MAY 2009


PRIVATE HIRE AND TAXI MONTHLY 107 ..RUMBLINGS


FACEBOOK BID FOR CAB RANK SUPPORT IN YORK


Taxi drivers have turned to Facebook in a bid to draw in more support for their campaign to reopen a 24-hour rank in the centre of York. They have set up a page on the social net- working site, calling for people to back their demands for the facili- ty in Duncombe Place to be brought back into round-the-clock opera- tion. As reported in PHTM last month, City of York Council’s city strategy panel chose to turn down appeals from York Taxi Association (YTA) to return the rank to 24-hour use. Instead the panel opted to launch a study into potential alternative city centre sites. Now, as well as carry- ing petition forms asking passengers to support their view on Duncombe Place, which they say is “the safest rank in York”, the


organisation is also looking to put more pressure on the author- ity to rethink its decision through its Facebook page. The page was set up by YTA committee mem- ber Richard Jackson, and now has more than 220 members. The rank is currently allowed to open between 7.30am and 10pm, but its times were cut two years ago following complaints about late-night noise. “It’s another string to our bow on this issue and adds to the petition we are also organising and which will be sub- mitted to the council in due course,” YTA sec- retary Graham Phillips told the York Evening Press. “Our appeal has had a good start and has been well supported, so we feel there is a groundswell of opinion on this. It shows this


matter is not going to go away and we will be speaking to the council about it further.” But Cllr Steve Gal- loway, the council’s city strategy chief, has said there will be no U-turn on the Duncombe Place issue. He said: “The council has made its decision. A review of alternative late-night ranks is tak- ing place and we will look at the option which officers put forward in a few months’ time. “There is an alternative late-night rank avail- able


for former


Duncombe Place cus- tomers scarcely 100m away.” Possible options may include reinstating a rank in St Sampson’s Square or opening a new facility in Lendal, and the council has said it will take taxi drivers’ views into account when making its decision.


ALL CHANGE FOR WIMBORNE RANKS


Taxi ranks in Wimborne look set for change now drivers have had their say on plans to scrap the pick-up point in the town’s square. Licensing chiefs at East Dorset District Council agreed to changes for new ranks proposed for West Borough and the High Street. According to the Bournemouth Daily Echo a £765,000 make- over planned for The


Square lies behind the decision to scrap the traffic island and high- profile rank favoured by most drivers. Two ranks would be one too many for theMinster town, most drivers said, arguing instead for the retention of a single rank in The Square. Changes to the coun- cil’s proposals for alternative locations in the High Street and West Borough have


won support among a minority of drivers. Members voted in November to build a four-space rank outside Prezzo’s restaurant on West Borough. But concerns from the public have forced a rethink, and a three- space rank closer to The Square at the southern end of West Borough has won the backing of drivers and licensing committee members.


TAMWORTH DISPUTE MAY BE OVER


Taxi drivers are breath- ing a sigh of relief after top level talks have commenced in order to resolve a dispute which was causing traffic chaos. The Birmingham Mail reports that Tamworth Borough Council called a meeting between Tamworth Hackney and Private Hire Associa- tion, Staffordshire County Council and Staffordshire Police because of heightened concerns


over a “severe lack” of taxi


rank spaces in the town centre. A two-year campaign by the Taxi Associa- tion for more rank spaces - there are cur- rently


around 24


spaces for 137 licensed taxis - came to a head last month after the council took over civil parking enforcement responsi- bility,


effectively


kicking into touch an existing local agree- ment that taxis could park in a designated street with double yel-


low lines. In order to make their point, taxi drivers mounted a drive to rule protest which involved circling the town centre and bringing it to a stand- still in turn delaying workers, commuters and shoppers alike. But the dispute now looks set


to be


resolved finally after officials gave the green light to the cre- ation of a new taxi rank on Bolebridge Island.


Health and safety issue - a car leaves the car park but has to drive through a queue of taxis first.


CRACKDOWN ON TAXIS USING HARBOUR BUS BAYS


Trade-hungry cabbies chasing business around Torquay’s har- bourside have been accused by council chiefs of abusing the rank system. According to the Torquay


Herald


Express, warning let- ters have been sent to drivers to get their house in order or face legal action for break- ing local road orders. Some 250 taxi workers are being told how they should conduct their business to avoid penal- ties and the danger of a serious road incident after two near misses. But taxi operators say they are complying with the rules. The directive about abuses on The Strand has come from Steve Cox, the Town Hall’s prin- cipal safety and licensing officer, who has told them: “This could lead to a serious road incident, with potential injury or


worse.” David Green, chairman of the Torbay Licensed Taxi Association said in a statement: “All mem- bers of


the taxi


association are more than happy to comply with the council’s wish- es. We have every confidence in Steve Cox and his team.” The issue under debate is the conflict between the use of congested taxi ranks and vacant bus bays around the harbourside, one of the busiest cab sites in the Bay. Mr Cox takes drivers to task for using bus bays on the Debenham’s side of The Strand for queuing. This leads to bus passengers being dropped off away from the occupied kerb side. “It is creating a similar problem we were trying to resolve on the sea- ward side,” he said. He said that the council was trying to find fur-


ther spaces to add to the 31 available after midnight on the har- bourside. Consultations are tak- ing place to secure more rank space. A Torbay Council spokesman said: “We are taking this action fol- lowing a number of complaints from other road users about obstruction of the high- way and non-compliance with the Road Traffic Orders whichare inplace for these areas. “The council under- stands the economic downturn has made it harder for hackney car- riage drivers to make a living, so there are more vehicles waiting on the harbourside for customers, but it has to put the safety of people using these areas first.” A police spokesman said: “The problem is very simple. There are too many taxis and not enough ranks for them.”


BRAINTREE RANK ‘DANGEROUS’


Taxi drivers have brand- ed a car park entrance and exit in themiddle of their rank as danger- ous. Essex County Council spent £172,000 improv- ing the bus park area, off Manor Street, Brain- tree, in November 2008, but hackney car- riage drivers believe the changes have cre- ated a health and safety hazard. Part of the work involved altering the entrance to the car park next door so cars no longer needed to enter the bus park to get in and out.


But the new entrance and exit cuts through the taxi rank, meaning the view for cars can be obscured by taxis queuing, while at the same time they have to be aware of pedestri- ans, drivers have said. David Rowe, 60, a driver for Blue Star Cars, of The Avenue, Braintree, told the Braintree and Witham Times: “It’s a road safety hazard for peo- ple trying to get in and out of the car park because some of the taxis are quite big and obscure the view.” Another driver, who


works for Ace Taxis Service, said: “’It’s ridiculous, dangerous. How anybody hasn’t been knocked over I don’t know.” But Alan Smith, chair- man of the Braintree and District Taxi Associ- ation, disagreed. He said the group had not objected to the plans to change the site, but asked for appropriate signage, which was done. Consultation for the works was carried out with taxi companies, buses and business representatives in June 2008.


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