In comments to The Malta Business Observer, Matthew Bezzina, Chief Executive Officer of eCabs, revealed that the firm continues to experience an “80 per cent revenue and volume drop when compared to 2019,” though he attested that COVID-19 was not wholly to blame for the situation.

Indeed, the “oversupply of vehicles” on the island – which Mr Bezzina attributed to “the lack of enforcement” as well as “fiscal, regulatory and employment abuse” – is leading to rate cuts and, hence, jeopardising “the overall sustainability of the industry”. 

This, coupled with the current uncertainty, “does not augur well”, he said, despite the airport reopening in July. “The re-opening will help, though numbers will be very far from what they used to be”, he continued, quoting the recent upsurge in COVID-19 cases in China and Germany, as well as the instability on the global stock market as risk factors. “The race is far from over. This is a marathon not a sprint,” he said.

Indeed, normality will take time, he underlined. And, with some office workers continuing to work from home, demand will keep dropping.

 In light of the particular challenges being faced by the sector, he called on Government to “treat the MAAS (Mobility as a Service) industry as a standalone industry through financial assistance to bona fide operators, and move forward with the PSG (Public Service Garage) reform to ensure a level playing field for all,” he underlined.

This is an extract of an article first carried in the June edition of The Malta Business Observer