Restrictions at Ercan Airport for Commercial Vehicles

elko2



Joined: 24/07/2007
Posts: 4400

Message Posted:
03/10/2011 11:18

A taxi driver phoned in to a live radio show this morning and told his story.

A group of British Expats travelled from Paphos to Ercan and from there went to Antalya to play baseball last week. Did the Brits play anything other than cricket I wondered but that's beside the point. The group returned this morning to Ercan and the same minibus from Paphos came to pick them up. The police warned the driver that only Kib-has has a licence to pick up passengers within the boundaries of Ercan. So after much discussion the TC taxi driver who phoned in helped to carry the group free of charge to outside the perimeters of Ercan and then they transferred to the minibus. The much frightened GC minibus driver vowed never again.

ismet

tomsteel


Joined: 22/06/2009
Posts: 482

Message Posted:
03/10/2011 11:29

Madness, absolute madness!!

Carndi


Joined: 12/06/2009
Posts: 613

Message Posted:
03/10/2011 12:05

Will there now be ' tit for tat ' at Larnaca and Paphos for those from the TRNC ?

If there is then we can not complain. From little acorns.

bigOz


Joined: 29/09/2010
Posts: 1244

Message Posted:
03/10/2011 12:32

İsmet; You are aware there are two types of police in TRNC - this one is probably a converted cousin that happened to live here more than 5 years and sees any agreement or softening with GCs as a threat to his position.

It is not true that Kıbhas has monopoly over delivering passengers to Ercan! All major hotels (even many minor ones) have their own minibuses picking up and delivering passengers.

Now, if it was a big coach, then the driver is wrong in not seeking prior permission for passengers coming from Paphos/Larnaca - which he would have probably been given by the Airport authority, and it would have enabled him to stick it in the policeman's face.

elko2



Joined: 24/07/2007
Posts: 4400

Message Posted:
03/10/2011 13:04

BigOz,

As far as I know the hotels in TRNC had a long struggle to be allowed to collect their customers from Ercan and their main argument was that they did not carry these people for gain i.e. they did not charge them for transport. So Kib-Has is the only body that has license to transport passengers by minibus or coach from Ercan.



It is true that some policemen may turn a blind eye but in the name of more tourists passing through Ercan we should have more elastic or creative laws to allow such cases. Of course if this happens, then we will have TRNC operators complaining about allowing ROC minibuses or coaches to operate but not TRNC registered ones. What will you say to that?

ismet

mmmmmm



Joined: 19/12/2008
Posts: 8398

Message Posted:
03/10/2011 13:16

Fair play to the taxi driver...



If there is such an agreement - it is 'silly' and Cyprus being Cyprus, I hope there isn't a negative 'reaction' from the 'south' ...



The rules need revising ..

bigOz


Joined: 29/09/2010
Posts: 1244

Message Posted:
03/10/2011 22:20

İsmet;

The argument would then be Kıbhas or any other TC coach company does not run a paid service to Greek side. Hence it does not cause any loss of revenue to the licensee - it is a kind of "force majeure" if you like

bigOz


Joined: 29/09/2010
Posts: 1244

Message Posted:
03/10/2011 22:32

Just to make that clearer, "force majeure" is a condition usually used in shipping/transport contracts but is also used in many other areas. There are three factors that allows this clause to be used and the third one may well apply to this case, where it would give the airport authority grounds to allow coaches from Greek side:

quote:

"Performance failures outside the control of the contracting party, such as disruptions in telephone service attributable to the telephone company, labor disputes other than those of the contractual parties, government restrictions (denial or cancellation of a necessary license), or supplier problems (product/service unavailable)"

I can't help thinking KIBHAS was given such a right, due to favoritism by some corrupt minister who pocketed good money in return! No such monopoly in Turkish Airports - even the belediye buses drop/pick passengers from Sabiha Gökçen

iceman


Joined: 15/08/2008
Posts: 724

Message Posted:
03/10/2011 22:46

Ismet

Few weeks ago i traveled from Larnaca to Serbia..The taxi i had booked to drive me to Larnaca, picked me up from Kyrenia and since i was flying with a couple of Greek Cypriot friends (and their dog), i had arranged to pick them up also from Nicosia on the way to Larnaca.

I asked the same taxi driver to pick us up a week later from Larnaca..

We were waiting for him outside "Arrivals" to drive up and pick us up when he turned up on foot..

He told us that TC taxi drivers are NOT allowed to use the road outside "arrivals" and we had to walk up to the car park to get in his taxi!!

Wasn't fun dragging all that luggage as well as a large kennel with a dog in it to the car park above!!

So it sounds like taxi drivers are treated more or less the same at both airports..

TimothyCadman


Joined: 13/12/2007
Posts: 1040

Message Posted:
03/10/2011 22:59

bigOz,

Not just Sabiha Gokcen but Ataturk too.

elko2



Joined: 24/07/2007
Posts: 4400

Message Posted:
03/10/2011 23:21

As suggested above by BigOz, since Kibhas has no service to south of Cyprus, taxis or coaches from the south can be allowed if the desire is there. However what Iceman wrote above points to the real reason why services from sourth Cyprus are not allowed to pick customers from Ercan. Sort of tit for tat but with a plausible legal excuse.

ismet

iceman


Joined: 15/08/2008
Posts: 724

Message Posted:
03/10/2011 23:30

Ismet

It is tit for tat but,personally i do not blame the GC authorities for not allowing TC taxi's (mainly illegal taxis) picking up passangers from Larnaca..

Do you know the number of vehicles from the north turning up at larnaca to pick up passengers,that are not even licenced in the north to operate as taxi's?

elko2



Joined: 24/07/2007
Posts: 4400

Message Posted:
03/10/2011 23:47

Iceman,

The simple answer is that they should allow only official taxis from the north to pick up clients in the same way as GC taxis. What about normal cars with GC number plates, are they allowed to pick up their own "friends"?

ismet

iceman


Joined: 15/08/2008
Posts: 724

Message Posted:
03/10/2011 23:54

I think you meant "normal cars with TC number plates"

Technically,taxis's from the north have to cover their "T" on the number plate to be able to cross over to ROC..so they are not licenced to operate as taxi's and carry passengers.

They get away with it crossing from North to South but not the other way round..