ROUND THE COUNCILS WILTSHIRE:
FIFE: LACK OF TAXIS TO TAKE SEND CHILDREN
Wiltshire Council does not have enough taxis to take some special needs children to school, according to a new council
report.This follows a national fall in the numbers of taxi drivers and vehicles according to the report on Wiltshire taxi licences which was discussed by the Licensing Committee on December 5. The report says: “The Passenger Transport Unit have advised they are struggling to fulfil all of their SEND [special educational needs and disabilities] school contracts due to a lack of drivers and vehicles.” Cabinet Member for Transport, Dr Mark McClelland, said: “We have had to put temporary arrangements in place such as doubling up on runs, reduced pupil timetables or paying parents to take them.” He added: “In Wiltshire there was a shortage of taxi drivers to fulfil our SEND school contracts before the Covid-19 pandemic which hit the industry very hard reducing numbers further. “The pandemic hit the taxi industry very hard, and all local authorities have seen reducing driver numbers.” However, he said: “We launched a recruitment campaign to support local taxi companies who were struggling to recruit drivers and to increase the number of licenced taxi drivers that could bid for our contracts. “The recruitment campaign was successful in encouraging more applications and the number of new applicants has now recovered to pre-pandemic levels. “The results of this are starting to feed through and we currently only have a small number of SEND school transport contracts unfilled.” But even though the number of new applicants is back to pre-pandemic levels the report says the industry has still not recovered from the impact of Covid because older drivers keep leaving. It says: “Whilst new applications are up overall, driver levels remain flat as older drivers continue to leave the industry.” “The current economic position within the UK may result in a recovery in the taxi industry taking longer than expected, if indeed it ever returns to pre- pandemic levels.”
Cllr McClelland added: “Demand for SEND school transport continues to grow, so we are still keen to recruit more taxi drivers and to hear from drivers who would like to apply for our contracts.
PHTM JANUARY 2023 COMPETING FIRMS WARNED OF CONDUCT
Taxi operators and drivers from “two competing firms” have been spoken to about their conduct. Fife Council’s enforcement officer also issued verbal warnings to two firms and three cabbies for “minor indiscretions”. Craig Ritchie’s report to the regulation and licensing committee said he looked into various complaints, suspected non-compliance with licence conditions and other issues between June 1 and October 31. Advice was given to taxi operators and drivers from two competing firms regarding their conduct. A professional chauffeur company and an unlicensed vehicle operator were also spoken to.
HYNDBURN: CABBIES CAN ASK FOR FARES UP FRONT
Taxi drivers in Hyndburn are allowed to ask for upfront payment in future because of an increase in the number of passengers declining to settle their fares after the journey. Hyndburn council has agreed to a request from firms to permit requests for fares to be settled before travel to help keep their essential services running. It follows a growing number of passengers running off without paying leaving drivers short of cash during the current cost of living crisis. The authority is now making the change public and asking passengers not to be offended. Cllr Joyce Plummer, Hyndburn Council’s licensing boss, said: “The request for upfront fares going forward is in response to an increasing number of people leaving the taxi after their journey without paying. It is very unfortunate this needs to happen. “I am urging people to not be offended if this is requested of them and understand that this is a necessity to protect local businesses and keep the vital taxi services in our borough running. “Taking off without paying is a criminal offence and more often than not the perpetrators are not apprehended, and therefore no payment is made to the driver. “We fully support taxi drivers in putting measures in place to prevent these crimes taking place and protecting their income, especially during the current cost of living crisis which we are all navigating.”
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