..COUNCILS WIRRAL:


Taxi drivers in Wirral have been banned from wearing track- suits, flip-flops or dirty clothing under a new dress code introduced by the council.


CABBIES TOLD TO SMARTEN UP code.


Licensing committee councillors voted in favour of the guide- lines after members expressed shock at the appearance of some drivers.


Derek Cummins of the


Unite taxi section branded the council’s final approved dress code as “ludicrous” and over the top. “We have no problem with the raising of any standards as long as they are not intrusive or prescriptive.


Enforcement officers will report back to the panel on any driver considered to be in breach of the dress


CARDIFF: CABBIES TOLD TO BRUSH UP ON ENGLISH


Taxi drivers in Cardiff will be required to present proof they have a strong under- standing of English, Cardiff Council agreed last month.


The requirement, dis- cussed at the public protection committee, means that any existing licence holders who are brought before the committee may be asked to take a Skills for Life entry level three qualification to improve their English.


New taxi drivers are already required to hold a BTEC level qualification, which


proves a good under- standing in English - a requirement brought in in January 2010. According to the Guardian, the decision follows a meeting of the committee in July, in which members expressed concerns that the level of English language understand- ing by some city taxi drivers was still not up to scratch and a report into possible options was launched.


Black and white hack- ney carriage and private hire licence holders who did not go before the committee


after January 2010 may be required to sit the Skills for Life course to ensure a good under- standing of English. The level allows for people “to feel comfort- able in dealing with matters - speaking to people on the phone and writing accurately.” Existing drivers will only be made to take it if they are reported back to the public pro- tection committee or take the course volun- tarily. Council officers have said the course details would be advertised online and at the licensing office.


CHERWELL: TAXI DRIVER’S APPEAL REFUSED


A taxi driver who want- ed to use a seven-year- old vehicle against council policy had his appeal refused. Clifford Forrester’s application to contin- ue to use his Ford Transit Tourneo as a taxi was refused by the council after new rules were imposed on the age of PHVs. Mr Forrester, from Bicester, took the mat- ter to appeal at Banbury Magistrates’ Court earli- er this month. He claimed the council had acted outside its poli- cies and the relevant legislation, but the case was thrown out.


Afterwards Nigel Mor- ris, Cherwell’s exec- utive member for com- munity safety, street scene and rural servic- es, told the Bicester Advertiser: “We have a responsibility to make sure vehicles used for carrying passengers are safe. The new poli- cy was introduced for this reason but we have done all we can to lessen the impact of its introduction. Our staff did all they could to help Mr Forrester avoid this situation but he persisted and can now see that we have the law behind us.” The new rules were


OCTOBER 2010 PHTM


introduced on Sep- tember 1, 2008, but the council postponed implementing them until September 30, 2009, due to the diffi- cult economic climate. Mmmm… This is a pretty strict vehicle age restriction; the seven- year rule certainly goes against the DfT Best Practice guidance, which states that “It is perfectly possible for an older vehicle to be in good condition. So the setting of an age limit beyond which a local authority will not license vehicles may be arbitrary and inap- propriate.” – Ed.


According to Mr Cum- mins, problems may arise if the council tries to take any action against persistent offenders, because the dress code is not cov- ered by any byelaw. “It is pointless bring- ing something out which is toothless and that is really what they will be doing,” he added.


EAST CAMBRIDGESHIRE: REVERSE 'RIDICULOUS' PLAN FOR SILVER CARS


Taxi firms are joining forces to fight “ridicu- lous” plans to make them all buy new silver cars to create a uni- form fleet.


Council bosses are considering introduc- ing strict new regul- ations which could see all taxis in the district having to be silver. Drivers in the Ely area have formed the East Cambridgeshire Taxi and Private Hire Asso- ciation to show East Cambridgeshire Dis- trict Council (ECDC) that they “will not back down”.


Alan Cole, owner of Alan Taxis in Ely, who set up the association, says more than 30 drivers have signed up already. He told the Cambridge News: “We


don’t know what the council are thinking - these ridiculous plans should be abandoned. It is inflicting unneces- sary costs on us as the taxi system works well enough as it is.


“With clear signage, people know they are getting into licensed taxis and it works.” If put in place, the new rules would force all taxi companies to adopt the single uni- form colour within five years, with changes to signage and licences also required.


Cabbies say the plans are “ridiculous” and would cost them thou- sands of pounds. Some even say it could force them out of busi- ness, but the council is still considering intro-


KIRKLEES: BAN THREAT TO CABBIES WHO EAT AT THE WHEEL


Taxi drivers could face a ban if they are repeatedly caught smoking or eating in their cabs.


The misdemeanours are on a list of ‘offences’ that would earn drivers on-the- spot penalty points under a new system being considered by Kirklees Council. Other punishable breaches are behav- ing badly towards customers and using a mobile phone while driving.


A report to the coun- cil’s licensing and safety committee said: “While the majority of licence holders abide by the rules, there is a small number of driv- ers who consistently do not.


“Officers’ time is regu- larly unnecessarily spent chasing up driv- ers who do not produce required information on time and who contravene council conditions.


“The primary objective of implementing a penalty points scheme is to improve the lev- els of compliance within the trade and would subsequently help improve the stan- dards, safety and protection for the trav- elling public.”


Each offence would carry one to four points depending on its seriousness.


If a driver clocked up more than six points in 12 months they would be referred to the licensing panel and could have their licence revoked. The licensing and safety committee heard other councils had similar policies. Cllr Jim Dodds told the Huddersfield Daily Examiner: “This is really important be- cause it’s our respon- sibility to make sure that taxi drivers know what they are doing and that taxis are fit for purpose.”


But Makhan Singh, of Kirklees Hackney Car- riage Association, said: “Some aspects I agree with, but we dis- cussed this some time ago with the drivers and they thought it was petty.”


The committee has deferred a decision on the penalty points pro- posal to carry out further discussions. Councillors have decided not to increase the number of hackney carriage licences available in Kirklees.


There are currently 249 in circulation, but the Department for Transport advises councils not to impose a limit, unless there is no significant demand. Kirklees Council’s licensing and safety panel said there was no need for any more. Chairman, Cllr Chris- tine Iredale said: “Deregulating would be a huge mistake. It would cause havoc.”


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ducing the changes. John Skipper, owner of A10 Taxis in Ely, said: “There are about 20 shades of silver on the market. How are we meant to have all the same?


“Also, if every single cab in the district is the same colour and so similar to normal vehicles on the road, people are going to get confused. It’ll defi- nitely be a decision the council will regret.” A meeting had been scheduled to discuss the issue in Septem- ber.


A spokesman for the council said: “Investi- gations into these new legislations are ongo- ing and we will be reporting back to the licensing committee.”


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