Taxi Driver Online

A report into the ever increasing practice of councillors, police, and Licensing enforcement officials, which include members of NALEO, allowing private hire drivers to pick up members of the public off the street, without a prior booking.

http://www.geocities.com/taxistats/printworks.pdf

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.

Looking at picture 2, it would appear that there is a taxi rank there but it has been coned off with no parking cones! Very strange goings on!

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Grandad,

Strange goings on indeed but the fact is the practice is illegal and thats what really matters. Whether or not such a practice could ever be made legal is another matter but in order to do that someone is going to have to get around 160 years of case law or change legislation.

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.

That's an interesting point as a taxi rank is always a taxi rank, until a new traffic order says otherwise.

And even the thicko's amongst us in the trade know a PH cannot pick up from the front of a queue of folks at a taxi rank.

Which begs the question as to why the powers that be in Manchester allow such illegal activities.

Stupid question I know, but do the hackney boys and girls in Manchester have an association/union?

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IDFIMH

I think it should be pointed out that TDO does not discriminate between Private hire and hackney carriage and reports only on the facts as they appear to be. Those facts are always open to debate and everyone is entitled to their own personal view. I may take a personal view and think an activity such as this is sailing too close to the wind of illegality but someone else including my colleagues on TDO may take a different view? However, what you will get on TDO in all cases is a complete examination of the facts based on established case law and legislation not only from those associated with TDO but also from the many knowledgeable members who subscribe to this forum.

Manchester City council are trying to do a Carlisle but whereas Carlisle at least had an excuse Manchester has no such excuse because there is no legislation that gives them the administrative powers to say Private hire vehicles can break the law by picking up members of the public from an unnoficial taxi rank off the street.

I challenge any councillor from Manchester or elsewhere, or indeed any solicitor or licensing enforcement officer in the country to show me legislation that permits such an activity?

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.

By the look of the pics it seems like it is an official taxi rank, the only problem is the cars picking up from it aren't.

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IDFIMH

good afternoon John.

First time on your web site sadly it is to say i have to ask you who did you get this rubbish off about the pick up point at the print works.

i have read some of your articles prior to this one and i was hoping you would at least state the facts and not the bull you have been given by the Hackney trade in Manchester who will not get out of their beds at week end and take the public of Manchester safely home.

I can take photos to john I can take them of big queues on Portland Street and Corporation street 200 to 300 very cold and misreable young girls and Boys who want to get home to their beds.

I can take them of Hackney cabs picking up off the streets close to the print works while 200 to 300 customers wait on the ranks for what we Private Hire lads call THE HACKNEY GHOST CABS OF MANCHESTER because they do not exist John.

I can take Photos of the queues on Portland street this saturday that must have had at least 350 customers waiting for the GHOST CABS OF MANCHESTER.

JOHN the operation at the print works is completely legal the vehicles are booked via a radio to the base and despatched from the base and the guy with the clip board and the other gents standing with him ensure the customers get in to the correct vehicle the customers love it john because we look after them more than we look after the drivers we are six in number john trouble is dealt with very quickly having said that we have had one incident in five weeks that needed police attendence.

We average 15 mins waiting time in rush hour compared to at least one hour on the Hackney rank we out number the Hackney trade three too one in Manchester john we were asked to help because the Hackney trade will not come out at weekend and take these very cold wet because they have been their for 60 to 90 mins customers home and because of such long queues at the Hackney ranks females are risking jumping in to out right PIRATES vehicles and risking being attacked and fights are breaking out for fun on these ranks.

I stand on this operation saturday nights and i watch hundreds of Rochdale and Oldham private hire vehicles illegally plying for hire right in front of us why have the Hackney trade not put their weight behind getting these pirates stopped and prosecuted why do we only get 250 Black cabs out friday and saturday night out of 1000 Hackney cabs.

M.P.H.O.D.A.

I'm assuming the customers are picked up in turn i.e. first PH takes first customer(s).

If the jobs are despatched to the driver via his radio, then that can't happen all the time. Unless the job is simply described as 'see PH marshall'.

One other thing, the markings on the road indicate it is an actual taxi rank. Is that so?

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IDFIMH

My memory is no what it used to be but are you the gentleman from Salford, with the Taxi blog website.

