Andy Peters Brighton & Hove Cab Trade Association
info@bhcta.co.uk www.bhcta.co.uk
Fuming!
I usually have pleasure in stating that we have a very good relationship with the council, usually. However, this usual cordial relationship has recently broken down, and I am fuming!
We have, or rather had a long established 24-hour rank on the seafront near the pier, until the council snatched it from us as part of their totally unnecessary bus lane that has been put on the seafront road. Suddenly it was turned into a shared loading bay with reduced hours from 6pm to 6am. There had been absolutely no stakeholder consultation with us nor any information sent to Brighton & Hove City Council licensing department which would pass on such details. Additionally, nothing came through to my email on a TRO until a few weeks prior to when the alterations were started.
So, in my fuming mode I fired off an email stating that this is yet another occurrence of where back in 2020 we lost a rank overnight outside a supermarket which had busy footfall. This was because the council had a bright idea of having the need to widen the pavements for claimed covid reasons, and people needed more space... yes you couldn’t make it up! We hit the roof over the loss of the rank. We had a Trade Forum meeting where the then Chair of Licensing apologised and undertook that it would never happen again…. yeah right!
So, the rank had been turned into a shared loading bay with limited hours, and guess what? Out-of-town Uber drivers started parking on it! This was because there was only ‘LOADING’ marked out in the road and just a tiny sign post indicating it was a shared loading/taxi rank.
Anyway, eventually, after Licensing also intervened, I received a response from the project manager:
“I am sorry you feel that the taxi trade has not been properly consulted on this matter. I can assure you that it was the intention that the promotion of the initial consultation would
68
include the taxi trade. We
will review
communication around future proposals, and particularly those that affect taxi ranks, including through the Taxi Forum.”
Pathetic, and note the term ‘was the intention’.
Making matters worse was that I received an email stating that as the bus lane was an ETO (experimental traffic order) comments will be taken on board for any alterations, but not until November 2025. So that would be six months of seeing out-of-town Ubers using the layby during the day as their own private rank!.
In another email I was then informed that the council had, unbeknown to us, carried out a measly 24 hour survey of the rank a year ago and concluded that it could be reduced in hours from 6pm to 6am and become a shared loading bay. I was spitting venom when I read that! I sent off a very strong email to the project manager and to all and sundry stating several facts including:
“The 24-hour taxi rank has been there for many years serving the local trade and public and is there for whether drivers pull on it for ten seconds or ten minutes and where people wanting a taxi can wait until one arrives. We also have a local network that directs drivers to the rank when people are waiting there. The rank is also used as a safe set-down point for passengers, including those in wheelchairs.”
I also pointed out that where they had turned the 24- hour taxi rank into a loading bay, this was now used by out-of-town Ubers to ‘rank’ up on and that was a totally unacceptable position to put the local trade in! I also stated that I considered that the council has treated the local taxi trade with contempt! Additionally, as we have a Trade Forum Meeting in June, I personally invited the project manager to that meeting so an explanation could be given in person to all the trade reps.
I did receive a further reply with feeble excuses that I rejected so I instantly raised this as a Stage 1 complaint against the council hoping that the project manager would be held accountable. However, I received another reply the following day which although it contained more feeble excuses, also stated an undertaking to reinstate the rank back to its original status.
JUNE 2025 PHTM
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