PRE-paid fares could be trialled in the state's west as part of a larger effort to prevent violence against taxi drivers.
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NSW Taxi Council chief executive officer Roy Wakelin-King said his organisation was "obviously very concerned" about recent reports of attacks on taxi drivers, including an incident in which a 66-year-old taxi driver was allegedly stabbed in the throat by a 13-year-old girl at Dubbo in the early hours of Saturday morning.
The driver received medical treatment for a five-centimetre wound police said was not life threatening, before he was released from hospital later that day.
The girl was arrested and the matter is now before the courts.
"We would condemn any attack on taxi drivers, we'd consider such attacks as cowardly acts towards people who are providing a vital service," Mr Wakelin-King said.
The NSW Taxi Council had been working with the state government to help keep taxi drivers safe, Mr Wakelin-King said.
"Apart from safety systems in place such as cameras and duress alarms there are increased penalties people are subjected to if they assault a taxi driver," he said.
"Just over 10 years ago laws were introduced to recognise that the nature of their work makes them vulnerable and it was an important step forward.
"We are also very much about equipping drivers with skills to de-escalate situations. Assaults, including verbal assaults, often come from people under the influence of alcohol or other drugs and experienced cabbies know that when a situation looks threatening they try to get the passenger to go where they can as quickly and calmly as possible."
While great steps had been taken to reduce risks posed to taxi drivers, Mr Wakelin-King said, "in the face of a determined attack there's no system that could prevent every possibility".
"Generally speaking, in NSW, rural and regional communities tend to have fewer incidents (than Sydney), although there are areas of concern," he said.
Pre-paid fares had been trialled on the Central Coast and in the Sydney CBD as a means to deal with potential assaults and fare evasions, according to Mr Wakelin-King.
"We've asked the NSW government if we can roll that out on a wider basis, but it has to be implemented properly, there are important protocols that need to happen when it comes to trust between a driver and passenger and we don't want the implementation of a pre-paid fare to itself become the source of a dispute," he said.
Meanwhile, Mr Wakelin-King said his thoughts were with the Dubbo driver and his family.
"I've spoken with the Dubbo taxi network, he (the driver) is understandingly shaken and we wish him the best," he said.
"These reports are obviously concerning for all taxi drivers in NSW."