Taxi Driver Online

Taxi and mini-cab firms at loggerheads over new bus-lanes proposal in Hanley


Mini-cab firms are to be given a one-year trial where they will be able to use some bus lanes in Hanley.

Private hire drivers say their inability to use the 23 bus lanes in Stoke-On-Trent denies them access to certain areas, and prevents them from taking the most direct route to destinations. Currently only Hackney carriages have permission.

Mr Parvez Khan, boss of ‘City Cabs 2000 Stoke’ said:

“At the moment, the main disadvantage is for the people of Stoke-On-Trent. We can’t drop them where they want to be dropped for example, we can’t go drop people right outside the health clinic.

“We have more than 1200 mini-cabs in this city compared to 200 licensed ‘Hackney carriages’ so you can see how unfair the system is and it needs to be dealt with.”

The chairman of the Hackney Carriages Association who would only give his first name of Mohammed, warned the council that by letting mini-cabs use the bus lanes, chaos would ensue.

He said: “With 1200 mini-cabs across Stoke-On-Trent, the bus-lanes will be absolutely blocked during rush-hour. It’s a bad idea and I totally reject it.”

Members of the city council’s renewal overview and scrutiny committee carried reviewed the notion and passed it. They have now forwarded it to the Highways agency, who will decide where and when it will be implemented.

Councillor Jack Brereton, who is on the scrutiny committee for the city council, believes that the local economy is being harmed by the inability of mini-cabs to drive in bus-lanes.

He said: “ It’s very evident that many local people depend on mini-cab companies to get them around. Mini-cab services are being stopped from going directly next to the Potteries centre and many other places which is clearly damaging the local economy.”

“There are no buses in the night, so why not let mini-cabs use them?”

Mr Khan, boss of City Cabs has accused the council of double standards and believes that this step should’ve been taken much sooner.

He said: “This situation doesn’t makes sense to me, mini-cabs are used 16 million times a year in this city, we should be able to use the bus lanes like Hackney carriages.”

source: http://staffslive.co.uk/2014/10/taxi-mi ... al-hanley/

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

Private Hire don't use meters so they don't need to use bus lanes.

Don't be daft.

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IDFIMH

It's legal to use a bus lane to pick up and set down passengers. What's the problem?

Driving along them.

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Grandad,