Taxi Driver Online

Can you tell what type of taxi you are getting into in South Ribble?

https://www.lep.co.uk/news/politics/can ... 1-10114118


Image: Lancashire Post

It could soon become easier to distinguish between Hackney cabs and private hire vehicles in South Ribble.

A public consultation is set to take place over plans to standardise the type and positioning of signage which should be carried by private hire cars, amid concerns that the current system is confusing for passengers.

The new livery will also carry a warning that private hire customers are not insured for their journey unless they have pre-booked the service. Only Hackney carriages are allowed to be hailed in the street, but a meeting of South Ribble Borough Council’s licensing panel heard that it is often difficult to tell the difference between the two types of vehicle.

Currently, there are few stipulations about private hire signage other than a requirement for the vehicle to be described as a car rather than a taxi and to display a council-issued sticker on a door on the passenger and driver side.

“There are some private hire vehicles that [also] exhibit names or phone numbers,” a report to the committee states.

“This does help a passenger who has booked [to] identify they are being picked up by the…company which they have made their booking with. However, in some cases, [they] can provide too much information, which can reduce the ability of the customer to identify the vehicle clearly.”

Under the new proposal, a redesigned council sticker would have to be applied to the rear doors on either side of the vehicle and the company’s own logos could be no more than 50cm by 50cm in size – and would have to be approved by the council.

TAKING OLDER TAXIS OFF THE ROAD?

A separate consultation is also to be launched on reducing the maximum age of taxis on South Ribble’s streets.

Currently, saloon vehicles must be retired from service when they are eight years’ old, but there is an exemption for wheelchair-accessible vehicles which are allowed to run for up to 12 years.

Analysis by the council revealed that out of 231 Hackney and private hire vehicles licensed in the borough, 89 would not meet EU emissions standards for new vehicles – 77 of which are vehicles classed as having disabled access. The majority of the cabs falling short of the air quality criteria are in the private hire fleet.

Licensing panel members heard that only a reduction in the maximum age of wheelchair-chair accessible vehicles would be compatible with the borough’s commitment to improve air quality.

The consultation will be based on a proposal to bring such vehicles in-line with the rest of the fleet, so that none could be older than eight years by January 2022. However, those taxis which provide disability transport alone – and are not available for general hire – would have an additional 12 months to meet the proposed new regulations.

TAXI TRANSPARENCY

Changes could also be coming to the level of tint allowed on taxi windows – because operators are finding it difficult to source vehicles which meet the council’s current criteria.

At the moment, the “transparency level” of a taxi’s windows must be at least 70 percent.

But cab companies are to be consulted about whether they would like to see that reduced to 50 percent – or as low as 30 percent. If the latter level were adopted, taxis would have to be fitted with an approved CCTV system to compensate for the change.

None of the planned consultations can begin after the general election.

Let's hope the new signage doesn't make them a target for stone-throwers

What do you think about new taxi rules in South Ribble?

https://www.lep.co.uk/news/politics/wha ... 1-10203393

Residents and taxi operators in South Ribble are being asked for their thoughts on a series of proposed changes to the regulations governing private hire and Hackney vehicles in the district.

South Ribble Borough Council has launched a public consultation into six of its taxi licensing policies on issues ranging from signage to emissions.

Under the plans, only fully electric, wheelchair-accessible vehicles could be added to the area’s Hackney fleet as part of efforts to improve air quality.

The maximum age of all taxis on South Ribble’s streets would also be reduced in attempt to make them more environmentally friendly. At the moment, wheelchair-accessible vehicles are allowed to remain in use for 12 years, but saloon cabs have to be retired after eight.

The council is proposing to equalise the maximise age of all taxi types to eight years, after analysis found that out of 231 Hackney and private hire vehicles licensed in the borough, 89 would not meet EU emissions standards for new vehicles – 77 of which are vehicles classed as having disabled access.

The authority also wants to make it clearer to passengers whether they are getting into a private hire or Hackney taxi – because of the different rules relating to how each type of vehicle should be booked. Only Hackney cabs can be hailed on the street, while private hire cars have to be pre-booked – or else people travelling in them are not insured for their journey.

Licensing bosses have designed a new standardised sign for private hire vehicles which they want to see displayed in the same position on every vehicle. They have also proposed reducing the size of the taxi company’s own livery so as not to overshadow the information about the taxi type.

In other proposed changes, South Ribble is considering allowing a darker tint on the windows of taxis in the borough – after complaints from some operators that they were finding it difficult to meet the council’s requirement to allow at least 70 percent “light transparency”.

Under the revised plans, that figure could be reduced to 50 percent or as low as 30 percent – although if the lower level were approved, any firms taking advantage of it would have to be fitted with an approved CCTV system to compensate.

The consultation also covers a proposal to issue new taxi licences and plates only once a year, rather than every six months at present.

The survey runs until 24th February and can be completed at https://southribble.citizenspace.com/li ... sultation/

Bet the trade will be cock-a-hoop about that


Standard six month plates?

The council documentation and survey can be found on the above link if anyone's interested.

Life's to short for me, and even a quick look makes it seem like the detail is even more excruciating than usual for this kind of thing

But even looking at the proposal regarding the current six month plates, you'd have thought the rationale for reform would be obvious, but it seems it's more about saving plastic


Let's hope they don't ask the questions in some sort of on-street survey, at least if they're all like that

To be fair, though, this is another of the questions:


But unless you're an obsessive like wee Greta Thunberg, thus without a sense of proportion or priorities, the saving on 'poly-carbonated plastic' and the 'carbon footprint' is surely just tokenism

Why date stamp the plates?

Then you wont have those bundles of plates that need shredding.

_________________
IDFIMH