ROUND THE COUNCLS GUERNSEY: TAXI SECTOR NOT FIT FOR PURPOSE
Guernsey’s taxi and private hire industry is “not fit for purpose”, “fails to provide a decent service that meets passenger needs” and needs “radical change”. ITV News reports that a damning 333-page independent report:
https://www.gov.gg/Taxi-Private- Hire-Car-Review-2022 - commissioned by politicians highlights the shortage of drivers, a widespread lack of availability for cabs, especially at peak times, and “inadequate” tools available to the government to make meaningful changes. These problems are said to disadvantage other areas such as business and tourism by not providing a reliable service. The review adds that more people are turning to illegal and unlicensed lifts organised through Facebook to fill the gaps left by a failing industry. The report’s author TAS Partnership wrote: “This review has been challenging because the problems impacting the taxi sector in Guernsey are deep- seated and cannot be mitigated by
minor
adjustments. “There is a requirement for radical change ... given the level of consumer dissatisfaction and service failure.” Other issues include the lack of up-to-date technology with no booking app or way for passengers to track a taxi in real-time, and limited opportunities for young people to get into the sector. The report underlines a general feeling of stagnation where drivers can choose when to work, are not offered significant training for development and limited action is taken to check and enforce standards. In response, the President of Guernsey’s Infrastructure and Environment Committee has promised to work with customers and drivers to make improvements. Deputy Lindsay de Sausmarez said: “This review does not pull any punches and I’m grateful to the authors and all those who contributed. We wanted a ‘warts and all’ review so we could make real improvements. It shows the challenges are many, and changes can’t focus on one area if they are to make a difference.” The report has made more than 70 recommendations to the States of Guernsey, including: • Giving out up to 20 extra taxi plates to meet demand for the service.
• Licensing a system capable of taking app and online bookings as well as phone requests.
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• Having one local phone number for all bookings and queries.
• Significantly slimming down the knowledge test for drivers to reflect the availability of SatNavs and other support.
• The need for frequent eye tests to be added to the drivers’ Code of Conduct.
• A regular yearly review of taxi tariffs to avoid sudden changes, although big differences in fuel costs should trigger a spot check.
GLASGOW: PHV’s AGE RULE SET TO BE REIMPOSED
Private hire cars more than seven year’s old will be taken off the road if plans to reimpose an age limit on vehicles goes ahead. The council is considering reintroducing the seven-year rule, which was relaxed during the pandemic. Private hire owners were allowed to keep running cars because of problems sourcing new ones and as drivers and owners suffered a drop in income. The rule had been in place since 2006, which also meant no car more than five years old would be granted a licence and cars had to be taken out of service after seven. Elaine Galletly, director of legal and administration at the council, said in a report to councillors: “Following a recent consultation by the licensing section with the taxi and private hire trade through a trade group meeting held on August 11, 2022, most representatives in attendance at the meeting were in favour of the seven-year age policy being brought back into effect.” If the council does reimpose the seven-year age limit it is suggested there should be a “reasonable implementation period” to allow owners to find alternative vehicles. The report recognised it will likely have a financial impact on some owners. It noted: “There will be no financial implications for the council. There may be additional costs for private hire car operators in achieving compliance with the age policy.” The council could also agree to an extension of the enforcement of the Low Emission Zone for hackney cabs, many of which faced bills of tens of thousands of pounds to comply. It is being proposed that enforcement for taxi operators who don’t have access to funded retrofit solutions to meet the LEZ minimum emission standards will be granted an additional extension until June 2024 to comply.
OCTOBER 2022 PHTM
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