issues.

“Minister Bailey has worked well with TCQ to deliver some really important programs in recent years,” says Mr Davies.

“The State Government’s $21 million funding program to rejuvenate an aging fleet of wheelchair accessible taxis (WATs) over four years is a good case in point. It is an initiative that means our industry will be able to continue offering accessible transport service levels that are

Scooting sounds like fun, but what about safety and public nuisance?

Media release
October 30, 2020

The emergence of new micro-mobility services, such as dockless electric scooters, have proved an inter-esting innovation within the transportation industry over recent years, with companies like Lime and Neu-ron Mobility pitching themselves as convenient and cost-effective mobility options for consumers. How-ever, the Taxi Council of Queensland (TCQ) is warning Local and State Governments that they need to take a more careful approach to these new technologies, and not only for the sake of protecting the safety of e-scooter users but for the wider community also.

While ‘e-scooters’ appear to have found something of a market fit in Brisbane and are now trying to do the same in Townsville, negative headlines about safety concerns continue to dominate. Overseas re-ports consistently show that e-scooter accidents not only can, but do happen and frequently result in seri-ous injuries requiring hospitalisation and sometimes result in death. They sound a warning bell for

Dear future Premier, the CTP scheme is a disaster for taxis; please fix it!

Media Release
October 23, 2020

The Taxi Council of Queensland (TCQ) is urging all political parties contesting the upcoming election to take a stand on the outrageous inequality in Queensland’s Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurance scheme, causing hardworking cabbies to pay premiums massively higher than their counterparts operating ride-sourcing vehicles.

Because of an anomaly in the current CTP scheme, taxi operators pay almost $3,000 a year more per vehicle for CTP than their competitors, despite the respective services being provided, having near identical risk profiles.

It’s an inequity that TCQ CEO, Blair Davies, says carries “no rhyme nor reason” and puts an unnecessary financial burden on Queensland small businesses that local communities rely upon for essential travel services.

About 80 per cent of the Queensland taxi fleet are hybrid sedans or wagons that are affected by the classification anomaly in the CTP scheme. The other 20 per cent are wheelchair accessible vehicles and are allocated

TCQ farewells Life Member, Ray Mitchell, may he rest in peace

11 September 2020

Members of the Taxi Council of Queensland (TCQ) are saddened as we farewell Ray Mitchell, who passed away at 91 in the early hours of Tuesday, 8 September 2020.

A Life Member of TCQ, Ray was an inspiration to many within the industry.

Ray made significant contributions to the taxi industry through his role as President of TCQ from 1991 through till 1999. As President he navigated the State through a boom of technological advancements and guided the industry though the reform period that saw the implementation of the Passenger Transport Act in 1994. In recognition of this strong commitment to the industry, Ray was honoured by his peers by being inducted as a Life Member of TCQ in 2002.

Of course there was more to Ray’s career than just taxis, having worked as a butcher, bookmaker and publican, amongst other jobs. He was even on the board of selectors for