Newry one of just two cities in Ireland where you can't use a ride-hailing app to get a Taxi

Newry is currently one of just two cities in Ireland where you can't use a ride-hailing app such as Freenow or Uber to get a taxi *. Newry businessman Patrick Murdock is calling on local political representatives here to change that. While other parts of Ireland have embraced the new technology and businesses that make this possible years ago, Newry has missed out.

Earlier this month Lyft brought its Freenow app to Northern Ireland through a partnership with FonaCAB. The service runs in Belfast, Lisburn, Newtownabbey, Carrickfergus, Craigavon and Banbridge but doesn't go as far as Newry. You can use it in Banbridge just a short drive up the A1 from Newry but you can't use it here!

Murdock believes that should worry anyone who cares about our city’s future. He explains: "Newry sits on the main Belfast to Dublin corridor and depends on visitors from the Republic, many of whom arrive expecting to tap an app and get a car. FonaCAB says Lyft’s own data showed exactly that: people from the south opening Freenow on arrival in the North. In Newry they open the app and find nothing. They leave earlier, spend less, and are less likely to come back."

Highlighting how ludicrous our situation is Murdock said: "The Council and Stormont Government Departments are spending millions on regeneration projects, when a technology as simple as ride-hailing apps and an expanded pool of drivers has the potential to kickstart the revival of our nightime economy and drag Newry from the analogue age into the digital age, albeit 20 years after the rest of the modern world"

Currently the difficulty getting a taxi in Newry is contributing to people staying at home. "Restaurants, pubs and venues need customers who can get home easily and safely. When a lift is hard to find, people stay in or go elsewhere. Our tourism offering, from the Mournes to the city centre, suffers for the same reason. A visitor who cannot get from the station or a hotel to where they want to go is a visitor we lose." Murdock said.

Realistically though he believes we need to be honest about the ride hailing service the rest of the north has in comparison to other parts of Ireland, UK and the world. "Prices are high, availability is patchy and waits can be long. It is still a start, and Newry does not have even that". Armagh City is the other city that can't use 

Murdock is urging the council, local representatives and the Department for Infrastructure to look at why Newry has been left out and what can be done to change it. "A city that wants growth, visitors and a living night-time economy cannot afford to be cut off from a service most people now take for granted." he concludes.

In reply to a media query from Newry.ie a Freenow by Lyft spokesperson said: “We are very excited to have launched in Northern Ireland and added Belfast, Lisburn, Newtownabbey and Carrickfergus to the list of over 200 cities where our service is available across Europe.

"While Freenow by Lyft is not currently available in Newry, we are always looking at additional areas that we can expand to in the future”

* Armagh is the other city.