Valencia airport taxi drivers on strike all this week

Most of the 300 cabbies who operate from the terminal at Manises have downed tools until Saturday this week inclusive in a protest backed by three unions.

They are picketing over the regional government's decision to impose a flat rate for journeys from the airport into the city of 20 euros, or 23 euros for the port and beach area.

Drivers say this is 'unfair' on them, because it does not take into account late-night or early-hours runs, Sundays or bank holidays.

They also say it is unfair on many passengers whose fee, according to the taxi mileage meter, would otherwise be only a fraction of the 20-euro minimum.

The most 'equitable' measure would be to impose a minimum tariff of 'about 18 euros' and then from 2.7 kilometres away from the airport onwards, for it to increase in line with the actual destination and the traffic conditions, say drivers.

Cabbies have been particularly hard-hit by the financial crisis, tax hikes and funding cuts.

Last year alone, they automatically lost three per cent of their takings because of IVA having gone up in September 2012, and another 10 per cent when 'Zone B' was scrapped.

And now, they are likely to lose an average of two euros per journey with the flat rate.

They have called for an 'urgent' meeting with the regional ministry of transport to negotiate and say they will continue to strike until a solution is reached.

Valencia airport sees around 4.5 million passengers a year, or about 12,300 a day and, although not all of them use the taxi service, those who live in or near the city or who are visiting it on holiday often do so for convenience, especially if they are weighed down with suitcases.

A metro station inside the airport and close to arrivals takes passengers straight to the centre of the city for a cost of just under five euros for a single trip, and with the Xàtiva metro stop being just outside the city's North Station, from which national and regional trains run, the underground is a frequent choice for travellers who either live further out in the province or have planned holidays out of the city.

But for the disabled, those with piles of luggage or with young children, the metro journey can be a hassle.

Also, for families or groups of more than four people who are travelling together, it costs more to take the metro than to share a cab.

Although passengers have been complaining that minimum services are not being provided, drivers insist that they have done so depending upon individual cases.

Yesterday, a woman who had just arrived on a flight was ill and needed to go to hospital, and a taxi driver provided the transport.