Taxi Driver Online

Fife taxi operators told to check vehicle safety after first time pass rate falls

https://www.fifetoday.co.uk/news/politi ... ls-3468143

Taxi and private hire operators across Fife have been urged to check their vehicles’ safety after a worrying slip in standards.

The region’s regulation and licensing committee has expressed its concern after annual inspections carried out over the last three months in west FIfe saw almost one in 10 vehicles fail routine tests.

Of 99 vehicles tested in the area in August, September and October, a total of 91 passed first time equating to a percentage pass rate of 92%.

That was significantly down on the area’s 99% pass rate in 2019, and lower than the rate for the Kirkcaldy area where 114 out of 117 vehicles passed during tests over the same three-month period in 2021.

Tom Henderson, Fife Council’s service fleet manager, commented: “Although it’s disappointing that this report shows a decrease in the first time pass rate from 2019, the operators whose vehicles passed the test first time should be congratulated for their first class efforts in continuing to maintain their cars to a very high standard at this very difficult time.”

Failure reasons ranged from broken springs and faulty lights to a leaky brake pipe and a missing wheel nut.

With the busy festive season approaching, committee members have encouraged all operators to ensure their maintenance regime is thorough and keeps the public’s safety to the fore at all times.

As well as considering random testing of vehicles, the committee may deem it appropriate to invite those operators whose vehicles failed the test to a meeting to discuss maintenance procedures further.

I'm saying nothing, but please note that the earlier article on the 'worrying slip in standards' was about a 92% pass rate, while this 'praise for taxi drivers' is about a 97% pass rate


Praise for Fife town’s taxi drivers as first-time inspection pass rates rise

https://www.fifetoday.co.uk/news/politi ... se-3494115

Taxi and private hire operators in the Glenrothes area have received high praise for their safety standards after recent random inspections.

Members of Fife’s regulation and licensing committee heard on Tuesday how the first time pass rate of vehicles inspected during October and November had actually increased in the past two years - bucking the trend of other areas which have seen falls over the same period.

Of 94 vehicles tested, only two failures were recorded giving a pass rate of 97% - up from the 96% recorded a year previously.

And the nature of the problems were also relatively minor, ranging from broken springs to a fire extinguisher only weighing 0.6kg when the minimum requirement is 1kg.

Service manager Tom Henderson, from Fife Council’s fleet operations, was pleased to report the results of the Glenrothes zone inspections.

“I’m delighted to report that the first time pass rate has increased from 2019,” he noted.

“The operators should be congratulated for their first class efforts in continuing to maintain their cars to a very high standard particularly at this very difficult time.”

The Glenrothes area’s results compare favourably with others reported in the last few months.

West Fife taxi operators were asked to redouble their efforts in November when it emerged just 92% of vehicles passed first time, well down on the 99% pass rate recorded in 2019.

In October, Kirkcaldy’s taxi and private hire companies saw a slight fall in their first time pass rate, down to 97% from 99%, but operators there were congratulated on keeping their vehicles to a generally high standard.

Funny that the earlier article about the 'worrying slip in standards' also mentioned 'broken springs' as a reason for failure

Can't be bothered looking into this, but I'm assuming someone has got the dates mixed up here. Either that, or all the cars in this zone were tested in August last year, and they've all been tested again since, and a report compiled and presented to the council about it

(The cars are all tested at the same time of year, within a month or so, although the period differs between the various Fife zones.)

But, as per usual, the council makes it sound like a 90+ per cent pass rate can mean the trade is a dangerous menace, while a 90+ per cent pass rate can mean the trade 'maintain very high standards'


Fife taxi firms praised as inspection pass rates rise

https://www.fifetoday.co.uk/news/politi ... se-4027182

Taxi companies have been praised for improved maintenance and inspection figures in the latest Fife Council report

Pass rates in west Fife have improved since last summer – 95 percent of taxis and private hire cars passed on the first attempt compared to only 90 percent in August 2022.

“Our inspection methods are exactly the same as they’ve always been. It’s just that the taxi operators are actually maintaining the vehicles up to the correct standards,” said Billy Ferguson, service manager for Fife Council fleet services.

He added: “I am pleased to report that the first-time pass rate has increased since August 2022. The operators should be congratulated for their first class efforts in continuing to maintain their cars to a very high standard.

In Glenrothes, inspection and maintenance figures remained the same at the end of 2022 as they were in 2021, and reports praised taxi operators for maintaining their “very high standards.”

“Of the 92 vehicles licensed in the town, 89 passed first time, which equated to 97%,” a report to the council’s regulation and licensing committee stated.

“I’m delighted to report that the first time pass rate has remained the same since 2021,” added Mr Ferguson.

That's a crock of doggy doo. I know numerous drivers who have said that recent inspections have become increasingly petty and will now fail things for the slightest of things. You would think Fife taxis are death traps, but the Council are just after an easy £100 retesting fee.

Ah, so after 15 years or so of demonisation and gaslighting, the council has finally condeded that testing methods have not been uniform across the area, and to that extent the figures aren't comparing like with like

So when they're demonising the St Andrews cars as a huge risk to public safety because our pass rate is only 92% or so, that's because they're comparing it with zones with consistent 99/100% pass rates