Our journey continues to the Strait airport, with the voices of the direct protagonists who, thanks to the infrastructure, offer an essential service for connecting with the territory: taxi drivers. It is one of the most recognizable professional categories in the world’s great metropolises and made famous by numerous films. In Italy it was Alberto Sordi who paid homage to them with the film “Il taxinaro” which remains among his most remembered and appreciated works.
In the city, taxis are seen as a service that is not very usable, at least by residents, and which also has to deal with “underground” competition – which does not help those who are in compliance – and a price list that has been stagnant for too many years. The presence of a more operational airport and the cultural and tourist attractions of Reggio, especially the Bronzes, are favoring a decisive turning point. Sacal’s programmatic commitment to the Strait airport, the arrival of Ryanair and also international flights, the return of the more stable connections in Ita, have offered the category of Reggio taxi drivers greater consideration. And it was enough to spend a morning with them to understand how the profession is changing, between old problems and new perspectives. «There has been a recovery – he says Luciano Baione – and thanks above all to the increase in flights there is no shortage of work. A functioning airport not only helps us, but also the city. Compared to the past, today with 13 flights we register more work especially with foreign tourists, who ask us for directions to places of interest such as the seafront and the Riace Bronzes. However, our city offers so much more that should be better valorised.”
For those who have chosen to move to the Strait to continue their business, such as a dynamic South American taxi driver, «this is a wonderful city. Fortunately, with the new flights the situation has recovered, even if tourism has changed compared to the early 2000s, when travelers arrived who often spared no expense. Today our customers are more attentive, there is a bit of competition with buses, but it’s still fine.”
