30 PRIVATE HIRE AND TAXI MONTHLY
JANUARY 2009 FARES ANDFEES ISLE OF WIGHT TAXI FARE INCREASE FAILS AS FUEL FALLS
Councillors have refused to bow to taxi trade pressure and increase fares.
According to the Isle of Wight County Press, the IW Council’s licensing committee was told that earlier protests resulting from rocketing fuel prices seemed to have evaporated now prices were coming down. The meeting was told the council calculated
taxi proprietors’ costs on the basis of £1.15 a litre for petrol and £1.25 for diesel and it was now well below that. Ten years ago, the island had the most expensive fares in the country but, for the past four years, there have been no increases. The committee agreed to keep fares as they were but to review the fares structure in a year.
RYEDALE RISE WELCOMED BY TAXI DRIVERS
Hackney carriage fares in Ryedale are to rise next year. Ryedale Dis- trict Council’s licensing committee has approved a revised fare structure for 2009/10. Under the changes, the further the distance trav- elled, the greater the price increase. Currently, customers travelling one mile pay £3. From next year, they will pay £3.20, a six per cent increase.
Once customers have travelled more than a mile, they will pay 2p more for every tenth of a mile travelled than they do now.
John Marsland, who owns Malton-based Vale Taxis, told the York Evening Press that he was happy with the fare proposal as it means they will not have to ask the council to increase fares next year.
CARDIFF TAXI FARE INCREASE REJECTED AS TOO STEEP
Taxi drivers’ attempts to push through a 17 per cent fare hike have been rejected by the council because it is too steep. A Cardiff council spokesman told the Cardiff Post: “The application was refused as the commit- tee thought the increase was excessive and would not be acceptable to the public.”
The Cardiff Hackney Association secretary
Shiva Kumar said that as fuel costs have fallen they planned to ask for a smaller increase.
The association said it needed the increase to cover the rise in fuel costs, a £15 increase in the MOT test fee and the soaring cost of living. Mr Kumar said: “Our committee will now meet to discuss the matter and we will resubmit our application.”
BRECKLAND TAXI FARES ON HOLD FOR A YEAR
Breckland District Council has resolved not to increase the cur- rent fares for hackney carriages for another year. Following a meeting of the taxi trade earlier this year, there was a request for a review of fares, in light of the increase in fuel duty in the last six months. Councillors said Breck- land’s prices were
already above the region’s average and worried about the impact on customers in rural areas.
A spokesman told the Norwich Evening News: “Fares haven’t increased for two years. However fuel prices are now beginning to fall so an increase in fares cannot be justified at this time.”
OXFORD CAB FARES SET TO INCREASE
Taxi drivers in Oxford will be allowed to put up their fares because of the rising costs of fuel. At a meeting of the Oxford City Council licensing committee the council agreed the annual increase. The move means an extra 40p on an £8 fare. The City of Oxford Licensed Taxicab Asso- ciation (COLTA) also wanted to introduce a trigger system which would kick in should the price of fuel rise dramat- ically again.
The group requested if
the cost of a litre of fuel rose above £1.50 then they would be able to automatically charge people a further 20p. If the fuel then dipped in price, the trigger system would work in reverse.
Deputy city council leader Ed Turner told the Oxford Mail: “We agreed the annual rise in fares as we always do. But we have said to drivers they should come back to us if fuel ever reaches that price and we will consider a further rise then.”
SHEFFIELD’S BLACK CABS SURCHARGE STOPPED
A controversial sur- charge which black cab drivers were allowed to charge while fuel prices were high will not be re- introduced in Sheffield. The Sheffield Star reports that Councillors on Sheffield Council’s
licensing board reviewed their deci- sion taken last month as customers com- plained prices were too high.
The licensing board did allow a 4.1 per cent increase in over- all fare prices.
EDINBURGH TAXI FARES SET TO RISE
Taxi fares in Edinburgh are set to rise as the cost of fuel and the global economic slow- down hits drivers. Councillors will discuss proposals for a seven per cent fare increase amid claims the cost of diesel is putting many drivers out of business. Taxi firms also say they have been affected by congestion caused by the tram works and have not had a fare increase since 2006. The proposed increase
means a £5 fare would rise to £5.35 and the starting fare would rise from £1.50 to £1.60 before 6pm on week- days, and from £2.50 to £2.70 at night and at weekends. The call-out charge would rise from 60p to 70p, and the cleaning fee would also rise, from £20 to £21.50. Last month, the city council agreed to add an extra 20p onto fares as an interim measure. Dozens of cabbies are thought to have left the
city’s taxi trade in the last few months, blam- ing a combination of the economic down- turn, fuel prices and the tram works.
Raymond Davidson, sec- retary of the Edinburgh Taxi Association, told the Edinburgh Evening News: “The drivers are taking a real hit from the fuel prices. We’ve not had a fare rise for over two years and our fares are some of the lowest in the UK.”
BLACKPOOL CAB FIRM CUTS ITS FARES
A Blackpool cab firm is to take the unprece- lented step and slash its fares.
Bosses at Premier Cabs say they will cut up to 20 per cent in a bid to stave off com- petion from outside the borough and help cus- tomers during the credit crunch. Jon Cutler, managing director told The Black- pool Gazette: “We have lowered the meter rates and we’re hoping peo- ple will notice the difference and come
back to using Black- pool operators.
“The £5 start on fares at Christmas, introduced last year put a lot of people off using taxis.” Mr Cutler said the com- pany had dropped this and now people will just pay from the moment they get into the taxi.” He added: “I do not think this will start a taxi war with our competi- tors trying to lower their prices. What I want to do is make sure that Blackpool residents use resort taxis.”
It is not yet known if any other Blackpool cab firms will follow Premier. A spokesman for C Cabs said: “We will not be dropping our fares as we will be focusing more on cus- tomer service.” David Palmer, joint sec- retary of the Blackpool Licensed Taxi Owners Association (BLTOA), said: “The rates are set by the council but Pre- mier Cabs have a right to do what they want with their fares.”
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