FINE FURY!!


CARDIFF CABBIES THREATEN ACTION OVER PARKING TICKETS


Cabbies are threaten- ing to take industrial action after they were ticketed while parked in what they thought was an official taxi rank. Plans for an official seven-cab taxi rank at Central Square direct- ly opposite the entrance to Cardiff Central Station were given the go-ahead by the council last month. However, cabbies were left furious when police officers issued parking tickets to 20 while they waited there.


Mathab Khan, chair- man of the Cardiff


Hackney Carriage Association, said if it continued, his mem- bers would threaten to strike.


He told the South Wales Echo: “I’m very disappointed with the police and we are going lo appeal against the fines.” However, despite the plans being given the go-ahead last month, Cardiff Council said it would take a while for them to officially come into operation. A spokesman said: “In the meantime, all restrictions in the area remain in force.”


A South Wales Police spokesman added: “There have been a number of operations to address the obstruction caused by taxi drivers in and around Cardiff railway and bus station in recent months.


“The most recent operation took place on Wednesday and yesterday when more than 20 fixed penalty notices were issued to drivers who were wait- ing on double yellow lines.”


Officers attended the area prior to the oper- ation to warn drivers.


WORCESTER CABBIE’S FURY AT GETTING LITTER FINE


Taxi driver Robert Cook fined for accidentally dropping a tissue


A taxi driver from Worcester who was fined for accidentally dropping a small piece of tissue has labelled actions of the police a “disgrace” as clubbers were not punished for creating a “sea of flyers” in the same street.


Robert Cook was work- ing in the early hours of a recent Tuesday morning as revellers left Tramps nightclub in Angel Place, at 3am and were handed flyers by promoters - most of which were thrown to the floor.


As he waited to pick up a fare a seagull excret- ed on his brand new taxi, which Mr Cook began to clean off with


PAGE 70


a piece of tissue. The 33-year-old, from Blackpole, told the Worcester News: “As I wiped off the mess, I accidentally dropped a small piece of tissue. The mess had actually gone inside the win- dow and onto the seat so I was in the taxi try- ing to clean it up when the police officer came to give me the fine. “I would have picked it up when I got out of the car but I didn’t even get a chance. “Two officers had been sitting in a car in Angel Place and there must have been 800 to 1,000 flyers which had just been dropped on the floor right in front of them.


“Not one of the cul- prits was given a ticket. It’s a disgrace. “I’m out there working an 18-hour shift, trying to earn a living and making sure people get home safely. “I have a lot of time for the police and I think they do a great job but after this they have gone right down in my estimation.” Mr Cook said he plans to contest the fine. A spokesman from South Worcestershire police said: “We work closely with all of our partners - Worcester City Council in this case - to create and maintain a safe and pleasant place in which to live, work and relax. On occa- sion, this requires action involving indi- viduals who commit offences and whose practices are not con- ducive with our stated aims and those of our partners.” A Worces- ter City Council spokesman said it was not an offence to hand out flyers and leaflets but it was an offence to drop them on the floor.


CIRENCESTER TAXIS ‘LET OFF’ BY WARDENS


Taxis which flout park- ing regulations by waiting on double yel- low lines for a space on the Market Place taxi rank in Cirences- ter are being let off by traffic wardens.


Under the Cotswold District Council’s rules, anyone apart from an emergency vehicle should be issued a ticket for waiting on double yel- low lines.


But furious tradesman Nigel Marston says it is unfair that one sec- tion of the business community is excused and the rest are made in pay for infringements.


“There’s something


going on which is wrong,” he told the Wiltshire and Glouces- tershire Standard. “I’m a businessman as much as they are. They have been heavy handed with the rest of us but let the taxis off scot-free.”


A Cotswold District Council spokesman denied that taxis were being treated differ- ently: “Anybody who is parked on double yellow lines would get issued with a Penalty Charge Notice if one of the council’s CEOs is present and notices the offence.”


However Steve Collins, of 2&Fro Taxis, told the Stan-


dard that his cars were not issued tickets by the town’s traffic war- dens while waiting for a space on the rank. “I can see his [Mr Marston’s] point, we get away with it, but there is nowhere else for us to go.


“There are only five spots on the rank in the Market Place and Cirencester must have 60 taxis, with 30 to 40 of them out dur- ing the day.


“The council allocat- ed us two more spots around the back of Bernard Griffiths in the Waterloo car park but no one knows they are there so what’s the point.”


TEWKESBURY BOROUGH COUNCIL “SORRY” FOR FINE BUNGLE


Council officials wast- ed months chasing a motorist over a park- ing fine which should never have been issued. Tewkesbury Borough Council has admitted its two-month pursuit of Mal Rogers was a mistake and has unre- servedly apologised. One of its traffic war- dens issued the 59-year-old with a tick- et in Church Road, Bishop’s Cleeve, on April 18. She said he was in a bay reserved for loading only. But he had left his car for just eight minutes that allowed vehicles to wait for 45 minutes. The council eventually realised its blunder but only after compil- ing a dossier against Mr Rogers and taking him to a tribunal. Its traffic warden insist- ed she had a photograph of his car next to a sign that warned about the load- ing bay restrictions.


But she failed to realise that those restrictions had been lifted and a new sign installed on the oppo- site side of the bay. The borough says a breakdown in commu- nication with Gloucestershire County Council meant new signs in the road had been installed earlier than it had expected and the traf- fic warden had not known about it. Mr Rogers, of Nover- ton, Prestbury, told the Gloucestershire Echo: “I’m appalled at the way I’ve been treated. I’ve had a lot of hassle over it. It must have cost the council hun- dreds of pounds and for what?”


He said the initial cost of the £36 fine rose to £70 as he had not paid it within 28 days. He works as a taxi driver at Cheltenham Spa Railway Station and says he lost £70 worth of business


when he turned down a job while having a telephone conversa- tion with the adjudicator. Cllr Phil Taylor, the council’s deputy leader, said: “We unre- servedly apologise for the inconvenience caused to him.”


He said that when the council realised its mistake, it wrote to Mr Rogers to say sorry but he did not get the letter in time to pre- vent the matter going to the Traffic Penalty Tribunal.


He said the tribunal had suggested the council award Mr Rogers £100 in com- pensation and the authority was consid- ering this.


He denied the matter had cost the council a lot of money, saying the case took one to two hours to prepare. “We hope to learn valuable lessons from this unfortunate sequence of events.”


PHTM AUGUST 2009


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85  |  Page 86  |  Page 87  |  Page 88  |  Page 89  |  Page 90  |  Page 91  |  Page 92  |  Page 93  |  Page 94  |  Page 95  |  Page 96  |  Page 97  |  Page 98  |  Page 99  |  Page 100  |  Page 101  |  Page 102  |  Page 103  |  Page 104  |  Page 105  |  Page 106  |  Page 107  |  Page 108  |  Page 109  |  Page 110  |  Page 111  |  Page 112