HACKNEY CARRIAGE AND
KNOWING YOUR LEVEL OF SERVICE TO THE PUBLIC
Article by Ian Millership, CTS
www.ctstraffic.co.uk ian.millership@
ctstraffic.co.uk
LVSA / CTS
Many in the taxi world are aware of limits on hackney carriage vehicle numbers imposed by some licensing authorities. These generally require periodic hackney carriage unmet demand surveys.
A feature of hackney carriage unmet demand surveys, which is perhaps less well noted, is that these are not just a measure of whether the level of passenger waiting at taxi ranks is excessive, but also provide a valuable health check on the trade and levels of service to the public.
The Best Practice Guidance for undertaking hackney carriage unmet demand surveys dates back to 2012. There has been consultation on revisions to the guidance, however, it remains uncertain when a new version of the Best Practice Guidance document will be released.
It is likely that assessment of the public benefit will remain at the core of any revised guidance. There may also be enhanced consideration of accessibility of the taxi fleet, possibly using Inclusive Service Plans. An unmet demand survey provides an assessment of the public benefit associated with restricted numbers of hackney carriages but often also identifies related issues.
So, does this mean that; if a licensing authority does not limit the number of hackney carriages, they do not need to be concerned with the level of public benefit? Undoubtedly, there will be those who consider that the public benefit will be determined through free market forces.
12
In licensing areas which do not limit the number of hackney carriages, is the market truly free?
Even in these areas, the licensing authority generally sets maximum fares limits and may specify what types of vehicles may be used as hackney carriages. In some areas, it is said that the waiting time element of the fares table limits income to hourly rates below the minimum pay rate for the UK. This is even before operating overheads are taken into account.
So, what steps do licensing authorities take to check that the public is receiving a high level of service? Generally speaking, this is often limited to reacting to mounting complaints by the public or the trade. Those taking a more proactive approach appears to be relatively rare.
What steps can be taken?
Some measures can provide quick wins in providing evidence to licensing authorities and their committees of how well the service is currently meeting user need.
Public consultation whether online or through speaking to people in the streets, as well as using social media to identify people’s views about licensed vehicle services can provide very useful inputs both to rank reviews and to other policy needs. The process can readily identify the ranks people are aware of and if they use them, how people view the service provided and what positive and negative points there are, and give some pointers to policies that might benefit the public improving overall standards. It helps to understand if policies help people to identify the best services to use and how they can keep safe. It can help identify what people think, or even if they know, about the pitfalls as well as benefits of using apps or cheaper ‘taxi’ services.
SEPTEMBER 2023 PHTM
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80
