GREEN MEANS GO
OXFORD TAXIS AND PRIVATE HIRE VEHICLES MUST MEET ULTRA LOW EMISSION TARGET BY 2026
Proposals to further delay the introduction of low emission taxis and PHVs on Oxford’s roads by an extra year have been rejected. Oxford City Council agreed to delay the plan until the start of 2026 at a meeting in February. But the City of Oxford Licenced Taxicab Asso- ciation (COLTA) wanted the policy to come into effect in January 2027. The new policy will require taxis and other PHVs in Oxford to meet an ultra-low emission standard. COLTA secretary Sajad Khan said: “As a trade, we don’t think the one year compromise was a balanced
judgment of the facts available.” He highlighted the impact of Covid saying the city’s taxi drivers had “lost four productive years”. Mr Khan added that since the pandemic, the trade had “suffered an unimaginable rise in living costs due to the financial crisis and very high interest rates”. COLTA also argued that the introduction of LTNs and closure of Botley Road “created a huge disruption” and caused drivers’ earnings to “drastically” reduce. Last month, at a general purpose licensing committee meeting,
councillors agreed to delay the planned introduction in January 2025 by a year. Louise Upton, cabinet member for planning and healthier commun- ities, said that the council had to balance “the very real needs of the taxi trade against the health needs of our residents”, and that the original extension of one year was a “compromised solution” that “seemed about right”. A council spokesperson added that roughly a third of licensed hackney carriages in the city had already moved to electric vehicles.
BASINGSTOKE AND DEANE BOROUGH COUNCIL TO FUND LOW EMISSION TAXIS
Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council has agreed to fund up to 17 new low-emission taxis. Taxi drivers in the borough can now apply for support to get the hackney carriages onto the streets of Basingstoke, in a decision that was made at a cabinet meeting on Tuesday, March 5. Licensed taxi drivers can now apply for a £5,000 grant to help pay for an electrically powered LEVC vehicle. During the meeting Cllr Laura James, cabinet member for residents’ services and housing, said the borough currently has an aging stock of taxis. She said: “We really need to do something about it and we have always got a reducing number of hackney carriages as well, so that is of concern.”
PHTM APRIL 2024
Cllr James added: “The aging population of the drivers is of concern, set against very expensive taxis which are out of price for most people. “These taxis are accessible and they are wheelchair accessible and this is essential that we have this service.” She also told members that there is a real interest with current taxi drivers to support the initiative. The leader of the council, Cllr Paul Harvey said the idea is great and shows the council’s ambitions and aspirations. Cabinet member for the climate, Cllr Chris Tomblin, said: “Many people rely on accessible taxis to get around. However, the diesel vehicles currently in the fleet are increasingly reaching the end of their lives and need replacing and
barriers, like cost, are discouraging existing and new drivers from taking on more modern and sustainable models. “Our new £5,000 grants, developed through conversations with licensed drivers, aim to help make these electrically powered hackney carriages more
affordable to
support taxi drivers to use these environmentally friendly and accessible vehicles. “In offering this grant, we can help to remove old diesel vehicles off the roads and replace them with a more sustainable method of travel to support our target for a net zero carbon borough by 2030. “These ultra-low emission vehicles could also help drivers save up to £150 a week on fuel too.” Taxi drivers can find out more at:
https://shorturl.at/otEFV
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