I have to say if the on the spot fines are done right it's a better way than the courts route, a driver who does it who say gets caught and has earned £50 up till then now faces a £80 fine is going to return to his radio for work after he's been caught a few times, just like a speeding ticket but instead of points to ban you driving you get them and once they hit a pre determined amount you are off the road for week first time, a mth second time, and third time it's a year or a renewal refusal full stop, once the message gets round you'll see the upside is PH firms won't be able to just keep taking on more and more drivers without increasing the work, and drivers won't feel the need to do it because the risk outweighs the reward.
And another thing, most punters who flag a PH end up paying more than what a metered Hack would charge.
If you want some reforms try these
1 - All PH & HC to have sealed meters.
2 - Regional fixed tariff, i.e you can't have a Bognor punter being charged London prices.
3 - Fluent in English.
4 - Regular ANPR traps, only aimed at the drivers face so the image can be compared to who is supposed to be driving using facial recognition.
5 - 6 Monthly condition inspection, this isn't the MOT side of it, the check will be for cleanliness of car and driver, body damage and documentation.
6 - Proper communication between drivers and the authority.
7 - 1 licence per 1 driver, no more licencing up 100's of cars in one name, if you want to be in the trade you can only have one unit unless you own a firm and then there will still need to be a limit.
8 - Licencing office to have a dedicated taxi team, preferably LO's that know a bit about the job
9 - Rank space consideration as venues change, and consultation with those who will use the ranks
10 - All unallocated PH must not sit on the roadside near potential customer points, designated park up areas at least half a mile away from stations,clubs and pubs etc.
This is what I would like to see, I'd also like to see the end of any monkey driving, a driver should have at least a grasp of the areas if not the streets, we all had to learn but when a customer asks for the hospital it's O.O.O if the driver doesn't know where that is, and it does happen quite a lot locally, a friends wife was handed a Tom Tom one time, the driver asked her to input the postcode for him
Scruffs need not apply, including current ones, we have one that thinks he Roy Wood crossed with a amenity tip, and he's white British before anyone thinks I'm bashing another creed, there are other things also but this will do for now, feel free to comment Y or N I won't be offended if you don't agree partially or fully.
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