Cost Index for Taxi Operations

The Norwegian taxi industry is undergoing structural changes, steaming from changes in technology, in particular the large scale introduction of battery electric vehicles (BEV), and regulation, reducing the barriers for market entry. These developments have highlighted the need for a new cost index. This report documents the development of this index. A main finding is that there is much variation between taxi companies in their costs. We found significant differences between the cost structure of BEV taxis and other vehicles, with BEVs having higher capital costs and lower operating costs than other vehicles. Labour is the single largest cost component. There is no significant difference in cost structure along either the rural-urban axis or ownership axis.