Lockout of airport taxi drivers continues into 3rd day

On day three of an airport taxi driver lockout, the Ottawa airport authority used three large coach buses to physically block pickets from a nearby taxi stand.

In response, the locked out drivers once again began circling the airport while honking their horns as pickets blocked from the taxi stand used megaphones to shout over the buses.

• Here's why airport taxi drivers are angry, locked out

The taxi drivers told the CBC's Matthew Kupfer they'll continue to drive around the airport honking loudly until the buses are removed.

"Move the buses, let us express our opinion as freely as yesterday [Wednesday]. ... Remove the buses, we'll stop the honking and we'll be back again to talk," said Khashan Godha, who was using a megaphone Thursday.

Krista Kealey, a spokeswoman for the Ottawa International Airport Authority, said the buses were put in place to protect its customers.

"They were put in place as a bit of a holding mechanism due to all of the disruptions on the roadway yesterday. So it's really for safety," she said Thursday morning.

"Safety is not something that we will compromise on, so as long as there's the potential for safety incidents those buses will stay in place."

Contingency plans including shuttle buses, approving other taxis to pick up customers and other measures remain in place, Kealey said, adding airport operations were running "smoothly" Thursday.

The airport taxi drivers were locked out of their taxi stand at the airport on Tuesday morning by their dispatcher, Coventry Connections. The labour dispute stems from a disagreement about how much the drivers should pay for the exclusive right to make pick-ups at the airport.