Taxi Driver Online

EXTRA TEST STOPPING CUMBRIAN TAXI FIRM BOSS CREATING JOBS - CLAIM

A west Cumbrian minibus and taxi operator claims Allerdale council is preventing him creating new jobs because of strict licensing rules. William Patterson, of Rosies Travel, told the council that the Crosby Villa firm had been offered four new four-year contracts to start in September which should allow four new drivers to be recruited.

But, he said, after several months of trying to recruit, the company had not been able to fill the posts. Mr Patterson said: “This is because of Allerdale’s insistence that new drivers should take an extra driving test and pay high costs associated with that test. “If we can’t recruit by August we will have to hand those contracts back.”

Under council policy, all new taxi drivers must pass a Driving Standards Agency (DSA) test, over and above the normal DVLA driving test, before being granted a licence. They must also have – and pay for – criminal records check and a medical. Costing £80 to £100, the test can result in the DSA requiring a driver to have extra driving lessons, at further cost.

The council’s licensing committee reviewed the need for the test, after a request from Mr Patterson, and recommended that the policy remain as it is. But Mr Patterson called on full council to vote against that recommendation and allow new drivers to have licences without a test, as is already the case in Copeland. He said: “In Copeland they can almost get a licence on the day. We are asking this council to give us the right to employ people.”

Councillor Phil Tibble, executive member responsible for licensing, said: “I feel there has to be some assessment, over and above the DVLA test, for professional drivers. The test complements other aspects of applying for a licence. It’s a package ensuring that taxis and their drivers around Allerdale are safe.”

But Mr Patterson raised concerns that some taxi drivers have not sat the test, as they were existing drivers given grandfather rights when the tests were introduced 11 years ago. Mark Fryer called on the licensing committee to review the issue of grandfather rights. He said: “How many of the drivers with grandfather rights are safe? Everybody has got bad habits.”

Licensing chairman Angela Kendall agreed to review the issue, but added that the number of drivers who had not taken the test was reducing with time. Councillors agreed with the committee’s recommendation that drivers should have to complete the test.

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IDFIMH

I'm guessing that said unhappy operator is offering poor conditions and minimum wage then if he cant fill a driving job even with those extras added on in this day and age.


pay the drivers a decent wage and pay for their dsa exam and you'll have a pile of cvs on your desk big enough to choke a politician

wanted mug err driver to put up with

cheap job that need to have ruck about fare while wonder if puke or violence is just round corner then hand over pittence to greedy man for radio rent

an he wonder why nobody kicking his door in

i not seen one firm reduce payin yet they hold fare back give huge discount to customer charge for uniform to sponsor them take more money from drives on docket work it like the sherrif of notingham all over again

If this operator is looking for minibus drivers hopefully they'll have already taken an additional DSA test to get the minibus entitlement!

As for the medical and CRB, surely we ALL have to pay for those anyway?

This operator got the contract by being cheaper than his competition, he clearly was cheaper because he was/is paying crap money.

He has now fathomed out that local drivers would rather not work for crap money.

As for the loss of jobs, yet another silly spin comment. If this fella doesn't do the work, other will.

Those kids will not be walking to school, someone will be driving the buses.

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IDFIMH

hes won contracts but hasnt got the vehicles?

we could all do that...........


why doesnt he just poach some cars off other bases?

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Of all the things ive lost, i miss my mind the most

At a guess, he's bid low and nobody will do it for the shite he's paying.

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http://wingsoverscotland.com/ http://www.newsnetscotland.com/

It Takes a special kind of stupid to win contracts by bidding a price so low that it cannot be honoured...It also takes a special kind of stupid on behalf of the Purchaser that they are blinded by a ridiculously low bid in the first place

With our County Council it has been the way for a while now with school buses. They do a reverse auction whereby the prices start at say £300 a day and operators bid lower until the auction time runs out. Several operators have gone bust since this system was introduced. They are now starting to do this with the taxis. This weekend is a training weekend for taxi firms to practice on the system before they have some real auctions sometime in August.

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Grandad,

Odd how they want to pay ever lower prices but expect ever higher levels of safety, vehicle quality and driver standards....are we supposed to pay for all these extra things out of the ether?

You are confusing departments.

One demands high standards of safety, vehicle and driver quality. This is easy, since it costs them nothing.

The other demands transport (that they are legally obliged to supply) at the lowest possible price. So long as it's cheap, they don't give a shite how you do it or whether you make anything out of it. Hence the amount of so called charities/ voluntary organisations they allow to bid for contracts.

Oh, and if you think thats bad, wait till you see what your bidding against next.

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http://wingsoverscotland.com/ http://www.newsnetscotland.com/

i think the shock will come if the UK economy pixks up and all these extra bods that have come into our trade up sticks because descent jobs with holiday pay and better hours have come and councils up and down the country find lots of firms now unable or unwilling to work for these prices handing contracts back left right and centre

probably never happen but we can dream

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lack of modern legislation is the iceberg sinking the titanic of the transport sector

i had to a dsa test and pay for my CRB whats the big deal

What does the DSA test consist of??

It's a driving test almost exactly the same as when you first learnt to drive BUT you have to curb your instincts and try and drive like an inexperienced learner or you get failed for not looking in mirrors etc.

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lack of modern legislation is the iceberg sinking the titanic of the transport sector