Taxi Driver Online

Airport taxi war nears end


A DECISION on whether to award licences for two taxi booking offices at Edinburgh Airport to a private hire car company will be made today.



Edinburgh City Private Hire (ECPH) made the application after jointly winning a five-year contract in February with City Cabs to run a new taxi rank at the airport. The contract arrangements has sparked a war of words between rival transport firms. Central Taxis are among those to have lodged objections. One of the booking offices would be built at a new forecourt location outside the international terminal that will serve as the rank from July.

The application from ECPH will be decided by the city council’s licensing sub-committee. Council regulations restrict private hire car drivers from touting for jobs at any public location, leaving potential legal grounds for refusal.

http://www.scotsman.com/news/scottish-n ... -1-2906983

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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin

No decision was reached. They want a site visit as despite the spineless performances of the Cab Inspector and Council Solicitor, they are not satisfied that the proposed operation is legal.

We all know that what they want to do is illegal as PHC cannot rank in an open public place for hire. The existing airport PH are behind a fence for that very reason and there has been no change in the law to allow it.

One wonders how many brown envelopes are flying about as well, since Messrs. Spalding and Cu nningham from the airport commercial ops and retail space directorships were there with there newfound best friends from ECPH. Funny how Donald McLeod was quite chatty with them too - no doubt trying to comfort and assure them he is still trying to push it through.

If they do succeed it just means more court battles to get them to understand that they are not above the law of the land!!!

The council must do whats right and that is to deny Ecph the licence for the flawed booking office.

I hate to disappoint you guys, but all the airport has to do is to move the goal posts to accommodate whatever decision the council makes.

They can build barriers, fences, shelters or holding areas. They can even put in new roads.

It's very unlikely the council is going to challenge the airport because CRT has made a complaint.

Yup, and they don't even have the inconvenience of having to go through a planning process.

When the airport was privatised, it was done so with a bag of special favours accorded no other commercial company.

What the airport management wants, they get. End of.

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Skull, "You are a police inspector, aren't you?"
Cab Inspector Smith, "Yes."
Skull, "So, are you going to tell Mr Taylor what his rights are?"
Smith, "And ... What rights?"