In the podcast ‘The Taxi War’, published today, taxi driver Jan den Hartog tells the bizarre story about his role in the Amsterdam taxi war. Around the turn of the century, it was restless in Amsterdam for months after the liberalization of the taxi market. At that time, Den Hartog was a driver at the Taxi Centrale Amsterdam (TCA) and joined the board together with Cees Meester, where he tried to solve abuses. But the two pay a hefty price for that.
Taxi war – NH News
For example, Den Hartog suspects that an attempt was made to lure him somewhere and kill him. At that time he happened to have sent a colleague. “And he calls me and says: ‘Jan, this is not good. Because the street lamps are all broken, that house is not inhabited, guests are sitting in a car looking at me’. I say: get in and get out.”
“He said, I have to make sure you behave differently on the board”
He also says he will receive a verbal warning. Someone sits across from him in a coffee house. “And he says, I’m a lieutenant of John Mieremet, I have to make you behave differently on the board.” Den Hartog says he would like to talk to Mieremet, but the ‘lieutenant’ says that is not possible and leaves.
Sander ‘t Sas was a radio reporter during the taxi war and has made the podcast series in recent months. “We spoke to crime reporters John van den Heuvel and Paul Vugts in the podcast. They both say: Mieremet told us himself that he was actually the one who ran the taxi exchange.” One reason could be that he could launder money that way.
Water cannon at taxi protest
ME intervened at taxi protest
Kick against taxi from Taxi Direct
Jan den Hartog, more than twenty years ago
Until 2000, TCA had a monopoly on very expensive taxi licenses, from which the TCA board earned a lot of money. When the market was liberalized, there was competition from Taxi Direct, for example, and the licenses were worth nothing, much to the dismay of TCA and the drivers. It led to protests, in which Den Hartog also participated. “Then at one point the police said, evacuate, get out, and I was standing there absorbing the blows,” he says.
“What happened, of course, it got completely out of hand,” says ‘t Sas. “The aggression was aimed at the newcomer. In this case, that is Taxi Direct. The aggression should of course have been aimed at the government, which introduced that law. And that did not happen.”
The six-part series about the taxi war can be listened to from today through BNR.
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