Wrexham and Flintshire taxis are preparing to face a busy weekend with increased demand due to 'Mad Friday', rail strikes and post-pandemic Christmas festivities. 

'Mad Friday' indicates the night that many people take to local towns or cities to celebrate Christmas with work colleagues and friends ahead of Christmas Eve.

Normally this night takes place the Friday before Christmas however as December 23 is the day before Christmas Eve Mad Friday takes place today, December 16. 

With more people predicted to head into towns, more people will be requiring taxis to get out and home and with the rail strikes happening today and tomorrow this is likely to increase.

READ MORE: Wrexham's night-time economy suffering due to taxi shortage

Taxi companies in Wrexham are anticipating a busy weekend and have seen an increase in business over recent weeks in comparison to previous years. 

Ashley Mckee from Speedie Cars in Wrexham said: "We are expecting to be extremely busy and have seen an increase in work recently for a number of factors."

The company indicated that since the pandemic there has been a shortage of drivers in and around Wrexham and that they just "don't have the drivers anymore."

These concerns were echoed by Debbie Belton at Apollo taxis in Wrexham. 

She said: "Since covid, a lot of drivers left as we are all self-employed."

The company has around 30 drivers completing an expected 10,000 journeys throughout the weekend. 

READ MORE: Bus issues in Summerhill leave passengers feeling 'stranded'

Debbie went on to call the driver shortage "very unprecented" and indicated it is likely to mean those calling taxis in Wrexham will have to wait longer. 

The recent rail strikes have also increased the demand on taxi companies with Apollo taxis finding they are completing more journeys outside of the area with people "not caring about the price as they just want to get there."

READ MORE: Full list of strikes this weekend and which services will be affected

It seems the busy weekend is not just exclusive to Wrexham as Valley Cars in Flintshire has been booked up for this coming Saturday for several weeks. 

Recruitment of drivers has also been very difficult since the pandemic says David Hill of Valley Cars, who added: "We have not been able to get the drivers and we are limited with work on the drivers we have available."

As David has various regular customers across Flintshire he has found that several customers are willing to wait the extra time and are very understanding.