Taxi drivers will go on strike starting Tuesday, January 13, as announced by the president of the Attica Taxi Drivers’ Union (SATA), Thymios Lymperopoulos. The strike will take the form of rolling 48-hour stoppages, with no specified end date.

“Every day we will have demonstrations on Kavala Avenue until Mr. Kyranakis meets with us,” Lymperopoulos said, referring to the taxi drivers’ mobilizations.

The core point of contention is the compulsory shift to electric mobility.

Specifically, Lymperopoulos stressed that the operating cost of an electric vehicle reaches €0.14 per kilometer, while diesel costs approximately €0.08 per kilometer. At the same time, the purchase price of an electric car is €15,000 to €20,000 higher than that of an internal combustion vehicle.

The taxi drivers’ demands are as follows:

• Extension of the mandatory and abrupt transition to electric vehicles until 2035, accompanied by a viable transition plan.
• Clear separation between the services provided by taxis and chauffeur-driven rental vehicles.
  “With a private hire vehicle, the passenger purchases time for their transport. For this reason, we propose a minimum hire fee of €150 plus VAT for this service across the entire country. Transport from point A to point B is a service that belongs to taxis,” Lymperopoulos stated.
• Addressing unfair competition caused by multinational ride-hailing applications, particularly affecting radio taxi services.
• Right for occupied taxis to use dedicated traffic lanes (bus lanes).
• Taxation: Fair tax treatment and an end to what the union describes as a “tax onslaught.”