IN THE NEWS
THREE IN CUSTODY AFTER NEWCASTLE DRIVER ‘ASSAULTED AND CASH STOLEN’ IN ROBBERY
Three men suspected of robbing a taxi driv- er were arrested after a witness guided police to their hiding spot - from the com- fort of his flat. According to Chron- icleLive, the driver was left “shaken” after the men al- legedly assaulted him in Shieldfield before fleeing on foot with cash. However police swooped after the onlooker - himself a former taxi driver - acted as the police’s “eye in the sky” and guided officers on
the ground to the suspects’ where- abouts via a 999 call. Police have now praised his actions, while all three sus- pects remain in custody. The drama unfolded near the man’s flat in the early hours of Monday 24 August. “I was in bed at about 3am when all of a sudden I heard all of this yelling and a commotion out- side”, he said “After it all hap- pened, I saw two people dive down a cut and then they
jumped over a fence. The police then came into the street in force. There were at least four panda cars and about a dozen offi- cers. But when they
were looking for them, I could see two people trying to run off. “At one point I was saying they are in a back garden - then they’d cut into
another street. I had quite good a view being so high up - it wasn’t quite a heli- copter job but I could tell them where they had dis- appeared and where I thought they were going to come out.” Eventually his direc- tions helped officers track them down, and the suspects were handcuffed and taken into custody. Chief Inspector Alan Pitchford has praised the onlooker’s act- ions, claiming it was a “fantastic piece of teamwork” to help
bring three suspect- ed robbers into custody. “I want to thank the member of the pub- lic who witnessed this robbery and did not hesitate to con- tact police,” he said. “It shows the fantas- tic community spirit that we have in this region and shows that residents will not tolerate this type of violence in their community.” The three men have since been bailed to appear at Newcastle Crown Court on 22 September.
SLOUGH CABBIES CLASH WITH COUNCIL OVER CONTROVERSIAL BUS LANE IN BATH ROAD
Members of the Slough Taxi Federa- tion have urged the council to let them use the controver- sial A4 bus and cycle lane, or it may leave drivers unable to cope. The Slough Express reports that a tem- porary bus and cycle lane was created by Slough Borough Council after it secured £180,000 from the DfT to ‘sup- port a green restart to local travel’. The lane, which cost around £50,000, has already sparked controversy, leading to two petitions with thousands of signa- tures for its removal, citing concerns of serious congestion on the road. Now, hackney car- riage drivers have
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appealed to at least be allowed to use the bus lane while it is in operation. “In all major towns cities HCs are per- mitted to use bus lanes,” said Ranjit Ghotra, general sec- retary of Slough Taxi Federation. “When they put bus lanes on Farnham Road and London Road, there was no consultation. They were just granted for us to use. We don’t know what the
difference is with this particular road. “If we can’t use the bus lanes, we’ll be stuck in traffic and the metre will still be charging customers.” He added: “We do the school-home transport for wheel- chair users and peo- ple with special needs – sitting in traffic during rush hour will be hard for them as well.” Slough Taxi Federa- tion has written to the highways team
at Slough Borough Council twice and has heard that they will only receive a response after a six- month consultation. “Our trade will be finished after six months,” said Mr Ghotra. “Most of the trade is on Bath Road, and all the
drivers will be just sitting there in traf- fic. This will really bring them down - some will just pack it in.” A spokesman for the council said: “The A4 Bath Road bus and cycle lane is to give cyclists and pedes- trians the oppor-
tunity to social dis- tance and provide a dedicated lane for cycling. “This is a six month experimental order and members of the taxi association will have the opportuni- ty to comment throughout the con- sultation period.”
DVA MADE TO PAY OUT AFTER TAXI LICENCE RENEWAL DELAY
Coleraine’s Driver and Vehicle Agency has been told to apologise and pay compensation for delays in processing a taxi licence renew- al that took the driver off the road for almost three months. Details of the case
are contained in an investigation report published in July by the Public Services Ombudsman. Investigators found maladministration caused the com- plainant ‘the in- justice of distress, frustration, uncer- tainty and the loss of
benefit of a taxi licence.’ And while the Om- budsman welcomed a planned IT over- haul,
it recom-
mended a review of similar complaints to determine whether there have been fur- ther ‘service failings leading to injustice.’
SEPTEMBER 2020
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