Blyden to regulate taxi industry after visitor complaints

Visitors leaving the US Virgin Islands have complained about taxi fares that swing wildly and difficulty identifying trustworthy drivers, according to exit survey data presented to the Senate Committee on Economic Development and Agriculture this week.

The feedback prompted Senator Marvin Blyden to announce the Transportation Act of 2026, legislation that would place informal taxi operators, safari drivers, limousine services and jeep tour companies under government regulation for the first time.

Bernesha Liburd, senior project analyst at the Bureau of Economic Research, shared the visitor concerns during Tuesday's hearing. Tourists called for informal taxi operators, known as "gypsy" drivers, to be "brought into compliance" and demanded "alternate options of payment." They also requested rideshare services and updated taxi fare structures.

Liburd explained that visitor feedback centred on two main issues: "a lot of it had to do with fluctuating prices, and sometimes a lot of it had to do with not knowing exactly who to trust in terms of who do we ride with as a tourist who is not informed about our community in that way."

Blyden framed the regulatory gap as a financial concern for government. Many informal operators work "with no type of regulation, no type of oversight, no type of payment toward the general fund," he said, estimating that formalising these services could bring millions in revenue. He also highlighted insurance gaps, pointing out that uninsured informal drivers expose the government to liability.

Bureau Director Haldane Davies committed to further study and said his agency would consider an economic impact projection. The Transportation Act of 2026 has not yet been filed, and Blyden has not announced when he plans to introduce it before the Legislature's current term concludes.