An island cabbie is calling for taxis to be allowed to use the new bus and cycle lane on Glencrutchery Road, Douglas.

The combined bus and cycle lane was introduced without warning on June 15 - and has been blamed for tailbacks stretching back to Onchan.

Campaigner Barry Murphy has contacted the Department of Infrastructure’s highways division to request whether it would consider allowing taxis to use it too.

He said he was ’not surprised but disappointed’ that taxis are banned from using the lane but he had hoped ’common sense might prevail’.

Mr Murphy wrote: ’The DoI have used an element of unfairness, bearing on ignorance, stopping taxis using this new lane, which in itself I must add is a very stupid idea.

’It seems a conflict of an opinion to on the one hand encourage the public to use public transport and on the other hand make taxis almost unaffordable and unreliable by having them stuck in a traffic queue charging higher fares than ever before.’

Mr Murphy pointed out that in most cases taxi fares are metered.

’Longer waiting times in traffic mean higher fares for passengers, whom after months of lockdown probably have better things to spend their extra pennies on,’ he said.

Mr Murphy said as he works nights he is not generally affected by the acute traffic queues along Glencrutchery Road in the morning.

Taxi drivers have been in dispute with the DoI and Bus Vannin over the last three years in connection with dial-a-ride services in the north of the island.

The Office of Fair Trading is investigating their claims that ConnectVillages is unfairly competing against the private sector.

Mr Murphy said the decision not to allow taxis on the bus lane ’ups the ante’. ’It seems like the DoI just do not want to play a fair game,’ he said.

The DoI claims delays are a result of extra traffic, diverted from the one-way northbound Promenade, and not the creation of the bus lane.