The dispute between taxi drivers and tour operators has resurfaced and this time it has resulted in inconvenience to visitors expecting quality transportation service.
The latest incident involves guests arriving by cruise ship at the Lucayan Harbour yesterday reportedly being advised by a Road Traffic representative to exit the bus of a tour operator, even though the passengers had prepaid transportation arrangements with the local company.
According to Almondo Talbot, owner of Tawanna Tours, he was only following a formal agreement which states he has to notify the Road Traffic Department of various VIP groups coming to the island who have booked travel arrangements in advance with his tour company.
“That is why I am so upset about this, because I have been following all along what the agreement says that I must do,” Mr. Talbot said. “Before I put the people on the bus, in front of all the other taxi drivers, I asked the folks if they were VIP people to prove that I was not lying. This was embarrassing for me and the tourists, but nevertheless, I complied just to satisfy the people who think that I am doing something wrong.”
The current situation centres around a major dispute that has been brewing for some time and involves an agreement formulated about three years ago between the Grand Bahama Taxi Union, the Tour Operators Association of Grand Bahama and the Grand Bahama Port Authority (GBPA). According to the agreement, both the Grand Bahama International Airport and the Freeport Harbour were to be open to tour buses for pre-arranged transfer of tourists.
Previously, the airport and the harbour were the exclusive domain of taxi drivers, but as a result of accord brokered by the GBPA, tour buses were to be allowed access to the airport and harbour for pre-arranged transfers. The move was to provide adequate ground transportation for visitors to Grand Bahama.
However, this plan for harmony among the two entities was short-lived as tour operators and taxi drivers continue to stand their ground on who should take the greater share of the transportation pie.
Speaking with The Freeport News on the situation, Road Traffic Deputy Director Stephanie Rahming said according to the agreement between the parties, the Road Traffic Department (RTD) shall maintain order at all ports of entry and tour operators in terms of their pre-arranged transfers may offer business to other tour operators provided that the Grand Bahama Taxi Union is informed in advance. Road Traffic in turn, is responsible for preparing these approvals and advising all the relevant parties of the movement.
Addressing the issue of Mr. Talbot, Ms. Rahming said that a concern has been lodged by the Grand Bahama Taxi Union with the Dispute Resolution Committee in regards to Mr. Talbot and his operation relative to the agreement. The committee has yet to state or make a suggestion on the matter.
Ms. Rahming said Mr. Talbot did indeed send a request to the RTD for his movement yesterday, but that she was unable to respond to it because certain things were not clear as to the conduct of his operation. She said Mr. Talbot told her that he would come into the RTD office along with representatives from the union and Discovery so that they could all deal with the situation. This did not happen she said, thus an approval was not prepared.
“I got a call from the harbour stating that Mr. Talbot’s guests were boarding the bus, I advised my officers that there was no approval to place persons on his bus,” she said. “If there is any dispute according to this agreement, then it is taken to the Dispute Resolutions Committee until the matter is resolved. The matter with Mr. Talbot has not been resolved.”
Mr. Talbot said he is very upset about the whole situation because he has also been accused by certain union members of falsifying coupons or arranging for transportation of visitors while they are on board the cruise ship. “I have been accused of having tickets printed up on board the cruise ship and not having prepaid bookings,” he said. “This he said is impossible.”
“I believe that Ms. Rahming should have notified her office down there before I began to put the people on the bus,” he said. “They should have come to me and say, ‘Look here, you cannot put nobody on this bus today because Ms. Rahming did not approve it.’ However, she did not do that. So it ended up being an embarrassing experience for the guests.”
By LISA S. KING, FN Asst. Editor
