Taxi Driver Online

Wolverhampton pedestrianised zone 'killing off taxi trade'

Black cab drivers in Wolverhampton city centre claim the bulk of their trade has been killed off since a major route was pedestrianised.

Taxi drivers have asked the city council to quash a rule barring cabs through the pedestrian zone in Princess Street.

The proposal is one of three that the Wolverhampton Hackney Carriage Drivers Association (WHCDA) has submitted to licensing bosses at Wolverhampton council.

Muhammad Nasim, spokesman for WHCDA, said: “We have lost most of our trade from the Market Street taxi rank since the new road layout came into being last year.

“Most passengers are elderly or disabled and are paying extra for the journey as we now have to go through Queen Street. At times traffic can get blocked down there making it impossible for traffic to flow.

“Allowing Hackney carriages through the pedestrianised zone is in the best interest of public safety and will help to keep taxi fares low.”

The WHCDA has also asked the council to step up visits from its enforcement team to stop private hire taxi drivers from unfairly taking trade.

They say out of city taxis and private hire taxis are poaching passengers by illegally stopping at designated ranks outside a number of city centre venues.

“They are also driving around the city and poaching passengers,” added Mr Nasim.

“If we ask them to move on they say ‘we are taxis too’. By doing this they are causing congestion and pollution.”

The WHCDA has also asked the council to reimplement a previously used test system for private hire drivers.

Mr Nasim said the test - which includes theory and practical elements - would help to improve the quality of private hire drivers operating in the city.

The WHCDA has written to Wolverhampton council requesting action over the three issues.

“These issues are urgent and although they have been brought up with the council in the past we are still waiting for action,” added Mr Nasim.

The proposals have been agreed by private hire firms Rainbow Taxis and Associated Taxis, as well as the Taxi Owners Association (TOA).

Colin Parr, licensing manager at Wolverhampton council, said the proposals would be considered at the authority’s upcoming meeting with the WHCDA.

Taxi drivers have long been at loggerheads with the council over the number of cars operating in the city.

And last year the TOA demanded a clampdown on the number of foreign cabbies being given licences amid concerns about their level of English.

source: http://www.expressandstar.com/news/2016 ... axi-trade/

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

sounds like Wolverhampton needs a BIG kick up the proverbial as they are obviously allowing it to become a piratehire paradise

Pun intended

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

How does that work then?

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Grandad,

Perhaps the nearest transport/rank is some walk away!

We had the same/similar problems down here, nobody liked it initially.It is a matter of reallocating existing ranks to side streets close to pedestrianised areas.

None of us really like change......that is something that they will have to address.

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if you cannot be yourself, then who can you be.

Allowing vehicles into a pedestrian zone does not make it safer for the pedestrians. Only a moron would think that it does.

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Grandad,

On the surface that would appear to be the case! Council bin wagons/Police/Ambulances/Delivery vehicles etc are already allowed, and then you have to balance the safety factor as to how far the public (in safety) i.e not getting assaulted or worse, have to go before they can get a taxi.

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Common sense........is just not that Common.

With the exception of emergency service vehicles using sirens, ALL vehicles are banned from our pedestrian zone from 10.00 until 16.00 then it is loading and unloading only.

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Grandad,

It doesn't, the bell ends don't know what they're on about.

Can't work it out.

The local trade say they have no work, yet they then say the world and it's wife are coming there to work.

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IDFIMH

and do the lorries and disabled badge holders ignore the time limits as they do here ?

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

Lorries don't. They have been delivering after 16.00 and before 10.00 for years. There is no concession for disabled badge holders to enter the zone.
The main culprits are ordinary motorists and, dare I say, taxi drivers using the zone as a short cut. This is one area of town where they are using the street CCTV cameras to prosecute drivers as mentioned in another thread.

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Grandad,