The municipal authorities in the West Flemish city of Ostend intend to carry out more stringent checks to ensure that taxi drivers there have have sufficient knowledge of Dutch. If this is not the case, the drivers risk will have their operating licence revoked. If drivers are unable to speak Dutch, this can among other things lead to misunderstandings destinations and fares.
Ostend taxi drivers that speak insufficient Dutch will have their operating licences revoked
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The Alderman responsible for Community Affairs in Ostend Maxim Donck (Flemish nationalist) told VRT News that “Our Ombuds Service receives a lot of complaints about poor or non-existent Dutch and we are also aware of notthe issue from what we see on social media. This is is why we intend to apply the rules that apply in the whole of Flanders more strictly.”
The rules stipulate that drivers that have passed a basic Dutch language course and have obtained what is known as an A2 certificate, have 2 years to pass the intermediate level B1 exam. However, here in Ostend, there have not been any checks as to whether drivers have actually passed the B1 exam.
“During the past few weeks, we have contacted or attempted to contact everyone that does not have a B1 certificate. Many have said that they will work on their Dutch. However, for those that don’t, we will start the procedure to revoke their operating licence”, Mr Donck said.
Other issues
During a meeting between the city authorities and Ostend taxi drivers this week, other issues were also raised. In Ostend a maximum supplement of 15 euro/journey is applicable for journeys made at night. However, Mr Donck says that not all drivers abide by this and sometimes charge more. In future those caught overcharging for journeys made during the night will have their licences revoked.
Customers are not always aware of the rates and their rights and makes overcharging easier. The city authorities in Ostend are working on an information pack about taxi fares. Customers that have complaints about taxis will be able to report them by scanning a QR code that will direct them to an app where their complaint can be recorded.