Taxi operators could be hit with huge fines for not complying with GPS laws, the Premier announced yesterday.

The move comes in the wake of displeasure with the calibre of service from taxi operators during the Cupmatch and Remembrance Day holidays, Premier Dr. Ewart Brown said.

Taxi operators will be subjected to regular checks to ensure they are complying with GPS and could be fined $1,400 a day for every day they are not.

The move was announced by Premier and Transport Minister Dr. Brown, who said that Traffic Officers will be implementing more aggressive enforcement measures.

"Throughout Bermuda where taxis are plying for business, the Traffic Officers will be checking and verifying that taxi operators are compliant and, in instances where operators are found not to be compliant, the appropriate action will be taken," he said.

"Traffic Officers at Bermuda's ports of entry who are charged with assigning taxis to passengers will not allow taxis to take passengers in instances when GPS is not switched on and in working order.

"It is our goal to ensure that residents and visitors receive the best service for their transportation needs. We feel these amendments and subsequent enforcement measures move us closer to the overall goal of general compliance with the laws of Bermuda.

Angry taxi operators yesterday hit back at the Premier's announcement, calling it unfair.

"It is not the taxi drivers who don't want the GPS, it is the dispatching companies," said a taxi operator from Hamilton Parish, who gave his name as Roger.

"I can subscribe to any of the three dispatching companies that I choose, so why should I be penalised if the company is not using the system?

"We need to have a uniform system for all of the dispatching companies."

Another taxi operator waiting for customers on Front Street said he believes that the Premier has a vendetta against taxis.

"We are out here everyday trying to make an honest living and we are being harassed," said Kyle Lightbourne.

"This is being rammed down our throats and it is something that we didn't agree to. And we aren't making any money, I have been working all morning and all I have made is $28.

"We put all the money up for this business and we provide an important service to this Island. We are not employed by the Government, so let us run our business as we see fit."

In his statement Dr. Brown said the new amendments will be effective immediately

The amendments, which were announced last January, state that taxis cannot operate without their GPS turned on.

Additionally, the amendments state that taxis shall use GPS to indicate their location to the dispatch company where they are registered and communicate with the dispatcher using only the mobile data terminal of the GPS system.

"These amendments mean it is an offense not to have the GPS device switched on and in working order when operating a vehicle," said Dr. Brown.

Kim Swan, Leader of the United Bermuda Party, which has argued against GPS in the past, said: "The injustice of the Premier's proposed actions is underlined by the fact that the Premier has been responsible for tens of millions of dollars in overspending on his own building projects and that of his Ministers.

"If only he applied 'more aggressive fiscal discipline measures' to his own Government and his own Ministries there would be no need to go after hard-working Bermudians who, unlike the Premier, must struggle every day to make ends meet.

"With this move to fine them, taxi drivers face a double whammy – having to work a tourism industry that has been seriously weakened by the Premier's failed leadership and a punitive attack on their income caused by his Government's wasteful spending.

"This is just one example of how Government fiscal indiscipline can hurt working Bermudians."

The debate over GPS has been raging between the taxi industry and Government since 2002 when the legislation was first tabled. While many operators have the GPS system, some choose not to turn it on.

Many taxi operators went on strike or drove slowly in protest when the legislation was originally announced.