72 PRIVATE HIRE AND TAXI MONTHLY
ANGRY CABBIES
SWANSEA CABBIES’ ANGER AT ROGUE TAXIS
Rogue cabbies are denying law-abiding licence-holders the chance to make a living. One Swansea driver said he was losing money because he was picking passengers up at the ranks rather than breaking the rules of his licence and waiting for fares on Wind Street. He said the problem was at it worst on a Wednesday, student night, when the road was open to vehicles. He told the South Wales Evening Post: “There are a number of taxi drivers who park up on Wind Street instead of waiting at the ranks. “They are able to pick and choose which fares to take, and don’t have to wait for passengers as they would at the rank. “It can be very frustrat- ing if I am sitting in the rank for up to an hour while these drivers are
getting the fares first, because they are doing it illegally.
“I am losing out on income, and I am not earning the money I should be because of the actions of these people.” The self-employed driv- er, who wants to remain anonymous, alleged the system was not being properly policed by Swansea Council. “Over the past six months it has become ridiculous,” he said. “A lot of drivers are now thinking of going to Wind Street because people are getting away with it. The situation has got out of hand.” The driver said the existing situation was also dangerous, with taxis parked on both sides of the road. He said: “Wednesday is a busy night and the road is open. It is not safe to have taxis
parked on both sides of the road, especially when people are com- ing out of pubs after drinking alcohol. “The vehicles are caus- ing an obstruction and parking on double yel- low lines. Is it going to take someone to get run over for something to happen?
“I know the council has brought some taxis to court, but something needs to be done on a much larger scale.” A council spokes- woman said: “Council enforcement officers regularly patrol sites in the city centre to ensure taxi licence holders are collecting fares in accordance with their licence conditions. “Those who are found to operate outside of these strict require- ments risk heavy fines and the loss of their licence.”
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A private hire boss has warned customers at Hinchingbrooke Hospi- tal that they could be at risk if they get in the wrong cars for transport. Paul Taylor, co-owner of A2Z Private Hire, said drivers from other firms are picking up his customers, leaving them uninsured in the event of an accident. Mr Taylor said his firm had spent a lot of money on a contract with Infopoint, where people at the hospital can pick up a tele- phone and be put straight through to his
HUNTINGDON FIRM GIVES WARNING look like.”
business for a private hire car.
But he claimed other drivers were simply intercepting passen- gers as they waited. “I am very angry at it because it has been going on for some time. We have mentioned it to the council and they say there is nothing they can do about it.” Mr Taylor told the Hunt- ingdon News and Crier. “We have got a very loyal base of customers at the hospital and a lot of people from the sur- rounding villages who know what our cars
He said some cus- tomers who were unfamiliar with his firm did not check to make sure that the vehicle they got into was the one they had booked. A spokesman for Hunt- ingdonshire District Council said: “All the drivers know they are not allowed to pick peo- ple up unless they are pre-booked.”
He said the council would take action if the rules were being bro- ken, but that they needed clear evidence in order to do so.
ANDOVER DRIVERS SEEK COUNCIL ACTION
Hackney carriage driv- ers in Andover are being driven mad by what they claim are pri- vate hire cars literally driving away their pas- sengers. The Test Valley Taxi Association is angry because it believes pri- vate hire vehicles belonging to 1-2 Call Cabs are breaking council licensing laws by picking up passen- gers from the town’s railway station.
Another cause of ten-
sion between the two sides is the associa- tion’s accusations that the private hire cars reg- ularly block roads and bus stops.
Calling for action, a spokesperson from the Test Valley Taxi Associ- ation, told the Andover Advertiser: “It’s very frustrating because we are losing money and nothing is being done about it.
“This has been happen- ing for too long and it’s time action was taken
by the council to stop this company breaking regulations.” Test Valley Borough Council has confirmed that it is now looking into a number of complaints. Licensing officer Michael White said: “I can confirm that we have had complaints about private hire vehi- cles in and around the station area. “We are now investigat- ing those and action will be taken in the near future.”
MARCH 2009
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