IN THE
NEWS...IN THE NEWS..
ANGRY TAXI DRIVER DEMANDS COMPENSATION FOR BURTON RAILWAY STATION ROADWORKS
Burton taxi driver, Nabil Razzak, says he has been left out of pocket and lost customers after experiencing problems with parking at the town’s train station. Last year, train operator Network Rail under- took a major revamp of the forecourt and Mr Razzak says he was told it would take five weeks. But it ended up taking six months, which caused a huge loss of income as he had to stay away from the station. Mr Razzak, who has been operating in Bur- ton for nine years, pays £525 to East Midlands Railway, which runs the station, for a permit to operate there. He said that drivers were told to park in Bor- ough Road while the work was being carried out, but parking wardens warned them they faced fines if they continued to park there. So they were moved onto the bridge out-
DRUGS SEIZED FROM SKIPTON TAXI
Three people have been arrested on suspi- cion of drugs offences, after police intercepted a taxi near Skipton on Wednes- day 16 September. Officers from North Yorkshire Police’s Oper- ation Expedite team were on patrol in the Cross Hills area of Skipton around 11.45am, when they stopped a taxi which was sus- pected of being involved in the supply of drugs. Two men, aged 25 and 20, were arrested from the taxi on suspicion of class A drugs offences. A third man, aged 52, was arrested in Skipton later the same day in connection with the incident. As a result of the arrests and subsequent searches, about 30 wraps of suspected heroin, cash, numerous phones, digital scales, deal bags and debt lists were recov- ered by police. The three men have been released under investigation while enquiries continue. North Yorkshire Police’s Expedite teams focus on those involved in drug dealing, particularly ‘county lines’ – dealers travelling from outside of North Yorkshire to pedal drugs in towns, often exploiting vulnerable and young people and forcing them to sell their drugs for them. Be aware that taxis and PHVs may be utilised for this kind of crime.
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side the station at the bus stop, but there was only space for five vehicles our of the 29 drivers who have permits. Mr Razzak, of Envoy Taxis, says he was given no compensation or refund for the loss of trade he experienced, but the price of the permits has been frozen for two years. To make matters worse, lockdown has led to fewer trains with less people on them due to social distancing meaning that some drivers
have had weeks when they have picked up little or no fares from passengers. The 41-year-old said: "It has made us feel sour and angry. In some areas of the coun- try, they've been refunded some of the money, but here they are not budging." East Midlands Railway is responsible for the station at Burton and Network Rail for the forecourt project, which saw the taxi rank temporarily moved. Debbie Fairweather, senior sponsor for Net- work Rail which is responsible for the forecourt project, said: "We understand the frustrations for taxi drivers using Burton-on- Trent station and we're sorry that work to develop an interchange outside the station took longer than planned. "During this time, additional staff and signs in the station directed passengers to taxis. The work which will improve transport links for passengers, was completed in March." An East Midlands Railway spokesman said: “We are assessing whether in certain cir- cumstances we are able to provide rate relief in the short term and will inform taxi drivers as soon as possible."
BELFAST TAXI COMPANIES CELEBRATE WINNING TRIP ADVISOR AWARDS
Two West Belfast taxi companies are cele- brating after winning multiple Trip Advisor awards. Coiste Irish Political Tours won the 2020 Trip Advisor Travellers’ Choice Best of the Best Award, placing them in the top 10% of attractions worldwide. Taxitrax Black Taxi Mural Tours has been awarded second in the world for Cultural Experiences and fifth in the world for Travel Experiences. The company has also been awarded first in Ireland for Travel Experi- ences as part of the Wild Rover Tours North of Ireland Highlights Day Tour, of which it’s Black Taxi Mural Tour is an integral part. These prestigious awards from the world’s largest travel platform demonstrate the way in which local tourism can have a global impact. Both companies now attract almost 100,000 people in total to West Belfast every year. Visit Belfast Chief Executive Gerry Lennon said: “To be included in the top attractions worldwide is a major achievement. As long- standing partners of Visit Belfast they make an important contribution to the success of
city tourism and provide visitors with a unique community insight into the story of Belfast.” West Belfast MP and Chairperson of West Belfast tourism organisation Fáilte Feirste Thiar, Paul Maskey, added: “To win these Trip Advisor awards is simply outstanding and absolutely deserved. There is major interest globally in hearing the political and histori- cal story of west Belfast and Ireland and these tours provide that with a first class service.”
OCTOBER 2020
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