The Casey Column
By
Wayne Casey LL SC
“Don't blow it - good planets are hard to find.”
Quoted from Time Magazine
Spare the children
I think last year was my best writing year for taxitalk, so this year, according to the law of statistics will either be better or worse.
My friend in Mansfield told me at the end of November that his council, sick of complaints from people with possibly too much time on their hands, despatched the police to clean up Dodge City. In other words, cabs were fouling ranks, in part due to either a lack of rank spaces (created by too many taxis), or a lack of work (created by people not having any money to spend in shops).
Any drivers found illegally ranking can expect warning letters, council appearances and possible suspensions.
His council, like many others, strictly tow the commissariats line, if the rank is full proceed with all possible haste to the next rank, not forgetting to ‘ply for hire’ at all points in between.
So let’s look at what your council are asking you to do.
Well essentially, by not providing adequate ranking spaces your council are making you ply for hire within the district, unless you decide to push your vehicle, this in turn will swell greenhouse gases accelerating the natural climatological cycles. Your council is making you drive around a City or Town centre, this sequentially increases CO2 emissions which go up to the stratosphere, thickening the blanket of greenhouse gases that are heating up the planet.
Pictured above; What Mansfield could look like if taxis don't get adequate rank spaces
The Earth, through Councils not providing adequate rank space and policies of taxi deregulation, is heating up, our polar ice caps are melting. This melting does two thing’s, firstly it fills the sea up with extra water, this water leads to low lying areas being flooded, secondly, when water evaporates, because the earth is getting warmer, goes up into the atmosphere and causes more rain.
Because your council isn’t providing cab ranks and is allowing every Tom, Dawid and Abdul to become cab proprietors the earths temperature gets hotter. In places with warm temperatures you have diseases like malaria, yellow fever and chikungunya spread around by insects such as mosquitoes, which according to sources, are on the way to this country because our temperature is rising.
It was reported in France in 2004 that 11 percent of all lung cancer cases identified in people above 30 years of age were caused by vehicle emissions. Indeed, the same report estimates that seven percent of all cases of cardio- respiratory diseases are also caused in the same manner.
I don't know if it has escaped the knowledge of local councils, firstly, fuel is a rather expensive commodity to burn whilst driving around looking for customers that are not there, or alternatively, the fumes from our exhausts do actually kill people. Not any people either, it tends to be the most vulnerable, the old and young.
Of course, if any local authority would like to write in and categorically state this type of thing isn’t happening or isn’t going to happen we are quite prepared to listen to the argument before allowing our new found lunatic left wing environmentalist friends to answer, that’ll be just before they arrange a protest at your council offices comprised of people in matching red cagoules and beards.
I have seen my sins and, quite conveniently I might add, I am now a believer. Yes, we are all going to die from global warming and anything we can do to stop taxis roaming our streets, belching out fumes that pollute our environment, because they cannot find suitable ranking space, should be avoided. I don't want my children to have to face the results of my destructive ways which are forced upon me by people who sit in nice offices, with heaters blowing up their backsides in the winter, coupled with air conditioned backsides during the summer.
Pictured above; A minicab in London slowly killing humans yesterday
I wonder what the Department of Health think about all of this? Well their website says; “Reducing vehicle emissions is a key transport issue, which has been agreed as priority across Government.”
The old Wayne Casey would have quite liked the governments spin on this; reducing vehicle emissions by making us drive around town centres is anarchic to say the least. It’s a crazy plan, maybe crazy enough to work! (or maybe not).
I don't know what the Environment Agency actually do, anecdotal evidence suggests they wander around our countryside wearing green wellingtons, although that could be farmers, but I can’t imagine they like taxis driving around our city centres looking for somewhere to rank up.
The DFT might have a view on the damage caused by pollution, in actual fact they do, they did a report on it and they said; “The Government takes the threat of climate change very seriously, and is committed to taking action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.” Unfortunately, whilst they take it “very seriously”, the grand plan appears to be everybody in the UK being able to own and operate their own taxi, sitting on ranks which aren’t there, hence the best practice guidance.
In all seriousness I am at a loss here, we have environmental issues shoved down our throats from a daily diatribe of TV, newspaper, local and national government propaganda. I’m even willing to accept the need to do my bit. I will therefore watch my wife put the right paper, plastic and tin cans in the correct recycle boxes, because woman like doing things like that.
Without a doubt, I understand why local and national government have entire departments dedicated to reducing our carbon footprint, bringing forth policies such as Euro emissions etc.
I do however completely fail to see how government, both local and national, can do the above with one hand, then with the other tell cab drivers that if a rank is full (due to their neglect in not providing adequate standing) they must drive around arguably the most polluted part of a district, wasting fuel and creating even more pollution, otherwise they’ll lose their licenses.
Who runs these departments, Rudolph Hess?
Indeed one council came up with the following gem of information;
Did you know that each car is on average responsible for emissions of 4.5 tonnes of carbon dioxide each year which is a major contributor to global warming. Exhaust gases also cause major air quality problems at the local level, particularly in cities.
Now, if you bear in mind a taxi does say 40,000 miles per year single shifted, which is about four times the average mileage of the average motorist, its fair to presume each cab is responsible for about 18 tonnes of carbon dioxide each year, I don't know what that means, but I don't think I could lift it.
As I wrote recently, ranking space is very rarely a consideration when delimitation is considered, one book basically states if ranks are full - cabs must go to the next, then to the next and so on, again, I don't think that chap is a member of the Green Party.
Furthermore, the same book tells us that the congestion caused by additional taxis is difficult to translate into reality. I don't think the chap thought that one through to be honest. Mind You, the same bloke gave the world the following generalisation;
“Provided a local authority maintains quality control, delimitation is not a problem for hackney carriage services”
Really? Well I seem to disagree with you on that point, private-hire services have never been limited, yet some of the sh*t that work in that profession regularly appear in front of licensing committees for all manner of offences. I can only imagine the reality that particular author lives in is perhaps one where pink elephants domain?
Bearing in mind for the past 10 years plus the green mentalists (who are now my brethren), have been banging on, in a swivel eyed lunatic type manor about the planet being slowly or quickly killed (cant remember which but I’m new to this) by the motor car, it seems almost silly that I have missed this major point in my efforts to couple this with taxi deregulation in order to get my own way, for this oversight, I apologise.
Happy 50th
The NTA is 50 years old this year, what better way than to show your commitment to the job we all love than by becoming a member for 10p per day? Application forms are available on the NTA website;
www.national-taxi-association.co.uk
That aside a number of positives did come from the recent annual general meeting.
The NTA are to collate evidence of local authority abuse of section 52 of the road safety act 2006, this gives councils the power to immediately suspend drivers. It is clear that guidance is needed, but the NTA need more than ‘anecdotal’ evidence. If you are aware of any driver being suspended outside of reasons appertaining to public safety, contact the magazine or the NTA.
After 50 years the NTA will finally get a new emblem this year, taxitalk will naturally have this exclusive when it arrives.
Additionally 2010 will see a concerted effort in respect of Private Hire companies calling themselves taxis, this is misleading to the public and a concerted effort needs made.
Finally, in respect of demand surveys, we are all aware of some local authorities who have ordered and made the taxi trade finance demand surveys, then completely ignored the results and completely deregulated or issued licenses over and above the survey requirement. It is obvious that this is a stupid waste of cash, if they’re going to have a survey then surely they should adhere to the expert opinion. The NTA intend to do something about this.
Till next month
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