As lockdown restrictions are further easing, the pent-up taxi demands are back and are gathering faster in cities of the UK.
In London, taxi fleets, booking apps, and payment solution providers share positive results based on app and card payment bookings.
A spokesperson from Cabvision said: “Another encouraging set of data from yesterday giving us further encouragement for a busy Bank Holiday weekend.
“Our data has been showing that Mondays and Tuesdays remain subdued but that all other days recovering well. Still some way to go but poverty earnings appears behind us.”
Yesterday Cabvision also said: “Have no idea on all work levels but between Jan – May, transaction levels have increased by 600%. Wednesday to Sunday are now consistently respectable days. We still have some way to go but when we wave goodbye to final restrictions driver earnings should quickly bounce back to pre-COVID.”
Right from mid-April, there is a surge in card payments. “JOBWATCH… 30,000+ busted on FRIDAY 28/5/21 by 1 out of the 4 no report on cash APPS and radio circuit job numbers,” Colts Cabs, one of London’s largest taxi companies, claimed on social media.
“Let’s put it down to Pay Day. London is definitely returning to some form of normality!”
According to FREE NOW’s research, demand in the UK has increased by 38% week on week. The firm is now looking to hire 10,000 more drivers as national limitations loosen and social mobility increases in order to satisfy the increasing demand that is expected to persist after the UK reopens fully.
Mariusz Zabrocki, General Manager FREE NOW UK, said: “Since England moved from stage 2 to 3 in the lockdown roadmap, taxi journey numbers on the FREE NOW app are approaching pre-pandemic levels, with daily volumes fluctuating around 90% of values from early March 2020, before the first lockdown.
“Demonstrating a level of increased confidence amongst Brits, there has been a 150% increase in rides compared to the earlier stage of the lockdown in April. On 17 May, bookings between 5 and 6pm skyrocketed 107% week-on -week, as people could go to an indoor restaurant or a pub after work for the first time since early November.
Reasons for this Surge
One of the major reasons behind this is people are moving out to meet friends and family. Although social distancing measures remain in place, these variables appear to have loosened demand and the economy. The early boom that occurred in the initial weeks of the limitations being eased appears to have peaked, but there is now hope as we wait for the next level of restrictions to be eased.