Taxi Driver Online

Hackney carriage fares in Torfaen to increase for first time in 10 years

https://www.southwalesargus.co.uk/news/ ... -10-years/

HACKNEY carriage fares in Torfaen are set to increase for the first time in 10 years.

Under the fares planned to be imposed from November 1, the starting meter charge will increase from £3.50 to £4, and from £4.20 to £4.70 between midnight and 6am.

The taxi trade put forward the proposed changes due to the length of time since the last review.

Fares in Torfaen are currently some of the cheapest in Wales, ranked 345 out of 366 authorities in England and Wales.

The average UK figure is given as £5.83 for a two-mile journey, and the all-Wales average is £5.22, according to figures on a council report.

The proposed increase would give a cost of £5.46 for a two-mile day time journey, placing Torfaen at around position 255 on the league table.

Torfaen's licensing committee agreed to move ahead with advertising the proposed increase at a meeting on Thursday.

Cllr Gwyn Jenkins (Independent, Snatchwood ward), said he was shocked at the length of time since the last review.

He said: "I can't believe it's been 10 years.

"Everything has gone up - fuel, insurance, wages - it must be a struggle for the taxi drivers."

Alison Hughes, the council's licensing team leader, explained the council only carries out a review when requested for by the taxi trade.

She said: "When we've asked the trade they have said no, so it isn't that we've been unsympathetic for the last 10 years, it's been that we haven't been asked to do this."

Ms Jenkins explained that taxi drivers have to consider the cost of carrying out a review, and also that some will have to pay for new meters costing £275.

Cllr Norma Parrish (Labour, Panteg) said she was concerned the "big jump" in fares could hit vulnerable people.

"I do have concerns about those who are vulnerable and taxis are the only way they have of moving around," she told the meeting.

Ms Jenkins said around one third of taxis in Torfaen would be affected by the increase.

Pre-booked taxis, where a fare has been agreed in advance, will not be changed.

"The impact will be on those who have done their shopping and who have not arranged any way of getting home," Ms Jenkins added.

The proposed increased fares will now be advertised, and if there are no objections will come into effect from November 1.

Wondered why the flagfall seems quite hefty even before the increase, but Torfean still quite far down the PHTM tables.

But tariff card reveals that the flagfall covers the first mile

https://www.torfaen.gov.uk/cy/Related-D ... -Fares.pdf




Wonder why that is? Only thing I can think of offhand is that they're moving to compulsory calender meters, but it doesn't specifically say so in the article.

Or perhaps some of the meters are pre-decimalisation



Somehow doubt that things as cut and dried as that makes it appear - no HCs in Torfean doing pre-booked work and charging the metered fare?

Similar comment from a councillor in a piece about the Scarborough rise (which I didn't post in full because it's mostly a rehash of a previous piece):



Again, find it difficult to believe there are no HCs in Scarborough doing pre-booked work at the metered rate

We had to have new meters at the last fare increase because the meters that most drivers had were no longer capable of being calibrated due to being obsolete.

_________________
Grandad,

or there is no one able to do the meter change because the local agent for that brand has packed it in and now you have to change to a different make

Cygnus and Viking being the worst culprits for this I am having to replace all my Viking units because now the nearest place we can get them done is Harlow in Essex after the one in Grotsville stopped doing them

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lack of modern legislation is the iceberg sinking the titanic of the transport sector

That makes sense - Torfaen is certainly, er, off the beaten track a bit.

In fact when I read 'Torfaen' in the headline thought it was maybe in Croatia or Slovenia, or someplace like that

How precisely did the meters suddenly become incapable of being recalibrated between fare rises due to obsolescence?

Basically the manufacturers stop updating/supporting the software.

_________________
IDFIMH

Ah, thought might be something like that, although had more in mind difference between manually recalibrated meters and those that can be updated via the software.

My meter is the older style, but at last fare rise Mr Digitax still updating them manually, although he also had the software to reprogram the more modern meters.

My meter cost £10 secondhand about 12 years ago, but no point giving it up unless I have to

Very charitable trade in Torfaen, by the looks of it. No rise for ten years back in 2018, now it's another four years since that last rise (deffo not 'hikes' here ), and the trade think it's too high

Can't really equate the figure in the headline to the numbers in the article, but, you know...

(Maybe the 10 pence in the headline should by 10 per cent, or it might be something to do with the yardage uptick )


Increase in taxi fares in Torfaen is reduced by 10 pence

https://www.southwalesargus.co.uk/news/ ... -10-pence/

A £1 increase on every taxi fare in a Gwent borough is to be reduced by 10 pence in response to opposition from drivers.

Licensed hackney carriage drivers, who have to use a meter, said they didn’t want to “exploit” passengers and sent a petition to Torfaen County Borough Council which, in July, had been urged by a driver to raise fares.

As a result the standard taxi fare in Torfaen was set to increase this month to £5, with 10 pence added to the meter for every 110 yards, or more, travelled in a licensed hackney carriage.

The 20 per cent increase was proposed by the borough council following concerns from drivers at mounting fuel costs, and the rising cost-of-living, and was to be the first hike in fares in four years. 

But following the final consultation on the new proposed charges, which would have seen a daytime two mile journey within Torfaen jump from £5.50 at present to £6.60, and cost £7.95 at night, the council was lobbied by drivers who feared the new charges could drive them out of business. 

Instead the council has now agreed that the standard charge will rise to £4.90 with 10 pence added to the meter for every 110 yards, or part of. That is still higher than the fares proposed by the drivers who objected to the increase. 

Tariff Two from midnight to 6am will be £5.60 and 15 pence for every additional 120 yards, of part of. 

Groups of five or more can also be charged at Tariff Two and double the higher rate will be the standard charge from 6pm on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year’s Eve (from 6pm) and New Year’s Day and other bank holidays. 

Taxi driver Malcolm Liddiard gathered signatures from six licensed drivers who instead suggested a rise should be limited to 50 pence on the standard £4 fare, or no less than 30 pence, and there should be a reduction of 10 yards on the “ten pence tick over”.

A letter from Mr Liddiard stated drivers felt they are unable to pass cost increases on to passengers and doing so would be “disastrous” for trade. 

He wrote: “With domestic fuel going up so much and inflation liable to hit 9 per cent and rising food prices, most of our customers being non car owners and pensioners and people on benefits or fixed incomes we feel it is unreasonable to exploit them with such an increase. Not only to say the impact on our trade which would probably be disastrous.” 

He added he had been unable to attend the consultation meeting on the proposed fare rise. 

Two members of the public also objected to the increase with one saying the council had failed to justify an increase double the rate of inflation and another who described public transport in Cwmbran as poor meaning travellers have no alternative and that private hire firms, which do not have to charge by the meter, are often unable to meet demand. 

A council report stated the request to increase fares had been considered by both the licensing committee and the cabinet member and a public consultation held. 

It also noted that since the original request, from a taxi driver and which was supported by other drivers at a formal meeting in August, average petrol prices have fallen, though diesel has increased. 

According to the report since September there has been an approximate eight pence decrease per litre in unleaded fuel, seven pence decrease in super unleaded while the price of diesel has increased by six pence per litre and there has been a one pence decrease per litre in LPG.

The new fares came into operation on Tuesday, December 13.