Harsher sentences are needed to combat the increasing number of attacks on taxi drivers, a representative organisation has said.

It comes after a taxi driver in his 40s was hospitalised after an alleged assault in his cab in Cork city in the early hours of Saturday morning.

Fewer young people are also entering the profession than ever, with a recent report finding that the average taxi driver in Ireland is now over 50 years old.

On Newstalk Breakfast today, Jim Waldron of the National Private Hire and Taxi Association condemned the latest attack.

“I understand the man has since been released from hospital," he said.

“But [attacks] have been common for a long time now - taxi drivers being assaulted.

“We talk regularly about the safety of passengers - which is paramount in our business - but for years we’ve been calling for the safety of our drivers to be addressed.”

Harsher sentences

Mr Waldron said harsher sentences are needed to deter perpetrators.

“We find that assaults that do get to court are treated lightly - a lot of people are getting suspended sentences, and we think this is wrong,” he said.

“We believe it should be treated as an attack on frontline workers and that it should be dealt with more severely.

“Maybe that might give some consideration to people who are thinking of assaulting a taxi driver.”

Dublin Taxi rank in City Centre, Republic of Ireland. Image: Andrew Michael / Alamy Stock Photo

Mr Waldron said the situation has “absolutely” worsened in recent years.

“We know we have to face people every night who have had too much to drink or are on drugs, and that’s part of what I would class as a violent society today,” he said.

“We can't stop it but we need to ensure that when somebody does assault a driver, they're dealt with in a severe manner.

“One of the tips that we give taxi drivers when they're starting out is to assess the passenger before they get into the car.”

Liaison officer

Mr Waldron suggested that a Garda taxi liaison officer could help.

“We'd be able to tell you exactly how many assaults have taken place on taxi drivers because we're hearing of them second-hand a lot of the time," he said.

“We would prefer if there was a specific section set up within the Gardaí to accumulate the figures and track the individuals who have assaulted taxi drivers because we don't know whether these people have done it more than once.

“Then we could probably work on how to deal with it better because we're only working on second-hand information - attacks on taxi drivers are not listed specifically as such; they’re listed as attacks on the public.”

There are around 25,000 taxi drivers registered in Ireland.

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Main image: Taxis in line at night at Temple Bar. Image: Ian Pilbeam / Alamy Stock Photo