The 20 drivers held placards urging the government and airport authorities to “follow the law” and bar e-hailing drivers from picking up passengers at the airport.

The group’s representative, Gopal Nair, said they did not mind e-hailing companies such as Grab dropping off passengers at the airport but were against drivers picking them up.

He said some 300 limousine drivers relied heavily on pick-ups at the airport. Before this, he said, drivers could make at least eight trips in 12 hours, but this had now decreased to two.

“We start at 5.30am but our first trip comes at about 1pm. There are 15 Grab drivers to each airport limo driver. How are we to survive?”

Nair, a 72-year-old former serviceman, said the drop in number of trips had severely affected the livelihood of drivers, many of whose vehicles had been repossessed as they were unable to repay their loans.

He said at one point in his 40-year career as a driver with the Penang Airport limo cooperative, he had earned RM6,000 to RM7,000 a month. Now, he said, it was a struggle to hit even RM2,000 a month.

“Last time, I could make enough money to send my children to pursue their PhDs. Never mind me today as I will retire soon – what about my friends with young children? How will they be able to afford to send their children to college and put meals on the table?”

Addressing claims that their rates were expensive, he said airport limo fares were determined by the Land Public Transport Commission.

He added that drivers paid for passenger insurance and mandatory vehicle inspections every six months.

“E-hailing companies do not do that. Their drivers do not even have a public service vehicle licence.

“Some people tell me, ‘who cares about passenger insurance?’ I tell them, it is hard to foretell accidents.”

At other major airports around the world, including London’s Heathrow and Indonesia’s Medan airport, he said, e-hailing drivers were barred from picking up passengers.

“Regular Penang taxis are not allowed to pick up passengers from the airport – why can’t that ban be put on e-hailing drivers too?

“Today, we have touts in the airport terminal and taxi drivers waiting outside without much action taken against them.

“The transport minister said the rule of law must prevail. So we want to ask, where is it?”

He said the only way to solve the issue was better enforcement by the government, but whenever limo drivers complained, enforcement officers become angry and would find fault with them.

Penang has over 2,000 cabbies, 300 of whom are airport limo drivers. In 2016, there were reportedly over 2,000 Uber drivers, most of whom were absorbed into Grab.