Taxi Driver Online

E-cigarettes set to be banned from taxis



SMOKING electronic cigarettes in taxis in the Ribble Valley could be banned under plans to be discussed today.

The borough licensing committee will consider the proposal to alter the standard conditions for private hire and hackney carriage vehicles.

If the idea is approved a driver shall ‘not smoke in the vehicle or permit any passenger to smoke in the vehicle, which for the avoidable of doubt shall include smoking or using electronic cigarette or any other vapour-producing smoking device’.

The idea was first discussed in March after the council received a query from a taxi driver over whether the existing smoking ban included electronic cigarettes.

The council’s conditions for taxi drivers simply state that they must ‘not smoke in the vehicle or permit any passenger to smoke in the vehicle’, with no mention of e-cigarettes.

Smoking is defined in the 2006 Health Act as ‘smoking tobacco or anything which contains tobacco’ and being ‘in possession of lit tobacco’.

The council said it received three responses from taxi firms during the consultation period which were all in favour of the plan.

Sajjad Asghar, owner of Clitheroe Taxis, said: “This plan has been a long time in the coming.

“I think that it’s a brilliant idea because some drivers find it difficult to tell if the passenger is smoking a real or an e-cigarette.

“This sort of ban would help to kick people’s habit as well which is good for the whole community.

“I welcome this idea even if it only makes the smallest difference.”

In April, the council’s head of legal and democratic services, Diane Rice, wrote to all drivers and licence holders to consult them on the proposed changes.

Clitheroe Town councillor Simon O’Rourke said: “I think that it’s a good idea and it will help taxi firms a lot.

“I also think that more work needs to be done into the affects of e-cigarettes especially into their long-term effects.”

source: http://www.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk/ne ... ?ref=var_0

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

To be honest if someone started puffing on an e-cig in the back of my car without asking me first I would kick them out anyway.Sure it would oh look there's a flying pig...

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Sometimes the most telling information comes from what's not said...

Some Councils are feckin idiots, it's steam for fecks sake, the same stuff that comes off a cup of tea and coffee. The next time someone gets in my cab with a Maccy Dees coffee I'm going to say, "sorry you can't let the steam into the car."

I can categorically say that it is not steam.

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Grandad,

Anyone who can't tell the difference between an e cig and a real one is a moron.

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There's no excuse for animal abuse. If you ain't vegan you are an animal abuser.

When they're doing 40mph down a dual carriageway at night in the rain and an enforcement officer coming the other way spots them ?

That's the reason they want to ban them, because it takes away the uncertainty of whether it was a real or e-cig. Otherwise anyone could go to court and say they were using an e-cig (whether or not they were) and without any proof otherwise the court would have to dismiss the case.

Saying that there have been recent cases where drivers have been found guilty of various offences without any proof, just the say so of a member of the public or enforcement officer.

It's vapour then, the same stuff that comes out of exhausts.

Really!!!

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Grandad,

So the tree huggers say,

Steam is invisible; steam VAPOUR is visible. I know, I learnt this when training as a fireman on the local steam railway.

I learnt this from Stephen Fry on QI.

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Grandad,