By ANNELIA NIXON

Tribune Business Reporter

anixon@tribunemedia.net

Sandals Emerald Bay’s $100m transformation into a Beaches-branded resort may gave Exuma taxi drivers a much-needed boost through contracts for airport arrivals and guest departures, one argued yesterday. 

Robin Thompson, who previously asserted that the growing number of rental cars has contributed to a significant decline in business for Exuma taxi operators, said negotiating firm contracts with Beaches management will create work for taxi drivers. He added that if taxi operators are contracted to conduct airport pick-ups and departures, they would “be successful in some ways”.

“Well, with the Beaches situation, it might be a little bit different,” Mr Thompson said. “According to the contract proposals, and if it is signed as we anticipate it will be, like it was at Sandals, the taxi drivers who are under the company's umbrella will be able to do the arrivals and departures.

“The guests will, if they want to rent a car, will rent it at the hotel and return it at the same spot. So it would not interfere with the departure and arrival activity, hopefully. So, we are hopeful that we would have almost the same type of agreement, which we had with Sandals, in terms of arrivals and departures. It could be significantly different in terms of amounts of persons per party, but we will still be able to be successful in some ways.” 

Mr Thompson adding that it’s “fair game for everybody”, as while some tourists choose to rent vehicles during their stay others prefer to be chauffeured.

“Some people will rent a car,” he said. “And then some guests, they prefer to be chauffeured, and then also for them to have a tour guide. Rental cars don't speak. So the information that is to be shared about our islands, you can get it live and direct from a cab driver.”

Prime Minister Philip Davis KC, during last week’s Heads of Agreement signing for the $100m first phase redevelopment of Sandals Emerald Bay into the Beaches brand, said the transformation will unfold over the next 24 months. Mr Thompson said taxi drivers will still have job opportunities through workers brought in to help with the construction.

“We anticipate once the work begins, that we will not see any touristic arrivals like that within the 12 to 15-month period,” Mr Thompson said. “We will be prepared for that. That’s without question, because they certainly have to do some work at that resort. But there will be some work opportunities because Beaches will have to have workers come in to do the work. And those will also be opportunities for employment by our cab drivers.

He added that taxi drivers are “hopeful” that, once given the opportunity to negotiate, Beaches will engage them because they’re “just ready to do some work”. Mr Thompson said the resort will bring a much-needed boost to Exuma’s economy and enhance the lives of workers on the island.

Robert Thompson, proprietor of Robert’s Island Adventures, a tour boat company based in Exuma, said taxi drivers are the biggest group of impacted persons since Sandals’ closure in August last year.

“The problem where Exuma’s suffering is the taxi drivers,” Robert Thompson said. “It's hard on them because there's so much rentals and a lot of these Airbnbs. So, the taxi drivers really depended on Sandals because they had contracts with Sandals, so they the ones really being affected by it.”

While praising the number of tourists and job opportunities the resort will bring to Exuma, Robert Thompson said he is not looking to negotiate a contract with Beaches. He said he will not commit himself only to the resort, adding that he is “open all the way around.”