Taxi firms in Tayside have seen a spike in fares since the introduction of a new drink-drive limit.
The limit was lowered from 80mg to 50mg at the start of December and has made people much more cautious about how much they drink and more likely to take a taxi home.
Douglas Inglis, a director of Tele Taxis, said: “Drivers are reporting that people are being more cautious about driving the next day.
“I think that is what the real impact is, people realising they might not be able to drive in the morning, so getting a taxi.
“This is normally a busy time for us anyway but I think we will start to see a bigger impact come January.”
Alan Gibb, a taxi driver in Dundee, believed there was a change but thought the bigger impact was on people’s views.
He said: “I think there has been an impact with more people getting a taxi and leaving the car if they have a drink.
“However, at this time of year it’s hard to say how big it is because taxis are busier anyway.
“What has changed are people’s attitudes to the law; people are not risking driving the morning after.
“They are much more educated and I think in January firms will really start to notice the difference.”
Stuart Elder, president of the GMB WAV taxi union branch, said: “It would be great if people are considering using taxis instead of driving the morning after.
“Since the law has changed, people are more educated about drink-driving and hopefully this means people will be more responsible.”
Sandy Smith, owner of Radio Taxis in Perth said: “In the morning, we’ve noticed it’s higher than before and up by about a third.
“We’re seeing more names and numbers we don’t recognise and particularly at the weekend and Monday there has been an increase.”