DEREG DILEMMA
EXETER SURVEY MAINTAINS TAXI NUMBERS
Further reports have been requested to determine whether some Exeter ranks will be extended and others removed. A review was carried out to assess the demand for ranks and cabs. It also examined
provision for wheel- chair passengers. According to the Exeter Express and Echo, the City Coun- cil’s licensing com- mittee was told that there are 66 ranks and the busiest are at Cen- tral Station and in
Sidwell Street. The committee also decided that it will continue with its policy not to exercise its dis- cretion to grant hackney carriage licences above the level of significant unmet demand.
N E LINCOLNSHIRE CABBIES TO FOOT BILL FOR SURVEY
Hackney carriage drivers will have to foot the bill for an unmet demand survey carried out in North East Lin- colnshire last year. Each licence will go up by £56 in order to pay for the survey. Members of the coun- cil’s Community Pro- tection Committee
heard drivers will have the chance to make representations against the payment. According to the Grimsby Evening Tele- graph, the number of hackney carriage licences will be held at 235, following argu- ments from the Hackney Carriage
Association that too many new drivers had signed up over the last five years.
The independent sur- vey concluded there was no evidence of significant unmet demand for hackney carriages. Another review will be held in 2012.
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CALDERDALE TAXI NUMBERS TO REMAIN THE SAME
Taxi fares in Calder- dale are among the lowest in the country and people are well served by vehicles operating from ranks in Halifax, according to a survey.
As a result, councillors have been recom- mended not to issue any additional hack- ney carriage licences. Throughout Calder- dale there are 57 taxis, with 37 based in Hali-
fax.
According to the Hali- fax Courier, the report concluded: “Taking all observed supply and demand into account there was no signifi- cant unmet demand within the Halifax zone of the Calderdale licensing area. Day- time ranks are about the right size for the current fleet and provi- sion for the town is excellent.
“Night ranks are good though abuse by parked vehicles needs to be dealt with.” The committee was to decide whether to retain its policy of restricting hackney carriages in Halifax. It will also consider allowing all types of taxi to carry advertise- ments inside and outside the vehicles, as already happens in some towns.
PROPOSED TAXI CHANGES ANTAGONISE PERTH OPERATORS
A key player in Perth’s taxi sector has mount- ed a fierce attack on controversial deregu- lation proposals. The Perthshire Adver- tiser reports that Perth and Kinross Council announced last month that it will be consult- ing with the public over taxi numbers. No deci- sion has been made but the council is rec- ommending lifting the current limit of 70. But a potential switch to re-regulation met with a hostile reaction from taxi company owner Derek Petter- son, who has urged PKC to commission an independent report on supply and demand before driving a coach and horses through a long-standing policy. Mr Petterson said: “Cllr Peter Mulheron, the convener of the licens- ing committee, stated that it was not possible for a local authority to restrict access to a
market to protect the economic interests of those who are already in that market.
“That seems a very uninformed stance for the position he holds as Glasgow,
Edinburgh,
Stirling and Fife coun- cils - the very cities and areas we rival for stature - operate the same restricted policy. It has worked very well for many years. “Put simply, restriction is a fact of life. The councillor says that they cannot restrict access to a market but if this is the case why don’t they allow any person with an empty shop in town to turn it into a licensed public house?
“The restriction on taxi numbers currently in place protects the incomes of hundreds of local people. The taxi service, working in its existing structure, serves not only the people of the area but
thousands every year who visit.
“In this age of austeri- ty and budget cuts I can only estimate how much local authority time and money has been spent needlessly over the last year on this matter and how much more will be spent on the further consultation pro- cess.” Mr Petterson said an independent survey carried out in 2005 found that Perth had “the correct number of taxis and that the serv- ices were of a very high standard”.
He claimed deregula- tion would create “an added administration burden” on an already stretched department. “It will only create a new genre of issues, emanating not just from the ranks but the streets, and ultimately lead to a disjointed and poorer service,” he added.
PHTM NOVEMBER 2010
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