Taxi Driver Online

So you need more drivers out at night, do you end the restrictions on numbers and allow the PH drivers currently working nights, to be licensed as HC so they can pick up the flaggers, or do you hike up the fares?

OFT's points confirmed to a tee.

*******************************************************

City taxi drivers want to almost double the extra fee they charge for cabs after closing time.

The increase in the surcharge from £1 to £1.80 would put night-time fares in Brighton and Hove among the highest in England.

Cabbies argue the rise would encourage more drivers to work at night, improving public safety and cutting down on city centre violence as drinkers leave pubs and clubs.

They claim spiralling insurance premiums, the risk to their personal safety and alcohol-fuelled behaviour discourage many from working the night shift.

The new surcharge, which would apply from midnight until 6am each Friday and Saturday, would mean a minimum fare of £4.10 between those hours, with prices rising in 20p stages as they do now.

Journeys over one mile between these hours would rise from 33rd to second most expensive in the country out of 376 set by councils responsible for the number of taxis and the prices they charge.

For journeys over two miles, they would go up from 89th to tenth most expensive.

Drivers, who point out no fare increase has been levied since November last year, have also applied to Brighton and Hove City Council for permission to put up the initial hiring fee for normal journeys from £1.40 to £1.50.

They point out an independent study commissioned by the city council recommended more drivers should work late at night.

Brighton driver Brian Ralfe said: "I don't think we can justify charging £4.10 just for opening the door and getting in - £3 is quite sufficient.

"Taxis face competition from buses. If we keep putting up taxi fares, they will just put a few more buses on at night.

"You only have to go to East Street or the station at night to see plenty of cabs around. We'll reach saturation point if we get too many more on the roads."

A report to councillors, who meet on January 8 to discuss the application, says delays in getting cabs late at night can lead to disorder at the ranks.

It said: "This is specifically intended to encourage more taxis to be available between those times of peak demand when licensed premises close and large numbers of people are on the street seeking transport."
********************************************************

P.S. Well done to the sensible HC driver who was quoted. Anyone want a bet that he is not a member of the T&G.

_________________
IDFIMH

The fare review, as mentioned, has been suggested by all the main taxi companies who form a Joint Trade Committee. Three of which are privately owned. The other two are associations. The three, as mentioned, are mainly made up of private hire vehicles.

So, what makes you think that the fare review is there just for the hackneys? You really shouldnt be ready there chomping at the bits in frenzied excitment at the trival trade news.

Now, I know it will be said that ph can charge whatever they like. Well, in Brighton, the hacks and ph all charge the exactly the same meter rate.

I summise that the price review is there mainly for the ph who work for the companies as the owners of the companies want their cars to stay out later. And, believe it or not the Joint Trade Committee do not want any more licences issued on mass. And why, well it would mean that the ex-ph would be working the streets and not the radios.

A personal pint here now:

Years ago the hackneys all had a ballot on suggestions for a fare review which was then presented to the council. I was one of the organisers of this. However, now that there is a Joint Trade Committee (which is made up as descibed above) there is no such hackney ballot. It is left to the representives who attend the Joint Trade Committee.

Whether this is consider right or wrong is a matter of opinion. I just know that I now do not have a vote in a ballot for a fare review. However, I do have the right to make objections at the appropriate time.

On point to consider is that the suggested review was in fact recommended by Halcrow in their recent survey at the same time as one of their recommendations to sanction the issue of 19 more plates and then 5 per year.

And by the way. Brian Ralph is the same part time journeyman driver the Argus always goes to for any comments as he is well known on the city as a flamboyant charcter with fingers in several pies who jumps at the chance to get his photo in print at any oportunity. Nice man though.

Actually he's the local branch vice chairman

The survey stated that the ratio between day and night rates needed to be looked at.

It averaged out the difference between many council's day and night rate at 20%.

Halcrow never stated that the night rate should increase, John Button (Mr Halcrow) told the local trade, that it could equally mean that the day rate is too high and needs lowering.

Lets get this point right..and please correct me if I amwrong. But on page 35 of the report under Section 8.3.3 it states:

The results suggests that a relationship does exist between the variables with those authorities employing larger fare differential having a much jigher proportion of the hackney fleet turning out at night. Based on this analysis we can tentitavely consclude that if the differential in Brighton & Hove's day and night fares were doubled to around 20%, the proportion of vehicles working the late night periods would increase by around 9%

Further on in Section 12 Conclusions and Recommendations it states in 12.3.2:

Given that most of the delay occurs during the late night periods, Halcrow would recommend that a policy is persued to try and encourage drivers to operate during these periods. An obvious method of acheiving this would be to increase the differential between daytime/evening and late night fares.

Grated that this does not actually state that the late night fares should go up. However, it would be nonsense to suggest that the day time fares should decrease to make the night time fares more attractive to work.

Well, perhaps nonsense in the cab trade mr scanner, but not in the real world where prices change (up or down) to suit market conditions.

But you are correct, it's unlikely to be implemented like that, but perhaps a freeze in day fares for a few years while increasing night fares incrementally?

Dusty

we too are looking at tarrif alterations to get more cabs at night

its the sensible thing to do

not like you wharfie...................sensible

Yes... Thats exactly what happened last year. No day time increase but the night time went up on the late night surcharge.

Just one question to you Mr Dusty. How would you know that the posting was by Scanner. Not that this bothers me its just that I have stopped all cookies on my new pc.

good guesser i suppose.
but the issue made about more cabs out at night is evidence of unmet demand isnt it.

Yes it is, but I very much doubt the wording of the fare review mentions this.

But the amount the fare goes up in this case is irrelevant. It's a pound a job, so if you do 4 jobs an hour between say 12pm and 4am, that's the grand total of £16.

How many of you/us are going to completely change our lifestyle for £32 a week?

_________________
IDFIMH

As in all most cases... as in most towns and citys... it only applies to friday and saturday nights. The rest of the nights I could sit around on the ranks twiddling my thumbs waiting for street work if I did not have my raido work.

I don't doubt your words for a second.

But one has to wonder, if that's the case, why some are worried that the world and his wife is going to license a vehicle, and join them earning nothing.

_________________
IDFIMH

Well only the future will tell, And by then it may have wrecked the trade.

Now I've been in this trade a little while, not as long as some, but more than most, and it is without doubt the home of the biggest doom-mongers in any trade.

Despite what the other mongers say (the scare variety), drivers still earn money in de-limited areas. If they don't, then you have to wonder what the flip they are doing in it.

Take the example of Sheffield given by OFT.

Some in the union trade say that because customer waiting times are much the same following de-limitation, it's been a huge disaster.

What those pratts haven't grasped, is that if you have 50% more vehicles, and customer waiting times have remained static, then you have 50% more customers.

Now to me that's a massive success. It shows that if you give customers a better service, in time they we reward you with more custom.

_________________
IDFIMH