This article covers just about every issue that's come up in the past year or so. I do exaggerate, but try:
• a £22 Saturday shift due to the pandemic;
• the impending Birmingham CAZ and congestion charging;
• not being able to afford a compliant car;
• cross-border working - he's plated in Wolverhampton;
• not qualifying for CAZ upgrade grants because he's not Brum-plated;
• not qualifying for Covid support because he's not living there;
• missing out on SEISS because he's newly self-employed.
Poor guy's really up against it, but kind of tragicomedy in a way
City taxi driver fears Clean Air Zone will ruin trade after taking just £22 on one day in pandemichttps://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/m ... r-20355350Yardley dad-of-three says money will be taken from 'his kids' mouths' if he has to pay £8 to enter Birmingham city centre
Image: Birmingham MailA taxi driver and dad-of-three fears the city's Clean Air Zone will be the final nail in the coffin for his business after the pandemic crippled the industry.
Private hire driver Illyas Hussain says he'll be working for nothing and struggling to feed his kids if he has to fork out £8 each time he heads into Birmingham city centre from his Yardley home.
The self-employed dad has been starting at 4am and has only had two days off in the past five months in his desperation to support his wife and children.
On one Saturday during the pandemic - usually a busy day of the week pre-lockdown - he took home just £22 from a day's work.
Now, as the Clean Air Zone on June 1 draws nearer, he's been dealt another blow as he's unable to afford a new complaint
car because of the impact of the lockdowns.
Illyas wants more support but because he is licensed with Wolverhampton City Council and not Birmingham, he is not eligible for any grants.
He told BirminghamLive he went with the Black Country council because 'there was a long delay and waiting list' with the Birmingham authority.
Now, Wolverhampton City Council can't give him a grant because he lives in Birmingham - and Birmingham City Council can't help either because he is 'not registered with them'.
Illyas said in order to make back enough money to survive as the city opens back up, he needs to follow where the work and money is - and 'that'll be in Birmingham city centre'.
The 50-year-old, who started his job in 2019, said: "The nightlife has gone completely out of the window, people are not going to the hospital or to the doctors for appointments anymore.
"You are only taking people who are going to work who don't want to get public transport."
And whilst other taxi drivers who started before him have been eligible for furlough money from the Government, the dad unfortunately just 'missed out' on that too.
"I missed that because I only have one-year tax return that I think you have to have for furlough money. I'm not bothered about what because I have worked all my life," he told BirminghamLive.
He added: "With the pandemic, we are struggling to survive, and to pay a daily charge of £8 is outrageous. Having to pay that every day when I go into the city, that will have an impact on the family's food budget.
"Every time I go in, it will be taking money from my kids' mouths."
He continued: "For the last four or five months I have had only two days off.
"There is no work left in the evening. Everyone comes in the morning to get whatever they can.
"If I have to pay £8 to go into the city centre it won't be worth going in.
"A lot of drivers out there are probably struggling the same as me. If the council could just say: 'We can give you six months or a year or give some sort of reduction for taxi drivers'.
"I'm not asking for liberties. If they can reduce the fee, even if by 40 per cent, or give us a little bit of grace.
"To go to Yardley on the A45 it's normally so congested. It could take me 45 minutes to get into the city. By the time I get there I might not even get a job."
Illyas said Wolverhampton council could not help because he does not live in the area, and would need to reside there for at least 12 weeks to qualify for aid with the Clean Air Zone.
Wolverhampton Council told BirminghamLive: "The grants are issued by councils to assist businesses based in their area.
"Subject to some qualifying criteria, drivers who live in Wolverhampton and are self-employed (a business) can claim a grant from City of Wolverhampton Council, regardless of which council they are licensed with."
Birmingham City Council have restricted their grant to drivers who hold a licence with Birmingham.
Mr Hussain said he contacted Birmingham City Council with his request to reduce the fee or allow a grace period due to the pandemic, but has not heard back.
In response the authority said it recognises 'some groups' will need more support to make the transition to the Clean Air Zone.
It added that taxi drivers could apply for grants of up to £5,000 to help them replace or upgrade vehicles.
A spokeswoman for Birmingham City Council said: "The Clean Air Zone will help improve Birmingham’s air quality and the Council recognises that some groups will require more support to make the transition to a clean air city.
"A comprehensive package of temporary and permanent exemptions and £35 million of financial incentives to help individuals and businesses get ready.
"Birmingham City Council licensed taxi drivers can apply for grants of up to £5,000 to help them to upgrade or replace vehicles. And to date over 800 drivers have taken advantage of these schemes."
However, because Mr Hussain is licenced with Wolverhampton Council, he sadly doesn't qualify for help from either council.
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