BY AUSTIN LYNCH
The taxi rank at Paget Lane in Enniskillen, which, it can now be revealed, members of the public shunned because it was too far away - despite it being only 100 yards from the town centre - is to be taken away. They preferred to ring for a taxi at week-ends from the busy Diamond area of the town.
The decision by the Roads Service, announced this week exclusively to the 'Herald', brings to an end the almost two-year existence of a taxi rank at this location in the town.
Although the idea of a taxi rank in the town had initially been supported by the town's taxi drivers, its location was always controversial. Women looking for a taxi felt uncomfortable that it was some distance away from the main thoroughfare but, according to the taxi drivers, the public simply weren't using the rank.
There are around a dozen taxi firms in Enniskillen and, according to Peter Hoy of Flexicabs, they all gave the taxi rank a go at the start, despite the fact that most of his company's work comes over the phone.
"It definitely would have made life easier for us if it had taken off, but the people in Enniskillen are not used to taxi ranks. They prefer that we go to them rather than them coming to us, so they ring when they want a taxi".
Over the past few months, a series of constructive meetings have been held between the Roads Service and the taxi drivers of the town, facilitated by the Community Safety Partnership. The outcome was that the taxi rank, at Paget Lane, was in the wrong place. This conclusion, however, doesn't affect any future possibility of Enniskillen getting a taxi rank and it was widely agreed, by those involved in these discussions, that a taxi rank is still a good idea.
A spokesperson for the Roads Service in Enniskillen explained that, initially, the taxi rank had been introduced as part of the 'Get Home Safe' initiative in co-ordination with the Community Safety Partnership.
"The Roads Service were involved in painting the lines, erecting the signs and putting the legislation in place for the taxi rank. The problem was, the taxi rank wasn't used by the public," the spokesperson explained.
The Roads Service were then asked to provide additional lighting, additional signage and a new footpath was put in place but, still, the public didn't seem to warm to the idea.
The spokesperson put down that reluctance to, 'a cultural thing', in that people were too used to ringing a taxi from their mobile phone and they couldn't get used to the idea of walking down to a taxi rank and waiting for a taxi, this, despite the ideal location of the rank so close to the Diamond and the centre of Enniskillen town centre.
"The rank simply wasn't being used and the Roads Service are currently in the process of removing it - and revoking the legislation.", he added.
But, the Paget Lane location could yet serve a useful purpose as Roads Service are currently looking into a request from local Councillors to turn the former taxi rank into a coach drop-off point.
"The Roads Service have been asked to consider this", their spokesman confirmed, " providing, effectively a bus stop where tour buses could drop off people visiting the town close to the town centre,".
This proposal could provide a limited waiting time (say 15 minutes) for coaches and tour buses to drop off their passengers before driving down to the Shore Road car park. The coaches could then return to pick-up at allocated times, leaving people closer to the centre of the town with all the potential commercial and tourist benefits this might have.
"This could be of benefit to all coach passengers, especially the elderly and disabled visitors, and it would also remove the need for visitors to cross the busy Wellington Road to gain access to the town centre.", the Roads Service spokesman added.
