Gov’t and taxi owners clash escalates over state support

Battered by the travel restrictions and limits on the number of passengers in their vehicles due to the lockdown measures, the Attica Taxi Drivers’ Union (SATA) said Monday their sector is at risk of extermination as its confrontation with the Transport and Finance ministries escalates.

In a statement Monday, SATA deplored what it called the government’s provocative stance toward “about 38,000 taxi owners and another 15,000 drivers throughout Greece.”

However, Deputy Transport Minister Yiannis Kefaloyiannis pushed back, saying state support for the sector totaled 90 million euros, and that of that amount €53 million had already been paid in the form of a refund to 24,000 taxi drivers, according to their declared turnover reduction.

SATA responded saying that the support to 38,000 owners essentially amounted to €800 in May 2020, while the less than 50% that benefited from the state’s program that returns advanced taxes only received another €500.