Senior police officer brands state of Derby taxis as 'unacceptably poor'One car's metal was so corroded a Biro could be pushed through it
Derby's top police officer has sent a letter to Derby City Council describing the state of local private hire and hackney taxis as "unacceptably poor".
Chief Superintendent Jim Allen said when Derbyshire police check the state of taxis in the city there is a "much higher rate of failure" than checks in other parts of the county.
He said a police expert had found some cars where corrosion had been covered with sealant. The expert said others had been found to be in an "appalling" condition.
One vehicle was so badly corroded he could push through the metal with a Biro and "see the road surface".
Another vehicle, which was 15 years old and had covered 450,000 miles, had to be taken off the road while it was repaired.
Chief Supt Allen said police officers had concerns over the age of the fleet and the number of inspections carried out on vehicles.
His views are made in a letter to the council's chief executive Paul Robinson.
The letter says the council had a contractual agreement with MOT Place (Derby) Ltd for the inspection and testing of hackney carriages and private hire vehicles - however, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency wrote to the authority to say the company was not authorised to carry out MOTs on behalf of the Transport Secretary.
The letter said: "The basic concerns my officers are telling me amount to two things: the age of the fleet and the amount of formal inspection undertaken. I am given to believe that there is no age limit for vehicles in Derby. Many authorities do impose a limit, typically for ten years.
While age is no guarantee of fitness, the newer the vehicle is the less likely it is to have really fundamental failings.
"Allied to the age issue is that of condition and connected to that is the level of operators' professional responsibility and your regime of formal inspection.
"I understand that vehicles in Derby are subject only to a yearly detailed inspection at one of your authorised centres. Again, other boroughs are much more demanding. Erewash has a requirement of two tests per year for vehicles under eight years old and three tests per year for vehicles aged eight to ten years."
Chief Supt Allen quoted the police expert's report, which said the issue with age was particularly relevant with hackney carriages. It says: "These vehicles are predominantly typical London-style taxi cars manufactured by the London Taxi Company. These cars tend to have seen service in other areas before they arrive in Derby and after a repaint and test are being used in Derby, these cars have weak corrosion protection and I have personally prohibited a number of these which were in appalling condition."
In Chief Supt Allen's letter he said police officers worked with council officials on an inspection and described the results as "alarming".
It said ten vehicles were checked, none were found to be fault-free and seven had serious defects resulting in suspension of their licences.
Issues included oil leaking onto the exhaust behind the turbo, air-bag warning light illuminated, rear seat filthy and rear seat base insecure.
The letter also says: "Of further concern to me is the officer's anecdotal report that word of our activity soon got round and many operators
simply didn't come out to work. This is a worrying signal that they are well aware their vehicles are not up to scratch and would be removed from the road after inspection."
A spokesman for Derby City Council said it could not comment as the letter formed part of a meeting the licensing committee were having on November 9.
source:
http://www.derbytelegraph.co.uk/news/de ... ate-718227
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