Taxi Driver Online

There is only one twenty four hour rank in the City, on St Mary Street adjacent to the Central Station. Over the last week, buses on rail replacement have taken the rank, or some of the rank over, and on Saturday, all of the rank over. Station management claimed "the council" gave them permission to use it. I told them they were breaking the law. Calls to the licensing drew no response. A call to the police did though, but he declined to do anything. He told me would I like it if he ticketed all the "taxis" queuing outside handsome cabs (ph) office on a Saturday night? Oh yes please! I told him. Got the council parking enforcement manager involved on Monday, and a couple of his guys turned up and told me that as there was no small yellow sign stating "no stopping at any time except taxis" they would be unable to issue tickets.

The rank has double yellow lines, a dotted line in the road and "taxis" painted in yellow on the road. Also white signs stating "Stand for 13 Taxis"

Not to mention the small matter of the MPC 1976 section 64.

I did at last get a call from the licensing manager who says that rail replacement buses should take over the station rank and not the street rank. Right? Bloody well right!

Any thoughts?

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Former taxi driver

Get there before the buses or park in front and immediately behind the buses so they can't move.

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Grandad,

If the rank has been adopted and marked, then it's a rank, and only taxis can sit on that rank.

Ask the council to put whatever sign they want up, but it's not necessary. If it was then anyone could sit on that rank.

If that doesn't work then complain to the ombudsman.

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IDFIMH

You'll find that vehicles used in connection with rail emergencies and engineering are exempt from most if not all parking restrictions, same as utility vehicles digging up the road. Same as if your house backs onto the railway, the railway has the right to enter your property without permission if need be to attend to their property.

Is a bus replacement service an emergency?
When we have the replacement buses at our station they park away from the rank and we don't have any problems.

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Grandad,

The only exemptions to ranks are buses dropping off when the normal bus stop is occupied.

The only thing legally allowed to sit on a rank is a taxi.

Also planned rail works is not an emergency, they are part and parcel of the normal running of the train business.

One last point I forget to suggest to jimbo in my last post was for his to contact and complain to the Local Traffic Commissioner.

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IDFIMH

No No No Mr fireman you cant park your engine there, Mr fireman replies "but the church is on fire" , another feignt reply comes "sussex will have your bollox off if you park there Mr fireman"

"You'll find that vehicles used in connection with rail emergencies and engineering"...that includes planned engineering works. Believe me, I used to be the largest contractor of rail replacement bus services for Connex when they were going and have undertaken bus replacement work for TfL, First Group, go-Ahead and many others for the last 25 years.

That maybe working practise, and may have merit, but the law is crystal clear.

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IDFIMH

I agree, no one can park on a rank unless it's royal.

Why don't you try getting Taxis exempt from parking restrictions anywhere in the city so you don't have to face bossy bus drivers?

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LiLo

Every private hire driver, and out of town taxi/ph driver thinks that's the law already!

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Former taxi driver

If it was within your powers to find a solution impartially and being fair to city dwellers, PH, Taxi and visitors, How would you solve this problem since parking is part of the life of a city and PH/Taxi happen to have their place of work on the road?

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LiLo

I don't do wish lists, ever since I was told there is no Santa Claus.

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Former taxi driver

The policeman guy sounded sensible then. Just saying

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LiLo