Taxi Driver Online

Taxi drivers threaten to blockade city centre streets
Inverness taxi drivers, angry with Highland Council for refusing to cap the number of licences being issued, could attempt to snarl up the streets in protest. They claim that the effects of more taxi drivers and the recession is putting experienced drivers out of business.

Inverness Taxi and Private Hire Association chairman Vic Rawlins said that some of the drivers were becoming “militant” over the council’s refusal to freeze licences. They are also angry that the local authority has not increased the number of taxi ranks at the same time as the number of drivers.

Councillors will discuss the situation tomorrow during the transport environment and community services committee, but officials have recommended that the status quo is maintained. Mr Rawlins said: “The drivers could hold rolling road blocks. “I have no control over what they do.”

Mr Rawlins said there were 354 licensed drivers in the city and that some drivers had been forced to drive round and round the city, using up fuel, in order to get a space at the ranks. He added that too many city taxis had simply got nowhere to go. The association wants a cap on licences until 2012 to allow the economic downturn to pass and for work to create additional taxi ranks to be completed.

Inverness councillor Norrie Donald, who is also a taxi driver, said he had heard complaints from his colleagues about the number of part-time drivers in the city. And he said that direct action was a possibility, although he would not take part.

Mr Donald said: “There have been threats before to bring in 50 cars from four or five different directions on Friday morning. That could cause havoc and there is nothing that the police could do. I have every sympathy with these guys. They are working longer hours to make a living and they have to do it because they have not go a trade to go back to.”

Discussions between the council and taxi association have failed to reach an agreement so far.

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IDFIMH

I hope they do it, the UK needs a bit of militancy about it, and I wonder why they would feel the need to want a cap put on issue anyway


Thats not aimed at you Mark, I know you've simply linked the story for us to read.

But the council will not restrict numbers.

http://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/Articl ... 5?UserKey=

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IDFIMH