Taxi Driver Online

The background documentation to the pre-budget report contains the following section on the OFT's investigation:

Competition in specific markets

"The Government welcomes the OFT study into the Taxi and Private Hire Vehicle market. Taxi services are an important provider of local transport, particularly for those on lower incomes and in rural areas. Work is already under way in the Department for Transport
to implement the recommendation on quality and safety rules. The OFT also concluded that quantity restrictions on taxi licenses, which 45 per cent of local authorities apply, act as a barrier to entry, increase waiting times and have a negative impact on personal safety. Stakeholders are being consulted so that a rapid decision can be made about the way forward.

"An announcement will be made in early 2004."

Obviously they won't commit themselves at this point, but on balance I would say that the statement is pro-derestriction.

Or maybe I'm spinning out of control!!

Dusty

Roll on Mr Brown PM.

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IDFIMH

I dont think i will be mentioning this to the lads on the ranks tommorrow.

Sometimes it pays to act stupid. And I quite like my teeth.

De-limit aside, lets hope that some sort of proper guidelines, come out of the DfT, on the issues of quality and safety.

Alex

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Simply the best taxi forum in the whole wide world. www.taxi-driver.co.uk

Taking into account that most of the safety issues in the OFT report, relate to the lack of properly licensed HCs, then the safety issue is a de-limit issue.

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IDFIMH

Yes, then it will give the LAs even more to ignore.

After all, the DOT effectively said that LAs should de-limit years ago, and this obviously didn't have a huge impact.

Funny that the OFT mentioned that, then they seem so gung ho about new guidance.

Dusty

To be fair to the pro-quota boys, I think that issue was a bit of a red herring.

As we all know de-limitation will only have a limited affect on waiting times, particularly at the times when people are inclined to jump into a pirate taxi.

And in saloon areas the DDA will create a safety problem in that regard, but no mention of that from OFT!

Dusty

I see someone on the Fastblacks/Edinburgh site seems to think that that means it's a done deal.

Hmmm.....

Dusty

Perhaps they could be right.

From someone who is slightly anorakie;
I feel that the wording of the report, the fact that clause 3.1..... was there beforehand, the fact that some sort of further guidence was going to come out of the DfT before OFT stuck their hooter in anyway, and the fact that I can't see how the SUD test will stand up in court now, points to a done deal.

We wait and see.

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IDFIMH