More cabbies join Tour Taxi scheme

by Irene Taylor
THE Palma city council reports that 125 taxis have now joined its Taxi Tour scheme, and another 30 cabbies are currently sorting out the necessary paperwork. The project is run by the transport and tourism departments, and offers visitors the possibility of touring the historical city centre, while listening to explanations in various languages. The cabs which offer the service have a CD-Audio, explaining the route chosen in Spanish, Catalan, English, French, German and Italian.
At the moment, there are three routes.
The shortest one lasts an hour, costs 30 euros and goes through the historical centre.
The second route takes two hours, costs 55 euros and is longer, although it also shows off the old city centre.
The third route, at 75 euros, takes three hours and includes the Playa de Palma.
The taxis are easily identifiable as they have stickers on the sides reading TAXI TOUR and are equipped with the CD-Audios as well as leaflets showing the routes available. They will shortly have specific taxi ranks, including one at the port and one at the airport.
According to a council spokesman, a joint committee of council representatives and cabbies met recently and made a favourable report on the scheme, which was introduced last year. The cabbies are particularly interested in promoting the service at the port, now that the cruise season is starting.
The council has not ruled out introducing new routes in the future.
Taxis taking part in the scheme must be less than five years old, have panoramic windows and heating and air conditioning.