At least five Napier taxis are now operating fulltime in Hastings under the Blue Bubble brand which took to the streets at the weekend.
They were among 48 taxis given a makeover when Napier Taxis, Hawke's Bay's largest taxi company, changed its name to Hawke's Bay Combined Taxis.
It already had some
taxis working in Hastings and it is extending throughout the Napier-Hastings region as part of a rebranding move by a group of the country's leading taxi operators.
The ownership remains the same, with Combined owned largely by the people at the wheels of the fleet. Seven companies with a total of 1700 taxis from Auckland to Dunedin are involved in the new image, in which the cars and vans will be identified by their blue lights and signs. The companies include Auckland's and the country's largest taxi company, Auckland Co-op, Wellington Combined Taxis and Blue Star Taxis in Christchurch.
Taxi companies in Tauranga, Rotorua, Hawke's Bay, Nelson and Dunedin were also selected to join.
