Warrnambool taxi company apologises for staff shortages, delays

Andrew Watson, owner of Warrnambool Radio Taxis, said it had been extremely difficult to find taxi drivers in recent years.

He admitted it had resulted in many people waiting for long periods of time for a taxi to arrive.

"People book a car and we haven't been able to get it there in the appropriate time frame," Mr Watson said.

"It's frustrating for clients and it's frustrating for us - we just haven't had enough drivers."

Mr Watson said the difficulty in recruiting drivers came during the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Ever since COVID it's been really difficult," he said.

"The government gave out a number of subsidies and some people seemed to prefer to sit at home.

"There are so many businesses that have been affected by shortages."

Mr Watson said finding drivers had never been an issue in the past.

"In the past we often had people wanting to drive but we didn't have the shifts to give them," he said.

Mr Watson said he appreciated the patience of loyal clients during the challenging time.

"We apologise to anyone who has experienced a delay," he said.

"Hopefully our service will improve as we increase our driver numbers."

Mr Watson said the company had recently employed a number of new drivers.

This prompted Warrnambool Radio Taxis to invest in two more vehicles, he said.

He said the two vehicles were expected to be on the road in coming weeks, which would take its fleet to 14. Mr Watson said he was confident the business would be able to reduce wait times with the extra vehicles.

He said he was pleased the company had a number of new drivers, but there were still roles available if anyone was interested.

Mr Watson spoke to The Standard about the lack of drivers in 2021.

"Drivers are a scarce commodity at the moment," he said at the time.

Mr Watson said it was the first time in three decades he had experienced the issue.

"Years ago we had more drivers than we had jobs," he said.

A Portland taxi company is also being affected by a shortage of drivers.

IN OTHER LOCAL NEWS:

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can access our trusted content: