Taxi Driver Online

Black Country taxi drivers call to keep cars longer

Taxi drivers say they are struggling to make ends meet due to rules stating they must replace their vehicles every 10 years.

They are asking to be allowed to keep their cars for 15 years to cut costs – and insist it will have no impact on safety.

The issue has gone before a Walsall Council taxi committee, but no decision was made as members wanted to get more information.

Drivers say it has been rumbling on for five years and needs to be resolved.

Walsall Private Hire Association chairman Zulfqar Ali said: “This could go on for months yet and it has already been dragging on for years.

“There would be financial benefits for the drivers as this is a difficult time for us and things like this make it even harder.

“There would be no compromise in safety for the people of Walsall,” he added.

“The cars have to be checked twice a year to see if they are roadworthy and it isn’t fair to stop us using a car when it is still in good condition.

“There are different standards for black cabs and it is very frustrating.”

Licensing committee chairman Councillor Keith Sears said: “We have asked officers to draw up a report and it will come back before the next committee.

The extension could be pursued, but my own personal view is that if we are not careful we will have a fleet of private hire vehicles that are old and out of date.

“If we do extend the lifetime of the vehicles there could be a need for an extra test to be carried out on them, so they would be checked three times a year.

“As a vehicle gets older parts get worn and things start to go wrong. But we will look at the report and take it from there.”

The association has put forward a series of proposals for the council to consider and Mr Ali says he hopes they will come to an agreement soon. It comes after a string of long-running disputes between taxi drivers and council bosses in Wolverhampton over licensing of older vehicles.

Drivers there were opposed to new council rules allowing older cars – saying there are already too many taxis in the city.

New Hackney Carriage drivers could buy taxis up to four years old – with that increasing to six years in 2015.

But Parminder Sekhon, chairman of Wolverhampton Taxi Owners’ Association, said any such move would lessen the quality of taxis in the city.

Figures released last summer showed 1,000 fewer taxi drivers are on the streets of the West Midlands and Staffordshire since the recession – the first drop in eight years.

It comes despite repeated calls by cabbies for a cap on the number of licences issued as they complain there is not enough work to go around.

The figures were similar all over the country as the Department For Transport said the recession had resulted in a drop in the number of Hackney carriages and private hire licences since 2011.

In the West Midlands the overall number of licences of all types dropped from 15,866 to 15,076. However, there were increases in Walsall from 1,388 in 2011 to 1,445 in 2013.

source: http://www.expressandstar.com/news/2014 ... rs-longer/

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

Just choke you to death instead.

_________________
IDFIMH

awww you and your global warming malarkey

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

Well, he does have a green MP. It must be rubbing off.

_________________
Grandad,

Typical, they don't want to spend the money on upgrading their motors.

I don't want to upgrade mine - and why should I - a tractor and trailer would do, just change the straw once a week.

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

That is not a bad comparison. A tractor and trailer V your Skoda.

_________________
Grandad,

probably less straw in the trailer at the moment

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

You would after 15 years.

Soon to be an ex MP.

As for being Green, wel I do drive a zero tax Mondeo, so that will do me.

_________________
IDFIMH

Maybe some will go back to Horse and Trap...15 Years, That's Classic Car territory

or Liverpool as most refer to it

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

Anyway 15 years is nothing. There is a 'T' reg Metrocab still working in our town.

_________________
Grandad,

Walsall taxi drivers call for fair deal over limits






Taxi drivers protest outside Walsall Council House. Photo: George Makin

TAXI drivers in Walsall are calling for a fairer deal over age restrictions which have been slapped onto their vehicles.

More than 60 drivers turned out in force at Walsall Town Hall last week, demanding a level playing field to prevent them from going out of business.

At present, the rules say a private hire driver's vehicle cannot be over 10 years old while a black cab driver's hackney carriage can be up to 15 years old.

If a private hire driver has to replace a car when it's in for repair or because it's reached the end of its working life, the new vehicle can't be more than five years old while competitors can use a replacement vehicle of a similar age to the one taken off the road.

Other boroughs, such as Birmingham, have no upper age limit at all.

"All of this means we have greater costs we have to pass on to customers or go out of business," said Zulfqar Ali, of Walsall Private Hire Association.

Their demands were presented to Walsall Council's licensing committee at a meeting last Wednesday (April 16).

The committee will now look at the issue at its June meeting.


Read more: http://www.walsalladvertiser.co.uk/Taxi ... z30DhAmybH

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

I will have to change my vehicle next year as Plymouth has an emissions policy.
My revenge is to not pay to have my used tyres "Disposed of". I have them chopped up then I burn them in small quantities with the coal on my fire all winter. I did read that burning a tyre is roughly equivalent to the emissions from driving 250k. So I would think that 6 tyres a year must be the equivalent of about 48 Taxis. It does save me about £30.00 in coal. The back boiler means the electric water heater is not used and that saves a load more money. Newspaper soaked with used engine oil is good for lighting the fire. I also burn all my plastic, paper, veg peelings etc. and this means no sorting out recycling, the ash just goes in the bin so I have a time and effort saving as well.
One word of warning - in many places it is illegal to burn such stuff outside (including Plymouth), and, in a smokeless zone you are probably not allowed to do so inside.
Global warming, I do not care, Mount St Helens in the US erupted, more CO2, NOX, and all the rest in one day than mankind can produce in 3 decades.
My protest burning is insignificant in the bigger picture. It does however save me money and makes me feel warm to think I get some, limited, revenge on the smartar5e who thinks he is saving the world by making me scrap a perfectly good cab.

_________________
Chris The Fish

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gdlyi5mc ... re=related