By DENISE MAYCOCK

Tribune Freeport Reporter

dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

GRAND Bahama taxicab drivers are not feeling the Christmas spirit this year.

Many are disillusioned and uncertain about the future.

“This is the worst I have seen it,” Duke Rolle said about the current state of the taxi business in Grand Bahama, even while two ships carrying 5,000 passengers were in port on December 17.

While sitting on a bench in the western parking lot at the Port Lucaya Marketplace, Mr Rolle, a veteran cab driver with 25 years of experience, painted a bleak picture.

“The boats are coming in, but only the buses are carrying the people,” he said. 

“There’s really nothing happening for us. We stay out here all day, maybe make $20 — that’s about it. I just came from the airport, and the planes ain’t moving taxis.

“This is the Christmas season, and a lot of Bahamians are travelling, so that’s all the planes are bringing back, and they’re not catching taxis.”

It is “a waste of time” at the harbour too, Mr Rolle said.

“You’ve got one guy driving five cars in front of you, you can’t get a job. It doesn’t make sense to go down there — it’s just a waste of time.”

Mr Rolle lamented the decline of Freeport’s once-vibrant tourism industry.

“Freeport has lost its magic, 100 percent since the Princess Hotel closed, and no one knows how to reopen the Grand Lucayan. That’s a big setback right there,” he said.

The Princess/Royal Oasis Hotel closed in 2004 due to hurricane damage during Frances and Jeanne. In 2016, the Grand Lucayan Resort closed after severe damage during Hurricane Matthew.

The Minnis administration acquired the Lucayan strip property in August 2018 for $65m and signed a Heads of Agreement for its sale to Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines and the ITM Group for a $250m investment.

The Davis administration cancelled the deal when it was elected to office in 2021. 

The $150m sale negotiated with the Electra American Hospitality Group fell through after the investors failed to secure financing. 

Mr Rolle thinks that the government should sell the hotel in parts –– “one to this person, another to the next, so you’d have three different owners at the same time.”

“Selling the whole strip to one person doesn’t make sense,” he said.

Edwin Kemp Sr, another veteran taxi driver, said the pull-out of Margaritaville at Sea has also impacted the taxi business.

“With Margaritaville gone, it’s hard,” he said, expressing frustration with the lack of foresight in addressing the matter. 

“The thing is, why wait until the ship pulls out to say it’s gone? They should have had something in place for Margaritaville when they first found out it wasn’t coming.”

The stalled Grand Lucayan hotel sale is a sore point for him as well.

Despite the challenges, Mr Kemp remains grateful for the little he makes.

“I just hope next year will be better,” he said. “Christmas is just like every other Christmas — you hope and pray something happens.”

For Kenneth Saunders, this Christmas marks his first experience as a taxi driver during the holiday season.

“It’s been up and down,” Mr Saunders said. “We’re just coming out of the slow period that is traditionally around September and October. 

“We’re starting to see it pick up a little, though not as much as I was expecting. But I’m hopeful for what next year may bring.”