IN THE NEWS
TAXI WARS BREAK OUT BETWEEN SEFTON AND LIVERPOOL CABBIES
Taxi wars have broken out in Crosby as furi- ous cabbies called for a crackdown on out- of-town drivers ille- gally plying for hire. Liverpool hackney cab drivers are accused of stealing work by sneak- ing over the Sefton border to get fares. Seventeen cabbies registered with Liver- pool City Council were prosecuted last year for breaching regula- tions.
The taxi drivers were fined a total of £1,780 and ordered to pay £3,412 in court costs. But Richard Jarman, chairman of South Sefton Hackney Car- riage Association, said the true figure of illegal plying for hire was sig-
nificantly higher. He told the Crosby Herald: “In Crosby or Waterloo on a Friday and Saturday night, you only have to look around to see how many Liverpool cabs there are.
“The economic situa- tion of our drivers would improve immea- surably if the city cabs would respect the boundaries.”
There is nothing to stop PHVs venturing over borders when booked through an operator – as Bootle- based Delta Taxis do in Liverpool – or Liver- pool hackney cabs taking customers into Sefton. But only hack- ney drivers registered in Sefton are allowed
to be flagged down by the public.
A Sefton council docu- ment, seen by the Crosby Herald, sug- gests that the number of Liverpool drivers caught plying for hire in the borough now accounts for 85 per cent of the cases put before the courts. In 2009/10, the figure was just 25 per cent. The report says: “The proactive approach adopted by the taxi licensing unit is the key factor in ensuring the quality of hackney carriage and PHVs and hence the safety of the travelling public. “The reduced number of prosecutions ag- ainst Sefton licensed drivers demonstrates
the success of the high profile test pur- chasing initiatives carried out by the unit. “The service will con- tinue its enforcement activities in 2010/11, shifting its emphasis to address the increasing problem of Liverpool licensed hackney carriages operating in Sefton.” The report also reveals that three Sefton private hire drivers were prosecut- ed for illegally plying for hire, they were fined and had their licences endorsed with six points.
The report adds: “The number of Sefton pri- vate hire drivers caught illegally play- ing for hire has fallen
PLY FOR HIRE PERMITS
Taxi owners and drivers are invited to apply for permits to ply for hire on the ranks at STOKE-ON-TRENT RAILWAY STATION operated by Virgin Trains
STOKE-ON-TRENT RAILWAY STATION Price – 12 months from 1st August 2011 to 31st July 2012 - £236.90 per permit (Inc VAT) + £103.00 for additional drivers (Inc VAT)
Initial applications (without payment) should be made to:
Cabfind Ltd: 15 Park Street, Birkenhead, CH41 1ET
A full application pack will be sent to all valid applicants
Tel: 0151 200 4980 Fax: 0870 170 0778 Email:
permits@cabfind.com
www.cabfind.com
Cabfind are an equal opportunities employer
from 75 per cent to 15 per cent of the cases prosecuted.”
But taxi driver George Halsall said it remained an issue. He said: “The big problem in the south of the borough is the
Liverpool drivers and in the north it is the private hire drivers. Because their work has dried up they have started to pick up fares illegally and are taking work from us.
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For preferential prices & personal service Call us now on
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0800 142 2815 PAGE 32 PHTM JULY 2011
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