The price of a taxi ride will only increase slightly in the near future with the rapidly rising fuel prices. Drivers must adhere to a national maximum price. They are often close by, which means that extra costs can hardly be passed on to the customer. Because a new maximum will only be set at the beginning of next year, "drivers are very stuck", says trade association Royal Dutch Transport (KNV).

According to a spokesperson, it will no longer be profitable as the margins in the sector were already small. "So then you won't be able to drive anymore and you'll be the loser." He says drivers are now looking to accelerate the transition to an electric car. “But that is very difficult, because they have had two difficult years.” The Dutch went out less often due to the corona virus and the number of foreign tourists also fell far. TaxiThey received less money, making it more difficult to invest in an electric car.

Hedy Borreman, general manager of Taxi Central Amsterdam (TCA). “Where possible, we help a bit, for example with lease contracts. But a large part of our fleet is already electric.” Where those drivers previously might have been slightly more expensive than diesel drivers, "that balance can now turn completely the other way," says Borreman. “Current prices may be the last straw for some to stop altogether after two bad years.”

A discount during off-peak hours has been canceled in Amsterdam to somewhat offset the extra costs. At other times of the day the price was already at the maximum and therefore no extra money can be earned. The price of pre-ordered taxi rides could still rise, but “we would price ourselves out of the market”, says Borreman. "It's a split we're in."

KNV says it is pressing for a new maximum price to be set more quickly or to abandon it altogether. That that happens is, according to the spokesman, "not very realistic".

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