Taxi Driver Online

Councillors agree gradual cut in Dundee taxi numbers


The number of taxis on Dundee’s road is set to drop after councillors agreed to reduce the cap on licences to 575.

There are more than 600 licences in the city but councillors agreed to reduce that after a report found there is no significant “unmet demand” for taxis in the city over the course of a normal day.

It added that passengers would not experience any delays in the wait for taxis if the overall number operating in the city was reduced by 10.

The report even said that reducing the total number of taxis by 45 to 562 would only result in additional delays for passengers of one minute.

The report based its calculations on demand for taxis over the course of the day, rather than when demand is at its highest on Friday and Saturday night.

Depute lord provost Christina Roberts suggested the compromise figure of 575, which was accepted by the licensing committee.

She continued: “If we went by the survey and took off 40 taxis there would be just a minute’s delay.

“So if we take off between 20 and 40 then we will still be within the right parameters.”

There will be no immediate drop in the number of taxis on the road. Instead, the council will allow licences to lapse until they fall below the 575 threshold.

The number of private hire vehicles, which currently stands at nearly 200, will remain unchanged.

The licensing committee will also receive yearly reports so it can address any unmet demand if it arises, such as after the opening of the V&A.

But Graeme Stephen, of the Dundee Taxi Association, said there are still too many cabs on Dundee’s ranks.

He said: “I just sat in a rank for 45 minutes and got a £4 job. By the end of a job I’d spent an hour for £4.”

However, he said the council would have to abide by the findings of the report, which examined taxi usage from the rail station taxi rank on October 28 last year.

“They have to go by the survey because if anyone was refused a licence and they challenged it the council wouldn’t have a leg to stand on.”

source: http://www.thecourier.co.uk/news/local/ ... s-1.927466

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

Well hand yours in then.

_________________
IDFIMH