Exclusive taxi deal leaves Tampere festivalgoers waiting

Some visitors to Tampere City Festival struggled to get home after the event because only taxis operated by Taksi Tampere were allowed into the pickup area, Yle reported.

Pre-booked rides could not reach the venue because the taxi stand and the entire street were closed to other taxi companies. The festival was held on Friday and Saturday at the Tampere Fair and Sports Centre, about six kilometres from central Tampere.

A large queue formed at the taxi stand after the final performances. Social media posts said some visitors ended up walking several kilometres to their accommodation during the night.

Vilho Riihimäki, event manager at Loud’n Live, said the organiser had signed an exclusive agreement with Taksi Tampere.

“This kept the street safe and prevented it from becoming too congested. If Ubers and others try to drop off and pick up passengers directly from the roadside, traffic can quickly become dangerous,” Riihimäki said.

Riihimäki acknowledged that a queue formed at the taxi stand.

“Some people had already left earlier, but when 15,000 people leave after the final show, there is bound to be some waiting. In the end, the crowd dispersed fairly quickly,” he said.

Street closure followed problems last year

Tampere City Festival was held for the second time at the border of Tampere and Pirkkala. The sold-out event attracted 21,000 visitors on each of its two days.

Last year, the taxi stand was also reserved exclusively for Taksi Tampere, but Ilmailunkatu, the street running through the venue area, remained open to other traffic. According to the event manager, this caused problems as vehicles stopping along the street created congestion.

The decision to close the street was made together with authorities.

“We have held several meetings with Tampere’s municipal street engineer and the police since last year’s event and again this spring. With these arrangements, there was not the slightest possibility of a dangerous situation,” Riihimäki said.

Taxi company calls weekend exceptional

Taksi Tampere, the event’s partner, is the largest taxi company in the area. It deployed almost all of its vehicles during the weekend, about 400 cars.

Chief executive Tero Kallio said large events always create a sharp peak in demand. He said he had not received feedback from festivalgoers.

“The waiting time certainly grew somewhat, but our understanding is that it was handled reasonably well,” Kallio said.

The weekend was unusually busy for taxis in Tampere for other reasons as well. Eppu Normaali performed at Ratina, while the Tampere Philharmonic Orchestra performed at Sorsapuisto.

“Compared with the previous two or three summers, demand was clearly at its highest this weekend,” Kallio said.

Partnerships are common practice

Taksi Tampere has also been a partner this summer at Tammerfest, the King and Queen Trotting Races and the Lempäälä housing fair.

According to Kallio, event organisers offer partnerships to taxi companies.

“Event organisers have started doing this as a business, and they charge for it,” he said.

Kallio did not disclose how much the exclusive right to operate at the festival’s taxi stand costs in practice.

He said the arrangement guarantees customers good service and reasonable prices.

“When there is an enormous peak in demand, some have taken advantage of it by charging outrageous sums for rides,” Kallio said.

Riihimäki said the taxi partnerships were not a major source of income for the organiser, but were intended to ensure visitors could travel to and from the event safely.

Tampere City Festival will be held at the same location next year.