ALL THINGS LICENSING Second Byelaw relating to rank use:
• The drivers of the first two hackney carriages standing upon a stand appointed by the council shall be in constant attendance in or near to their carriages ready to be hired at once.
In practice this means: the drivers of the first two taxis at a rank need to be at or near their vehicle at all times waiting for customers.
RANK ETIQUETTE
The byelaws above set very clear expectations about rank use, which if applied correctly could negate some of the issues which are often the subject of complaints amongst the trade and to the authority itself.
For example, if vehicles were attended at all times and moved up, then this would ensure that available space is used, meaning the maximum number of vehicles could access the rank. This is very often a cause of complaint from drivers wishing to access popular ranks and ensuring that ranks are used correctly will enable their efficient use. I have dealt with a number of examples where drivers have used taxi rank spaces to go shopping or go to the bank/toilet, or even left their vehicle on a rank overnight, placing pressure on rank space.
It is important to remember that taxi ranks are provided as spaces for taxis to wait for customers to access the service, and are not provided as ‘convenient free parking’ for taxi drivers to run errands or park for long periods. It is also important to remember that if taxi rank spaces are either not used at all or not used for their intended purpose, it may be very difficult for the local authority to justify keeping them as town and city centres are subject of continuing development.
Similarly, if a rank is full, drivers should not try and pull onto it potentially creating issues behind them upsetting other motorists.
There is, on most ranks, an etiquette of first come, 72
first served when it comes to taking customers and this works well and is fairest on members of the trade. However, ultimately, which taxi on a rank to use is very much down to customer choice and it is perhaps understandable that customers may wish to take, for example the new Mercedes in fifth position, over the 20-year-old Skoda at the head of the rank.
After all, the fare will be the same in the local authority’s area. Generally however, the driver in the fifth position car will direct customers to the first taxi in the queue and this remains the most harmonious approach for drivers to take.
RANK REVIEWS
It is good practice for a local authority to review rank space regularly, particularly as a result of significant changes, such as changes to popular venues where a service may be needed, changes to road layout, or changes to the number of spaces compared to the number of vehicles.
However, whilst ranks are predominantly located in town and city centres and at transport hubs, there is normally also significant other economic, social, environmental, developmental, etc. pressures on these locations meaning that taxi ranks may not be as high in the list of priorities when development in these areas is being considered.
In addition, the increase in popularity of both app-based private hire services, where a private hire vehicle can be booked as quickly as hailing a taxi, and the significant increase in online delivery services has created considerable additional pressure at or near popular venues as vehicles try and wait for their next booking or food order, placing further conflict on town centre locations where there has been no provision made for these businesses.
As such, it is incumbent on both licensing authorities and the trade to lobby decision makers to ensure that rank provision is allocated the priority it needs within town centres.
FEBRUARY 2022 PHTM
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