56 PRIVATE HIRE AND TAXI MONTHLY
MARCH 2009 RANK RUMBLINGS WORKINGTON CABBIES OUTRAGED AS RANK IS CUT OFF
Cab drivers in Working- ton are furious over confusion caused by the town’s main taxi rank being cordoned off. The rank on Murray Road is the busiest in the town and the driv- ers fear that with it being closed, they will lose trade and vulnera- ble people will not be able to get a taxi. The works are part of a £630,000 revamp of Murray Road, Finkle Street and Pow Street which are being carried out by Cumbria County Council.
Local builder Thomas Armstrong started dig- ging up the road as part of the improvement works so taxis began parking as close to the rank as they could. But Allerdale Council traffic wardens warned the drivers that if they were not parked in a designated parking bay,
they would be booked. Cumbria County Coun- cil has confirmed that a temporary rank will soon be in place further down Murray Road, while work continues on the top half.
When work reaches the temporary rank, a coun- cil spokesman said that signs will be put in place diverting cus- tomers to an alternative rank on Finkle Street. Taxi driver Ian Melville said that when he arrived at the rank he had no idea that it was to close and it came as a shock to him. He said that up to 20 cabs can pull into the rank first thing in the morning. ‘Even the wagons can’t get parked to unload. We have nowhere else to park. “We have just been parking willy nilly all day,” he told the Carlisle News and Star.
An Allerdale spokesman said that taxi drivers were advised to park wherever they could legally. “However, some taxis were found to be park- ing illegally - on double yellow lines and in no loading/unloading zones and were at risk of causing an accident so were encouraged to move on by enforce- ment officers, he added. Sheena Robinson, sec- retary for Workington Taxi Association, said that taxi drivers in the town came into work to find chaos as there was nowhere for them to pull up.
“Their customers include elderly women and men, and mothers with prams who can’t get onto buses so they use a taxi. “We need somewhere to park for 22 weeks while the work is taking place. There was an old lady today stand-
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ing at the rank (at Mur- ray Road) waiting for a taxi; people don’t know that we can’t park there anymore. ‘We are going to pursue this as an association; we need something done. I can’t afford to lose 22 weeks on the rank. Nobody can
Changes to taxi ranks in Chepstow were recom- mended after a review by the town council and Monmouthshire County Council’s licensing committee. The South Wales Argus reports that, after noting the recommendations of
afford to lose work in the credit crunch.” David Rothery, of Rock- ers Taxi, said that although there are other taxi ranks in the town, people tend to use the one on Murray Road as it is more central. He said: “This rank (Murray Road) is busy
Chepstow Town Council, the licensing committee agreed to recommend the following:
• The bus stop taxi rank should be extended from two vehicles to four. • The existing railway station rank should remain the same.
all day. We have other ranks, but people want them in the town centre. “This should have been sorted out ages ago, instead of us turning up and it being closed.” Murray Road and Finkle Street will be closed to traffic for eight Sundays up until June 8.
RANK CHANGES PUT FORWARD IN CHEPSTOW
• A new rank for two vehicles in operation after 7pm should be created in the High Street.
The recommendations were handed over to the highways department which is studying the viability of the changes.
COLCHESTER RANK CHASE COULD BE OVER
Hopes of two new cab ranks in Colchester have been raised with proposals currently being investigated at county level.
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In August, Colchester Council’s licensing committee vowed to look into the prospect of extra ranks, in addi- tion to those in North Station, High Street and Queen Street.
Since then, a series of investigations and visits round the town have been held, according to committee chairman Barry Cook, culminat- ing in a meeting with Essex Highways Authority and proposals of what the committee would like to happen. “The first thing was that we wanted a barri- er outside Marks and Spencer in the High Street to protect peo- ple waiting there, and
also to prevent people from jumping into the road in front of a taxi and not waiting in line,” he said. “We also hope to have a shelter put up there.” Tim Young, Colchester Council’s portfolio holder for street and waste services, revealed plans for the barriers at a full council meeting in October, but Mr Cook said these would also depend on input from English Her- itage as it was involved in maintaining the look of the High Street. “Second was a taxi rank outside Route in Queen Street. Hundreds of young people come out of that club in the early hours, and many are looking for taxis as soon as they do.” He said they hoped a loading bay, unused during the night, could
double up as a taxi rank, while they also hoped a new rank, which would accommo- date four cars, could be introduced on Head Street, by its junction with Sir Isaacs Walk. “All that is now being looked at by the coun- ty. We are waiting for the results,” he said. Don Rhodes, chairman of Colchester Hackney Carriage Association, told the Colchester Evening Gazette: “We are very optimistic about getting the ranks. It would be very helpful to have a new rank out- side Head Street. “We are also support- ive of getting the barrier (outside Marks and Spencer). A lot has happened since the meeting in August. Mr Cook has not stood still, and he has really got his finger out.”
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