FARES AND FEES FARES SET TO RISE ON 30 DECEMBER BY 2.9%
Taxi fares in Edinburgh went up 2.9 per cent from the end of December. According to the Edinburgh Evening News, councillors approved the increase, which will take Edinburgh into the top 25 in the PHTM league table of UK local authorities. As well as the 2.9% increase on all tariffs, the “additional passenger charge” will go up from 30p to 40p when there are more than three passengers, the airport drop-off fee will double from £2 to £4, and the festive tariff will apply to Christ- mas and New Year’s Day, irrespective of the day of the week, as well as the night times on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve. The council said the latest fare review was also delayed due to pressures caused by the pandemic and prioritising the safe reopening of businesses.
CALLS FOR ‘£5 PER JOURNEY FARE INCREASE’
Taxi drivers have requested an increase in fares ahead of Sheffield Council introducing a daily charge to drive in the city centre. According to The Star, three members of the taxi trade wrote to the council asking for various fare increases, saying other drivers surge prices when demand rises. Ray Chappell, asked the council for a £5 per journey increase and said: “We have not had one for many years and certainly not a significant one. Licensing authorities throughout the country are pressing us to go electric but with the fares as they are there is little incentive.” He said the “elephant in the room” was the cost of upgrading to electric taxis to be compliant with the CAZ - equivalent to around £900 per month over five years - and that many cabbies were already handing back their licences. Ibrar Hussain, taxi driver and former councillor, also requested adding 20p on every station pick up job and the Taxi Trade Association asked for a 4.8 percent increase across fares. The licensing committee was set to make a decision on the proposals in a meeting on Monday 20 December, but the meeting was cancelled.
TAXI FARES WILL NOT INCREASE NEXT YEAR
Arun fares will not increase following a consultation. The Argus reports that Arun District Council’s licensing committee recommended taxi fares stay the same from April 2022. If the full council agrees, current fares will remain until March 2023. A total of 261 drivers were consulted this year. Of those, 16 did not want to see an increase to fares; 12 supported an increase but did not specify an amount; and eight drivers wanted fares to increase by a specific amount. Cllr Pauline Gregory said: “Only 11 per cent of the 261 have
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bothered to respond which, to my mind, says that their earnings are sufficient – even with the fuel increases.” Maximum fares last increased in April when 20 pence was added from the first mile. Council officers took the ‘steady increase’ in fuel prices into account when recommending fares stay the same. However, if diesel exceeds £1.50 per litre for a month or more, fares could increase by 10 pence per mile.
FEE INCREASE OBJECTIONS REJECTED
An ojection made by an operator to the proposals for the revision of the annual fee for vehicle and operator licences was considered by Southampton City Council on 29th Decem- ber 2021. A small operator had made the objection stating they had to pay the same fee for an operator licence as a larger operator and felt this was unfair. They also objected to the increase in driver fees as drivers had experienced ‘turbulent’ times. In response to the objection, the council pointed out that: “With regards to operator fees the process of issuing an operator licence for a large company is no different to that of a single person operator such as yourself. In fact the larger companies often have slicker processes to provide the information for officers. “The drivers fees were significantly reduced last year and the intention was to retain that level of fee but the review of the drivers accounts together with an increase in checks staff will undertake since the last review showed that could not be maintained without going into a deficit.” The council therefore determined that the proposed fees will come into force with effect from 1st January 2022.
ANGER AS CHRISTMAS FARE RISE RULED OUT
A pre-Christmas rise in taxi fares in the Taunton and Minehead areas has been blocked after eight people submitted objections to the council. According to the Somerset County Gazette, irate cabbies say there has not been an increase in the past 11 years, despite spiralling insurance and fuel costs. A taxi firm had requested the rise but the council has now put off the decision until the New Year following opposition during the consultation which ended on 6 December. Robin Colclough, spokesperson for The Taunton Taxi Drivers and Owners Association, said a 12 per cent fare rise proposed by SWTC was agreed with the trade. He added: “The trade was hoping this increase would go through for the Christmas and New Year period. To discover that, following eight objections, the licensing department must now present the proposal to the executive committee and they will not meet until January 19 is very disheartening.”
JANUARY 2022
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