ASSOCIATION ADVANTAGES
HACKNEY AND PRIVATE HIRE TRADE IN CHORLEY LEAD THE WAY BY UNITING FOR SURVIVAL
Private hire and hackney drivers as well as operators have come together to form the Chorley Taxi Association in a bid to raise the quality of service, have better representation with the council and share information.
The association was the brainchild of Mohammed Esa, businessman and owner of a hackney carriage, who back in August asked Shaz Malik, operator of Chorley private hire firm, Four Sixes Taxis, for his help to support the hackney trade in Chorley.
Mohammed said: “Shaz is already involved in a variety of community projects, so he seemed the ideal person to approach.
“Shaz looked at the situation with fresh eyes and concluded we needed to get the whole trade to work together - operators, hackneys and private hire drivers to speak on taxi issues with one voice, as opposed to each sector dealing with the same issues separately - by forming a joint association for the benefit of all the Chorley trade.”
Shaz said: “To be honest it was wishful thinking. Historically, just like many other towns in the UK, hackneys and private hire drivers in Chorley have always had their differences. We had no idea how we could begin to unite the trade or how the infrastructure would even sit.
“We decided we needed more people to get involved and invited Shakail Ahmed, Shoaib Desai and Rashid Sohail, operators and hackney drivers who have been in the trade for many years to join the management team.
Shaz explained: “It takes time and effort to create and establish a company infrastructure. So, whilst we give our time for free, in order for the new association to function, members of the trade need to make a token commitment by paying a monthly fee.
“The money received from the membership fees covers the cost of running the association and will
14 Shaz Malik and Mohammed Esa
also be reinvested to support the local trade. “As an experienced business consultant, I know it's easy to talk about something, but challenging to actually make it happen. If we all did everything we say we are going to do, we would be 100% productive, unfortunately we know that’s not the case.
“This project has had many challenges, especially trying to launch a new concept into a live working environment with limited financial backing.
“We are dealing with taxi issues that have been in place since the 1800s and are regularly debated across the country. So, it was important that the association was set up with a clear and sensible agenda, with realistic and achievable goals.
“In order to be a member of Chorley Taxi Association you have to hold a current taxi licence from Chorley Borough Council; and whilst every member must pay a monthly contribution, due to the current financial crisis, it was important to keep the payment affordable – so the fee was set at the cost of a weekly cup of coffee.
“In just over six weeks since initial conception, the company Chorley Taxi Association (CTA) was registered at Companies House and we immediately joined the National Private Hire and Taxi Association (NPHTA).
NOVEMBER 2023 PHTM
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