Local councils are to get increased powers to control taxi companies following the death of a passenger after a fight with a taxi driver in Amsterdam, Nos tv reports.

Junior transport minister Tineke Huizinga is to give councils more powers to licence taxi companies and only taxis which are part of a licenced company will be able to use use official taxi stands. She is due to outline the details this week.
The taxi sector was liberalised in 2000. This led to an explosion in unlicenced cabs in the bigger cities and a surge in complaints about drivers who do not know where they are going and dirty, unsafe vehicles.
Huizinga’s move follows the death of a 44-year-old man in Amsterdam on Saturday night following a fight with a taxi driver. The 37-year-old driver has been arrested.
Amsterdam mayor Job Cohen described the incident as ‘terrible’ and said new taxi laws were ‘a damn long time coming,’ the Volkskrant reports on Monday. Amsterdam has already made various efforts to clean up the taxi sector, including introducing the concept of the quality taxi at the city’s central station.

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