Without being too confrontational my first impression is that your understanding of the law leaves a lot to be desired. Considering you may know something that I and others don't then perhaps you can inform them and me exactly which legislation makes touting legal? I'm sure we would all like to benefit from your knowledge of taxi legislation so perhaps you would be so kind as to show us the legislation that has convinced you that this activty of "unlicensed vehicles obtaining custom from the street for hire or reward is legal?



by whom and when?



All those persons standing in the a queue have booked a private hire vehicle have they? How do you know that? Or are you assuming they have pre booked a private hire vehicle?

I'm sure you will be a welcome addition to TDO once you get your facts right but welcome anyway?

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 customers are picked up from the pseudo cab rank, no customer has phoned to book a private hire vehicle.



Under these circumstances if a job is dispatched via a radio without a booking then there is no job. If a person stood in a street obtains a booking from the general public in the street for any vehicle including a private hire vehicle then that is illegal.

Mr Manchetser private hire seems to think it is perfectly legal.

I would just like to say that the Manchester hackney carriage trade could have instantly nipped this activity in the bud by obtaining an injuction on the council for allowing it to happen. Therefore we really shouldn't be in this situation. Who is to blame? Certainly not me.

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.

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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin

JD IDFIMH SUSSEX

Sorry gents im not as hot as you on this site quote etc yet but give me time for now i will answer thus.

JD ASKS. All those persons standing in the queue have booked a private hire vehicle how do i know.

Simple JD i am one of the PRIVATE HIRE STEWARDS that take the bookings if your fly by night photo taking guy who jumped in the black cab near the CIS Buildings had been polite enough to talk to one of us instead of being such a rude chap and by the way he never spoke to any one in the queue so thats what i mean by making stories up as i say if he had spoken to us and asked how it worked he would have seen that as a customer comes to our booking point we blow the job in on our mobile hand helds giving name and destination the driver arrives and tells us who he has come for do not for get JD we do not have 200 to 300 customers standing in the queue only a steady flow so it is quite easy for us to get the right customer in the right PRE BOOKED vehicle we achieve this by having our drivers coming out to work friday and saturday nights and getting the customers away quickly I.E. not having them waite in big queues for hors on end.

SORRY WHO NEEDS TO GET THEIR FACTS RIGHT JD.

WHAT A NICE WARM WELCOME.

SUSSEX

i think i have just answered your question my friend every vehicle that arrives has been PRE BOOKED by radio to base then to vehicle.

the job is not dispatched via a radio without a booking it is booked via mobile radio to base then despatched to vehicle for vehicle to make its way to the pick up point come on gents get with the program it is legal.

SORRY wrong again the markings on the road say LOADING BAY AND DISABLED PARKING.

Come on gents for a vehicle to park up the driver has to leave that vehicle our vehicles pull up collect PRE BOOKED FARE and then move on 5 seconds in total it is what the HACKNEY TRADE are unable to do because only a few of them are out working.

And no i am not the gent from Salford i am the gent from Harpurhey Manchester. M.P.H.O.D.A.

It seems you may benefit from my knowledge of taxi legislation young man because firstly we are not touting that involves us approaching customers get it TOUT we do not do that they approach us and book with our private hire stewards WHOSE UNDERSTANDING OF THE LAW LEAVES A LOT TO BE DESIRED SIR.

So when will one of you obviously very clever chaps tell me how we help these 200 to 300 customers get home out of the rain from out side the print works every friday and saturday night with out having to waite one and a half hours for a MANCHESTER HACKNEY GHOST CAB come on gents are we avioding a simple question here.

Picture two defo says taxis only.

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IDFIMH

So when do the customers book the car? At the back of the queue or once they get to the front?

I don't think there is a more pro PH poster on this site than me, but to me that's as clear a case of touting by the folks in the yellow jackets than I have ever seen.

But I'm not having a pop at you or your colleagues, it's your council that has decided the laws of the land don't apply in your manor.

I would say that 99.9% of the punters waiting in that queue think they are waiting for a taxi, and that's enough evidence on it's own to get a touting conviction, IMO.

But your council wont, because like many others they haven't got a clue, and both they and the police want people off the streets. In any way they can.

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IDFIMH

Well more licensed cabs would help, but that's another issue.

But we have to deal with what the law says, not what some may wish it was.

And IMO those folks in the yellow jackets are touting.

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IDFIMH