Berlin taxis at BER: The guild wants to simplify ride bookings via geozones

The Berlin taxi trade guild advocates for a new regulation governing the pickup of passengers at Berlin Brandenburg Airport (BER). After the Dahme-Spreewald district terminated the previous transport agreement, Berlin taxis may as of January 1 only pick up passengers at the airport on demand. The guild therefore proposes the establishment of a so-called geozone in the airport vicinity. This would ensure that Berlin taxi companies continue to have quick access to booked airport rides.

Geozone is intended to facilitate digital taxi dispatch

The concept envisages a geographically defined area near the airport where Berlin taxi drivers can wait for transport orders. Once a passenger orders a taxi, an available vehicle from this zone could drive to the terminal.

The digital dispatch is intended to help bring together passengers and available taxis in the airport vicinity more precisely. The geographic proximity to the airport could shorten the travel distances for booked vehicles.

The guild has formulated the proposal in a letter to Berlin's MPs Tino Schopf of the SPD and Kristian Ronneburg of the Left. According to the guild chairman Leszek Nadolski, the exact geographical delimitation of the proposed zone has not yet been determined.

The advocacy group calls on the possible future Berlin coalition partners to examine, together with the state of Brandenburg and the airport company, the establishment of such a zone.

Existing agreement for 1,100 taxis ends

The background to the initiative is the termination of the existing transport agreement between the state of Berlin and the Dahme-Spreewald district as of the end of the year. It previously regulated the access of Berlin and Brandenburg taxis to the airport.

Under the agreement, a total of up to 1,100 taxis were allowed to wait for passengers at the airport and pick them up. Of these, 550 permissions were allocated to vehicles from Berlin and 550 to vehicles from the Dahme-Spreewald district. The corresponding licenses were regularly awarded by lottery for a fixed period.

With the end of the agreement, from 1 January the previous option for Berlin taxis to wait for passengers at the airport without a prior booking will no longer apply. In the future, they may only pick up passengers who have previously specifically ordered a ride. This can, for example, be done via a digital ride-hailing platform or by telephone.

District cites declining demand

The Dahme-Spreewald district justifies the termination with the decreased taxi demand at the airport. According to the district administration, taxi drivers at the airport currently often have to endure waiting times of more than three hours before they receive a transport order.

With the end of the previous agreement, the district aims to improve the economic conditions for taxi companies under its jurisdiction.