Taxi drivers working 25 hours a week, earning average fare of just under €15

Taxi drivers work an average of 25 hours a week spread out over five days, according to the latest figures from the National Transport Authority.

Dublin taxi drivers clocked an average fare of just under €15 last year; in Cork it was €13 and in Athlone it was almost €11.

Across the week, the average metered revenue was €635 in Dublin, €650 in Cork and €382 in Athlone.

There were 27,440 active drivers last year, a significant drop from the peak of 47,222 in 2009.

The NTA said just 5% of taxis are wheelchair-accessible, adding it was trying to address that by restricting new licences to wheelchair-accessible vehicles.