Welwyn Garden City taxi driver’s disgust over colleagues’ snub to man with Parkinson’s

Friday, July 20, 2012

A taxi driver, who took a man with Parkinson’s disease and his wife home after fellow cabbies ignored them, has spoken of his disgust at his colleagues’ actions.

The Welwyn Hatfield Times was put in touch with the driver by a friend, who would only give his name as ‘Mike’.

His comments related to an incident reported in the WHT on July 4, where three drivers at the rank in WGC refused to budge from the rank to help the couple who were over by Sainsbury’s in Church Road.

The driver, who did not wish to be named, said: “It is disgusting really.

“That’s what you’re there for, you’re a public service.

Disgraceful

“It’s disgraceful that you can pick and choose your jobs when you’re a public service.

“If you drive a bus you don’t say ‘I’m not taking you because I don’t like the colour of your coat’.”

Asked if he believed action would be taken against the drivers, he said: “There will be, there would have to be.”

He added: “It [the council] needs to strike while the iron is hot.

“It’s a public service and you can’t discriminate.

“And, as it happened the fare was to Tewin and it was 20 quid, so it was a nice job for me,” he quipped.

‘Mike’ said he had tried to give the details of the three drivers to the council’s Hackney Carriage department, but staff had refused to transfer him.

But a council spokeswoman said they had “no record” of the call.

Instead he gave the WHT the licence numbers and car model details of the drivers alleged to have snubbed the couple’s pleas.

We have passed the details on to Welwyn Hatfield Council, which has pledged to investigate.

A spokeswoman said: “Our investigations into this matter continue and we have now spoken to the police community support officer, however we have yet to speak to the members of the public involved in this incident and we would urge them to contact the Hackney Carriage office so our investigation can be concluded.”

Source; http://www.whtimes.co.uk/news/welwyn_ga ... _1_1454049

The driver ought to be ashamed of himself. If I were the LO I would be dragging him over the coals in public. On another hand the driver might be of ethnic origin and the Council scared he might pull the race card.

Is Parkinson's a race issue?

The Drivers might have been a different race like Pakistani Muslims, they don't like taking disabled people or the disabled peoples aides like guide dogs.