Cabbies hit out at "illegal" taxi drivers
ANGRY taxi drivers have said they are losing money because of other taxis operating illegally in Burnley town centre at weekends and called for a crackdown by the authorities.
Mr Mussawer Iqbal, who has been working as a hackney carriage driver in Burnley for the last two years, said the last nine months has seen a huge increase in the number of black cab and private hire drivers parking illegally outside night-spots plying for trade and blocking the road.
Mr Iqbal said the problem was worst in Hammerton Street and claimed law-abiding drivers are losing out on fares as a result. "Nobody seems to be doing anything about it. The private hire vehicles are picking up illegally, they are just waiting there at 3 a.m. At the end of the day this is a council issue. It gets worse weekend by weekend it's really bad now. It's diabolical."
He added if someone had an accident and was seriously hurt, emergency services would not be able to get down Hammerton Street. Mr Iqbal said he and his colleagues are often unable to get a space in the taxi rank in St James's Street because it is full of private hire taxis.
They have written to Burnley Borough Council and police stating their concerns and are due to arrange a meeting with police officers to discuss the issue. "It is not just private hire taxis that are causing the problem, it's hackney carriage drivers as well. "I only work weekends and I am losing money because I am playing by the rules."
But Mr Peter Henderson, Burnley Borough Council's principal licensing officer, said the council was taking steps to combat the problem and needed help from other agencies.
"The issue is with private hire drivers illegally plying for trade in Hammerton Street late at night when the local nightclubs are closing. We have taken steps to try and deal with this problem but we can't resolve this on our own. We've repeatedly spoken to the taxi trade about this in a bid to try and get drivers to abide by the rules.
"We've also staged joint operations with the police to crackdown on illegal plying for trade. As a result of our latest operations we have begun proceedings against nine private hire drivers in an effort to resolve this issue. "However it seems that some drivers are prepared to lose their livelihoods in order to continue their illegal activities. The council is in the process of introducing traffic regulations that will make illegal for any vehicle, other than buses and hackney carriages to use Hammerton Street after a certain time at night.
"We are also looking at ways to provide an additional enforcement at weekends, during the night time and early hours of the morning, to support our existing enforcement officer.
"We are very aware of the potential for a serious accident to occur when the nightclubs empty onto a street overcrowded with taxis competing for business. I can understand that people after a night out just want to jump in a taxi and get home. We want to do what we can to make sure they can do so safely."
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