Sofia Taxi Cabs Price Hike Becomes Effective

Most taxi cab prices in Bulgaria's capital Sofia went up 20%, effective Thursday, November 1.

This is the first substantial price hike since 2007.

According to the Bulgarian National Radio, BNR, the new price will be BGN 0.79 per kilometer during the day and BGN 0.9 per kilometer at night.

The fee for ordering a cab on the phone and the idling fee are also going up nearly 20%.

The cap, set by the Sofia City Hall, is BGN 1.3

Because changing the meters will take about a month, during that time some cabs will run with old prices and some with the new ones.

The BGN 0.2 price hike means the average 5-km run will cost BGN 1 more, while the longest route is going up by BGN 2.

The taxi cab businesses firmly reject speculations of a cartel agreement between them, stressing when the biggest players in the sector up prices, everyone else follows suit.

They say taxi cab drivers need more money to pay for the leases and maintenance of their cars, for taxes and fuel, and simply for making a living after that. The increased price of fuel is noted as the main reason for the move. 90% of the cabs run on methane, whose price went at the beginning of the year from BGN 0.8 to BGN 1.8 over the new excise duty, imposed by the EU.