ROUND THE COUNCILS
WELSH GOVERNMENT: MULTI-APPING COULD BE ADDRESSED
Action could be taken to address issues caused by PH drivers working for multiple apps or operators at once, but councillors have said there is no simple solution. The Welsh Government is consulting on new legislation covering taxis and PHVs, including the possibility of minimum national standards for the trade, which is currently subject to local regulations, and new powers for licensing authorities. A white paper, which sets out rules and standards the government thinks it should introduce, has asked if it should address “the negative consequences of ‘multi- apping’”. The government says the practice has resulted in passenger journeys being delayed and or cancelled with complaints about cancelled bookings now “common” as drivers show themselves available for hire on one app while already accepting a more lucrative booking on another app. It also says a “risk to passenger safety can arise” from cancelled bookings. Torfaen Borough Council’s licensing committee discussed the white paper, and how it should respond, and Abersychan councillor Lynda Clarkson said: “Multi-apping seems to be a problem occurring more often now and people are waiting longer.” But the Labour councillor said she struggled to see how the council could enforce the government’s suggestion of limiting a driver’s freedom to use more than one operating app at once. Instead she said the council should back the other suggested option of holding operators to account for cancelled bookings. Cllr Clarkson said licensing staff could then look to see if multi-apping was the cause of the cancellations. Cwmbran independent councillor Elizabeth Haynes suggested restricting drivers’ work may be necessary in some of Wales’ larger cities but questioned if it was practical in smaller areas. A report to the committee confirmed there had been complaints of drivers arriving late, or failing to turn up for bookings, in the last quarter of 2022 and first quarter of 2023 in Torfaen along with allegations of overcharging and general poor service. The government also wants opinions on how it should tackle drivers who are licensed in England, where it says standards may be lower, but mainly carry out pre-booked work in Wales. It has suggested that private hire drivers, firms and vehicles that operate wholly or mainly in Wales must
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be licensed by a Welsh council so they meet the Welsh national minimum standards and that would allow English-based drivers to still carry out work in Wales provided most of their bookings take place in England. The government favours this approach rather than preventing those based in England from taking bookings that start and finish in Wales, though it noted that determining where the majority of an operator’s work takes place “may be challenging”. A register of drivers who’ve had their taxi licences revoked or suspended or applications refused, which is already in use in Torfaen, could also be made mandatory across Wales. Councillors were also asked how the take up of zero emission vehicles could be encouraged and whether there should be a deadline for switching to EVs.
WARRINGTON: NO UNMET DEMAND FOR TAXI SERVICES
There is ‘no evidence’ of any unmet demand for taxi services in Warrington, according to a survey. The taxi and other licensing committee met on 10 May, to consider the findings of the survey and was recommended to approve the number of hackney carriage vehicles at 148, reduced from 149. The independent survey’s key conclusion is that there is no evidence of any unmet demand for taxi services, either patent or latent, which is significant in the full Warrington Borough Council licensing area”. It adds: “The committee is therefore able to retain the present limit policy, with vehicle numbers retained at the present value of 149. In fact, the evidence suggests retention of this policy is an essential part of the current stability of the hackney carriage industry in this area, and a strong public benefit. “Further, the reduction of the active fleet by one vehicle has not led to any reduction in the effectiveness of the fleet (service levels have in fact improved against national trends) and it would be prudent to extinguish that single spare plate, and put on record that any further small numbers of plates handed back could also be considered for extinction. “Unlike the results from most other authorities recent surveys, for Warrington the reduced demand levels have also seen improved levels of service to the public and reduced unmet demand (the expected result from having lower demand levels and a similar sized vehicle fleet).”
JUNE 2023 PHTM
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