Taxi drivers believe they’re on the verge of identifying complaint womanTAXI drivers in Wisbech believe they are on the verge of identifying the mysterious passenger whose complaints on fares prompted disciplinary charges against three of them.
They believe the mystery passenger whose evidence was used to highlight to Fenland councillors’ fares disparity and the need for meters may be the wife or girl friend of a taxi driver.
The woman’s complaints led to three drivers being questioned under caution by Fenland Council before they were ‘released’ without further action.
Now Councillor Dave Patrick, chair of Wisbech and District Hackney Carriage Drivers’ Association, is confident they can identify the passenger and why the complaint was made.
The council remains adamant it was “not a sting by us nor was it a test purchase. The first that the licensing team knew of it was when a complaint was made by a member of the public.”
Cllr Patrick said some firms had always wanted meters and had invested in them prior to being compelled to have them. They had argued that meters helped to create a level playing field.
Cllr Patrick is also unhappy that some drivers who have had meters fitted have not been able to use them because of calibration issues.
A spokesman for Fenland Council confirmed this and claimed the meters “are not properly calibrated with the correct Fenland tariffs, nor are they properly sealed.
“Those meters are not acceptable at the moment. However, we have contacted the installers to identify how many vehicles are involved and are arranging a date for re-calibration free of charge and have made council premises available. The vehicles will be sealed by an authorised officer at the same time.”
He added: “We will be contacting drivers who may have already had an incorrect tariff installed on their meters to advise them when they are to come and have the necessary adjustments made”
http://www.wisbechstandard.co.uk/news/t ... _1_1185800
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