The owner of an Arrowtown taxi company that’s bought a company comprising former ‘scab cab’ cabbies promises they’ll behave.
Arrowtown Taxis Ltd’s bought NZ QT Taxi Ltd, formed last December by independent cabbies trying to differentiate themselves from one-man operators who’ve developed a bad reputation in Queenstown for rip-off fares.
The new company didn’t fare well, though.
In January, it stood down a driver for displaying a sticker of a turban-wearing man wielding a gun.
That same month, Queenstown Taxis threatened the company with legal action over its ‘‘confusingly similar’’ name, and alleged misrepresentation and poaching.
Arrowtown Taxis owner Raman Singh confirms he’s now bought NZ QT Taxi and, as of this week, its 12-strong fleet’s all come under his company banner.
It also means his fleet’s now effect ively doubled in size.
Singh says though NZ QT Taxi was a breakaway company, ‘‘because they came from that private side, they got a bit of a backlash out of Queenstown [customers]’’.
Under their new banner, ‘‘they’re coming from the bad side to the good side’’.
‘‘I knew from day one I am taking on people [who] had a bad reputation.’’
He’s totally confident the leopard’s changed its spots, however.
The former NZ QT Taxi cabs now have the same meter system Queenstown Taxis has, he says, and ‘‘we are monitoring everything from the back end’’.
‘‘We have a system that we can see who’s doing what, at what time — everything is getting recorded, everything is being surveillanced.
‘‘There is a very robust system in place to deal with any issues.’’
Singh’s also extensively trained his new drivers — ‘‘with everybody I’ve done it twice, one-on-one’’.
He says he’s built a good reputation over three years, and will work ‘‘twice as hard to maintain it’’.
Anyone breaking rank, as it were, will be banned for two years, Singh says.
Because of the company’s reputation, it’s now allowed to operate from the airport, he confirms.
Mountain Scene this week spotted the former NZ QT Taxi ‘terrorist’ cab operating at the airport under an Arrowtown Taxis toplight.
That driver had made ‘‘a bad decision’’, Singh says, but he now has confidence in him — however, as a result of this issue, he isn’t allowing his cabbies to display any additional stickers or signage.
Queenstown Taxis boss Grant Scannell’s happy the former independent cabbies are now under the umbrella of a reputable company.
He’s still concerned, however, over the proliferation of so-called ‘scab cabs’.
As president of the Small Passenger Service Association, formerly the New Zealand Taxi Federation, he’s lobbying hard to put an end to rip-off practices.
“Obviously, coming into winter, we’re going to have a lot of guests into the town, so hopefully we can get the ball rolling and get things tidied up.”
Corporate Cabs snaps up Green Cabs fleet
Queenstown’s Green Cabs has changed hands.
Corporate Cabs, which also owns Switch, a fully-electric premium taxi fleet, acquired Green Cabs on April 1.
The latter became a casualty of Covid — the nationwide company went into liquidation in May, 2020, then re-emerged under the ownership of the company’s former South Island area manager, Graham Hadley, that August.
Corporate Cabs CEO Cameron Allison (pictured) says they’ve got a Green Cabs fleet of 12, with plans to expand.
The parent company’s also going to roll out new technology solutions, which include a range of booking options, from web and app-based solutions to a locally-run and managed call centre.
Allison says due to the deregulation of the industry and introduction of independent taxis, ‘‘some customers are taken advantage of’’.
‘‘We believe in paying a fair fare.
‘‘This means giving customers peace of mind by having a locally-based management and team members to deal with any inquiry that may be made.’’
