Report

The Australian taxi market is valued at USD 3.27 Billion and is expected to reach USD 6.45 Billion, registering a combined CAGR of 9.61% during the forecast period.

The COVID-19 pandemic crippled taxi operators due to the lack of operations following the lockdown in the year 2020. Ridesharing player, Bolt, closed its local operations after almost two-and-a-half years in the country, which was primarily a result of weakened demand due to the pandemic. Many taxi drivers have lost their jobs, and they are waiting for the pandemic to end. This is currently one of the most challenging issues for the taxi market in Australia.

The Australian taxi market is becoming competitive due to the rising trend of ride-sharing and ride-hailing services. Ridesharing is gaining popularity among commuters in Australia, and the market is expanding steadily. Uber has established itself as a market leader in cab-hailing services over the years. The brand is slowly inching into other streams of services as well. However, the competition for Uber has increased, with players, like Ola and DiDi entering the market.

Some of the major factors driving the growth of the market are the increasing demand for ride-sharing and the rise in online taxi booking applications in the country. However, reliability issues and the abolishment of taxi licenses have hampered the growth of the market.

There is a general rise in on-demand transportation services, including taxis, passenger vehicles, and charter vehicles. Features, like vehicle tracking in real-time, feedback, and the rating of the experience, make it extremely friendly for customers to use these services. There are even platforms that facilitate the comparison of prices before booking the cab. These facilities and features are giving a significant boost to the market.

However, internet penetration, the rise in the standards of living, and the emergence of local players are slowly shifting the landscape. Over the forecast period, the rising demand and the market scenario are expected to be graphically different and favor of on-demand transportation services.

Australia Taxi Market Trends

Increasing Demand for Online Channels

Ease of booking through mobile applications and online websites has significantly attracted customers to prefer online booking over offline booking, owing to the increasing usage of the internet and smartphones by people.

Additionally, information, like tracking the driver's location, pre-estimated ride fare, driver contact, and vehicle details available within an app in a short time, have further increased customer preference toward the online booking option.

The internet penetration rate stood around 91 percent in 2021. This also portrays the strong demand for smartphones which has equivalently helped the demand for ride-hailing and taxi services across the country. Many major operators, like Uber, Ola, DiDi, GoCatch HOP, and Shebah, provide online booking options (through their respective websites or mobile applications) in Australia to capture the increasing demand for low taxi fare services. The growing millennial and Generation Z commuting populations in the country are the major reason for the growth of online bookings.

However, the penetration of the service providers that provide online bookings is on the lower side. Competitors of Uber, like Ola, DiDi, etc., currently operate in only certain cities in the country. Nevertheless, it will not be long before these service providers expand to various other cities in the country, owing to the rising demand for online bookings across the country.

To sustain this rising trend of ride-sharing services, local taxi operators have started to adopt the same strategy, and they are trying to incorporate ride-sharing options in their respective taxi app development. Several online taxi booking services, like the GoCatch, 13cabs, ingogo, Rydo, and OkTaxi, are available in Australia. With the increasing demand for hassle-free online ride booking, taxi operators are expected to adopt online bookings, which is expected to further boost the market prospects in the country during the forecast period.

Tourism remained Taxi Market Backbone

The tourism industry has acted as the bedrock for elevating the demand for the taxi business. People across the world have identified traveling and tourism as sources of joy and meeting new people out of their busy time schedules in Australia. This has helped people to spend more time with their close ones on their weekly offs and weekends.

Despite making up a large portion of the global GDP, the travel, and tourism industries were both negatively affected by the global coronavirus pandemic which started in early 2020. During the pandemic, people were not allowed to travel across Australia, tourist sites were closed down and strict lockdown measures created adverse effects on people as well as the tourism sector in Australia. Although, post-2021, the tourism industry is witnessing commendable growth with people going on tourism holidays with their family and friends to explore places. Covid-19 has acted as a trigger point to replicate the strong demand for the tourism industry post-pandemic in Australia.

New South Wales represents the largest market for taxi services in the country. The increasing demand for taxi services is contributed by factors, such as increasing tourists, increasing demand for ride-sharing services, and the rise in online taxi booking applications.

Although there has been a surge in taxi bookings until the end of 2019, during 2020, the taxi industry in New South Wales fell by nearly 80%. This is due to the outbreak of COVID-19, and several daily ride-sharing commuters have started working from home, thereby, bookings have significantly decreased.

The average fare costs had fallen to USD 19 from USD 25, while 30% of the network was no longer in operation as drivers had taken their vehicles off the road. In addition to this, there has been panic among customers as one in three drivers in Sydney tested positive, according to the Australian Taxi Drivers Association.

Taxi service-providing companies in NSW, such as 13Cabs, to help their customers from the ongoing pandemic have started online delivery of groceries from supermarkets. The service is available seven days a week and operates in Maitland, Swansea, Toronto, and Rutherford in New South Wales' Hunter, and Lake Macquarie regions.

Australia Taxi Market Competitor Analysis

The market studied is highly fragmented due to the presence of many regional and international players. However, the market is dominated by some of the major players, such as Uber, Ola, Didi, and A2B, which accounted for a significant market share of about 70% in 2021.

Uber ranked in the top position in the market studied, with the adoption of key strategies that have helped the company to engage more market share in the market. In addition, players are seeking online platform providers' cooperation in order to offer better services through online apps.

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