Wheelchair access 'just not needed'The owner of a private hire taxi firm in Wokingham has jumped to the defence of drivers unhappy at the idea of being asked to drive wheelchair accessible vehicles in the future.
Paul Kennedy, owner of Bees Taxis, believes both private hire and Hackney Carriage drivers across the borough should be allowed to continue taking fares in saloon cars because it is what “people are requesting all the time”.
The businessman was responding to an article which appeared in The Wokingham Times on Wednesday, November 9, where it was reported members of the recently-formed Wokingham Taxi Association are considering industrial action amid an ongoing row with licensing bosses.
Drivers are threatening to either go on strike or perform a go-slow protest along the borough’s busiest roads in the wake of Wokingham Borough Council proposing a new rule stating all Hackney Carriages must be wheelchair accessible.
Mr Kennedy, who runs his business from the Hogwood Industrial Estate in Finchampstead, said: “We get a lot of people who go down to Wokingham Hospital or one of the local nursing homes and they only want to travel in saloon cars, yet the council is insistent on buying disabled ones.
“Around 20 per cent of our customers are older customers and they cannot get in the higher disabled vehicles, and you often find passengers with wheelchairs can actually fold their wheelchair up and get in the car.
“I can also understand the 1,000 or so people who have signed this petition the association claims to have, because people do not like driving in wheelchair accessible cars.
“I think the council should be allowing normal saloon cars to become Hackney Carriages, because this is what people are requesting all the time.
“But I do agree the cars should not be older than five years old because it is all about professionalism in this business.”
Mr Kennedy added his business has a wheelchair accessible vehicle within its fleet, however, he said he would be surprised if it was used more than three times a year.
This, he said, is because disabled passengers use local services such as Readibus and Keep Mobile to attend doctor appointments or shopping trips.
“We can have anything up to 150 jobs a day,” he said.
“We probably have three people a year in a wheelchair and up to 20 customers a day asking for a saloon car.”
Mr Kennedy did, however, say he is united with drivers angry at limited enforcement being carried out by the council to eradicate drivers operating illegally around the town, particularly at weekends, and taking much-needed fares from locally licensed drivers.
Mr Kennedy said some drivers are not using the designated ranks.
He said: “This is a huge problem and the council do not seem to do anything about it.
“It is easy for a customer, after having a few pints and leaving the pub when it is raining, to hop in the taxi which is sitting outside.
“But this could lead to serious problems because no-one knows who the driver is or where he is from.
“If the driver is licensed then we cannot stop him or her doing their job, but pulling up where they are not supposed to is a problem for the other drivers sitting on the ranks and something should be done about it.”
Neil Badley, head of corporate services at the council, said enforcement is ongoing and will be boosted over the Christmas period by the return of the seasonal safety marshals.
http://www.getwokingham.co.uk/news/s/21 ... not_needed
Login
Register
FAQ
