The Government has announced major new  proposals regarding wheelchair accessible taxis.

In a House of Commons written statement, Transport Minister Tony McNulty has announced proposals to commence implementation of the taxi provisions in the Disability Discrimination Act.  The regulations will set standards for wheelchair accessibility together with other features to help the disabled.

During the implementation of the 'first phase', the Government will target local authorities where it considers that the proposals will have a significant impact in helping the disabled, and where the added costs to the trade will not be overly onerous.  In such areas the regulations will be implemented over the 10-year period from 2010-2020.

These areas have been selected on the basis of meeting one or more of the following:

• A licensing authority population of at least 120,000 people;
• A major transport interchange;
• A major tourist attraction;
• An existing mandatory order resulting in 100% accessible vehicles.

Other authorities will be issued with voluntary guidance on the implementation of a mixed fleet policy, with monitoring to determine whether full implementation of the regulations was required.

A full consultation process will commence at a later date, and separate processes will take place in Scotland and Northern Ireland.

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The 'first phase' authorities are:

Greater London/Transport for London

North East

Darlington UA
Middlesborough UA
Redcar & Cleveland UA
Stockton-on-Tees UA

Durham County

Chester-le-Street
Durham

Tyne & Wear

Gateshead
Newcastle-upon-Tyne
North Tyneside
South Tyneside
Sunderland

North West

Blackburn & Darwen UA
Blackpool UA
Warrington UA

Cheshire County

Chester
Crewe & Nantwich
Ellesmere Port & Neston
Macclesfield
Vale Royal

Cumbria

Carlisle
Eden
South Lakeland

Greater Manchester

Bolton
Bury
Manchester
Oldham
Rochdale
Salford
Stockport
Tameside
Trafford
Wigan

Lancashire County

Burnley
Chorley
Lancaster
Preston
Wyre

Merseyside

Knowsley
Liverpool
St Helens
Sefton
Wirral

Yorkshire & the Humber

East Riding UA
Kingston upon Hull UA
North East Lincs UA
North Lincs UA
York UA

North Yorkshire

Hambleton
Harrogate
Richmondshire
Ryedale
Scarborough

South Yorkshire

Barnsley
Doncaster
Rotherham
Sheffield

West Yorkshire

Bradford
Calderdale
Kirklees
Leeds
Wakefield

East Midlands

Derby UA
Leicester UA
Nottingham UA

Derbyshire County

Derbyshire Dales
North East Derbyshire

Leicestershire

Charnwood
Harborough
Hinckley & Bosworth
North West Leicestershire

Lincolnshire

East Lindsey
Lincoln
South Kesteven

Northamptonshire

Corby
Kettering
Northampton
Wellingborough

Nottinghamshire

Bassetlaw
Newark & Sherwood

West Midlands

Herefordshire UA
Stoke-on-Trent UA
Telford & Wrekin UA

Shropshire

Shrewsbury & Atcham

Staffordshire

Newcastle-under-Lyme
Stafford

Warwickshire

Nuneaton & Bedworth
Rugby
Stratford-upon-Avon
Warwick

West Midlands

Birmingham
Coventry
Dudley
Sandwell
Solihull
Walsall
Wolverhampton

Worcestershire

Bromsgrove

East

Luton UA
Peterborough UA
Southend-on-Sea UA
Thurrock UA

Bedfordshire

Bedford
Mid Bedfordshire
South Bedfordshire

Cambridgeshire

Cambridge
East Cambridgeshire
Huntingdonshire
South Cambridgeshire

Essex County

Basildon
Braintree
Brentwood
Chelmsford
Colchester
Epping Forest
Tendring
Uttlesford

Hertfordshire

Dacorum
East Hertfordshire
St Albans
Stevenage
Three Rivers
Watford

Norfolk

Breckland
Great Yarmouth
Kings Lynn/West Norfolk
North Norfolk
Norwich

Suffolk

Ipswich

South East

Brighton & Hove UA
Isle of Wight UA
Medway UA
Milton Keynes UA
Portsmouth UA
Reading UA
Southampton UA
West Berkshire UA
Windsor & Maidenhead UA
Wokingham UA

Buckinghamshire

Aylesbury Vale
Wycombe

East Sussex

Eastbourne
Hastings
Lewes
Wealden

Hampshire

Basingstoke & Deane
Eastleigh
Fareham
New Forest
Test Valley
Winchester

Kent County

Ashford
Canterbury
Dartford
Dover
Maidstone
Swale
Thanet
Tonbridge & Malling

Oxfordshire

Cherwell
Oxford
South Oxfordshire
West Oxfordshire

Surrey

Elmsbridge
Guildford
Mole Valley
Reigate & Banstead
Runnymede
Woking

West Sussex

Arun
Chichester
Crawley
Horsham
Mid Sussex

South West

Bath & NE Somerset UA
Bournemouth UA
Bristol, City of UA
North Somerset UA
Plymouth UA
Poole UA
South Gloucestershire UA
Swindon UA
Torbay UA

Cornwall & Isle of Scilly

North Cornwall
Restormel

Devon County

East Devon
Exeter
North Devon
South Hams
Teignbridge

Dorset (none)

Gloucestershire

Gloucester

Somerset

Sedgemoor
South Somerset

Wiltshire

North Wiltshire
Salisbury
West Wiltshire

Wales

Bridgend
Caerphilly
Cardiff
Carmarthenshire
Flintshire
Isle of Anglesey
Neath Port Talbot
Newport
Pembrokeshire
Powys
Rhondda, Cynon, Taff
Swansea
Vale of Glamorgan
Wrexham