Sunyani Cabbies withdraw services

...following commuters' refusal to pay increases

Some taxi drivers in Sunyani have withdrawn their services following the refusal of passengers to pay the new fares they were demanding in the wake of the hike in fuel prices.

Commuters on the Penkwase-Sunyani route have insisted on paying 1,000 cedis instead of the 1,500 cedis the drivers were demanding as the new fare and which they have been charging since the announcement of the increases.

Before the announcement, taxi drivers on the route were charging 700 cedis.

The few drivers who are charging the 1,000 cedis, however, spoke against the 100 per cent increase, saying, "we are left with almost nothing after making the daily sales to our vehicle owners".

Some passengers, including workers in state institutions now prefer to walk to their various destinations and workplaces because they could not afford the new fares the drivers are demanding and this is adversely affecting productivity with associated lateness and weariness.

Even though we knew the price of fuel would be increased, we were not expecting a hundred percent increase, one of he drivers said and urged the government "to do something about it".

Meanwhile the taxi drivers are taking 5,000 cedis for a "dropping" service within Sunyani. The charge was 3,000 cedis before the hike in fuel prices.