Taxi Driver Online

Bus companies charge different rates all over the country.. but from what I understand it's not the drivers that set the rate.

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Justice for the 96. It has only taken 27 years...........repeat the same lies for 27 years and the truth sounds strange to people!

That's because drivers are employees and get paid a weekly wage, whether or not they carry any passengers. How come you submitted a crazy question like this so early in the evening? You normally wait until at least 2-30 in the morning before you start submitting the meaningless questions. lol

Regards

JD

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Because even at this time of the day your comparison is wrong .

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Justice for the 96. It has only taken 27 years...........repeat the same lies for 27 years and the truth sounds strange to people!

My comparison with what?

Regards

JD

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Surely if the council set fare is the max, then regulation is already abolished.

And as some councils don't have set fares, then again regulation is abolished even though it never existed.

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IDFIMH

No thank you very much indeed!!!!

To the best of my knowledge no taxi representative body in Brum belongs to a national association or union. One or two individuals might, but I don't know of any.

The Birmingham Association used to belong to the old NFTA, until in the late 1990's they were asked for the annual subscriptions plus a one off levy (they were in financial crisis) & the two came to something like £8-10K. The BA membership in general meeting voted to resign from the NFTA, but the NFTA had already 'cooked its own goose' a year or so previously, when they changed their voting system from a kind of proportional voting, depending on the number of members each member association had to one (NFTA) member one vote. That meant that the large associations were in some cases being dictated to by the smaller associations, which also did not go down too well with the BA membership.

Since then the Birmingham Hackney trade has represented itself. There are two trade representative bodies & three radio circuits who between them stump up about 12-15 trade reps who work very well together on taxi trade issues that affect all, whilst still competing with each other on other matters such as radio circuit work, adverts, membership numbers, insurance etc, etc

We also have monthly taxi trade liaison meeting with the licensing department where taxi trade matters are discussed with licensing officers, enforcement officers, a police officer (who is permanently seconded to the City's licensing enforcement department), usually a delegate from the City's Highways Dept (to discuss taxi ranks, & transportation issues) & any other ad hoc delegates from the City council's departments that from time to time may be necessary.

And that is the way we do it in Birmingham. We don't always get everything that we want, but at least our bridges to the council officers that matter are fully opened & never obstructed. I think the LG (BV) Act has something to do with that now.

I know about the 'stakeholders' that were contacted in the OFT work. I personally was not but I know one or two in Brum that were. I believe the DfT Best Practise Guidance 2006 consultation was carried out mainly online & I am led to believe that the DfT consultation beginning Summer 2008 will also be online. The potential result on that one which they expect as early as December 2008, might be for a recommendation for mixed fleet Hackneys, but we will have to wait & see. Let's not jump the gun.

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Kind regards,

Brummie Cabbie.

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Yes & no.

I agree with both of your points above, but in OFT956 it states that although after OFT 2003 the Table of Fares became a maximum that can be charged, in practise that is not the case as the Table of Fares always prevails. Or as OFT956 puts it;

1.6
In terms of regulation, the bargaining position of consumers in the street
and rank hiring segment means that the regulated maximum fare is, in
practice, the actual fare charged.

From that I myself would conclude (tongue in cheek) that bodies such as the OFT & NCC will never be happy until the likes of me & you with our cabs standing on the same rank, were to stand beside our Hackneys shouting out our competing fare prices to passing would be passengers.

Now that is true competition, but no doubt would be against one law or three!

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Kind regards,

Brummie Cabbie.

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Now you've got me started on this one as well.

Have you ever been told by, or read a report from, a DfT boffin or such like that the taxi trade is an important part of the country's transportation infrastructure?

Well my answer to that has always been B****CK*!!!

Why? Because when government or local government start giving the cab trade subsidies, as they do to bus & train companies up and down the country, then & only then will we start to become an important part of the transportation infrastructure.

Until then the likes of me & you are out on our Jack, while the bus & train companies get multi-million pound subsidies, but we can't even get a partial grant to upgrade to a WAV.

We have a night bus service in Brum & this is how it works. Bus Company A applies for a subsidy specifically to run the night service buses. They get £Xm and run that night bus service, which in the meantime takes bread from me & my colleagues. Six, eight or ten months later the night service buses disappear, because the subsidy has run out and cabbies can earn a little more now. A few months later Bus Company B now applies for a subsidy to run the night service & they get £Xm and away we go again until that subsidy runs out. Similar subsidies are given to trains & buses throughout the country.

The point I am trying to making is that it is not a level playing field with other transport providers. When we are given subsuidies by local or national government, they can call the cab trade an important part of the transportation infrastructure. Until then I regard that phrase as an insult.

Or better still. Stop all subsidies to all transportation providers & then we might see the true cost of transportation as the likes of me & you have to suffer & pay for, WITHOUT SUBSIDY.

As for comparing PH with HC; again its not a level playing field. Purpose built WAV against saloon car???????? Look at the cost differential of the capital outlay for the vehicles. It does'nt bear thinking about!!!

_________________
Kind regards,

Brummie Cabbie.

Type a message, post your news,
Disagree with other members' views;
But please, do have some decorum,
When debating on the TDO Forum.

No, but although we work under different legislation north of the border the law is essentially the same.

Can't see the wording on the fare card making a lot of difference though, after all nobody looks at it, let alone can make head nor tail of it!!

Of course, even before OFT the official tariffs were only maximums that could be charged, and not fixed fares - our legislation states that the fares are maximums only, and there's a case for your legislation which makes the same clear - think it involved Liverpool, but no doubt plenty of other forum members know the specific name of it - no doubt it's posted on here someplace.

Not sure what you meant by your earlier comment, and I haven't read OFT 956, but I'm pretty sure that the OFT 2003 report didn't call for deregulation of fares, but they did call for councils to encourage discounting from the official tariff.

I agree with your last paragraph as above.

I don't know of the Liverpool case, but contrast what I believe you mean in that case with a case I have been trying to get hold of for some time (after losing it) known as the Newark on Trent case circa 1950's.

Briefly, a Hackney driver was offering discounted fares in Newark & charging lower that the Table of Fares. The council took him to court & it was found for the council & against the Hackney driver. I believe the judge in his decision said that 'the Table of Fares is absolute'. Contrast that with the current advice from OFT & DfT.

_________________
Kind regards,

Brummie Cabbie.

Type a message, post your news,
Disagree with other members' views;
But please, do have some decorum,
When debating on the TDO Forum.

Read Curzon, that should set your mind at rest.

Regards

JD

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On what charge and under which section of which act did the council take this person to court? The Magistrates court is the only legal jurisdiction for taxi licensing "offences" therefore the verdict is of no real importance.

Regards

JD

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Copyright notice © The contents of this post are copyright of JD and are not to be reproduced outside of TDO without written permission.

The last time I read this one was in the mid 1980's & all I can remember is the phrase, 'The Table of Fares is absolute'. That is why I was asking if you know about it or have it.

_________________
Kind regards,

Brummie Cabbie.

Type a message, post your news,
Disagree with other members' views;
But please, do have some decorum,
When debating on the TDO Forum.