Frightened drivers means taxi shortage in Paisley...but cab boss says he has the solution DAMNING new report confirms that weekend cab shortage is causing problems in our town
Problem: There aren't enough taxis in Paisley
Paisley revellers are being left high and dry after nights out as taxi drivers refuse to work weekends over safety fears.
That ‘s the verdict of a damning new report commissioned by Renfrewshire Council into taxi provision across the town.
Consultancy firm Vector carried out the analysis, which concluded there is “significant unmet demand” for taxis in Paisley town centre at weekends.
Now a Paisley private hire boss has flagged the issue up and is calling on the council to approve his plans to transform the level of service in the town centre at weekends.
David McCulloch, managing director of Renfrewshire Cab Co, says his firm has applied for 10 new public hire licences, which, if given the go-ahead, could end the problems of long weekend queues as the new cabs will target problem areas.
He said: “There is undoubtedly an unmet demand for public hire taxis to get people home from a night out in Paisley.
“So much so, the amount of time people have to wait for a taxi has the potential to put people off coming into the town at night during weekends.
“The council has to be applauded for commissioning this survey, the results of which bear out what is happening in the town centre at weekends.”
He continued: “Our proposal would mean we would directly employ taxi drivers whose shift patterns would include the busy weekend peak periods.”
Mr McCulloch also says that as well as having to pass the council’s taxi driver eligibility criteria, any of the new public hire taxi drivers employed by Renfrewshire Cab Co would undergo a specialist training course aimed at providing a high standard of customer service, including meeting customer expectations, providing all that is required of a professional taxi service, and a knowledge of Paisley’s history to inform visitors to the town.
“Geographical knowledge of the area would also be part of this course and these new directly-employed taxi drivers would act as ambassadors for Paisley as we work towards Paisley City of Culture 2021,” he explained.
And he added: “Our proposal would go a long way towards solving the problem of the unmet taxi demand in Paisley because we would guarantee to put 10 extra taxis on the road in Paisley to satisfy public demand at weekends.”
Town centre business owners say the lack of weekend taxi services is damaging the town’s night-time economy – and its reputation.
Piero Pieraccini, owner of Hamishe’s Hoose in Paisley’s High Street, believes more could be done to tackle the issue.
“The lack of taxis in the town centre means that people tend to leave places earlier as they know they will have to wait to get a taxi home,” he said.
“I don’t blame the drivers for avoiding working weekends – I know it can be difficult.
“But if more guys worked, the problems would be reduced as people wouldn’t be waiting as long in queues and getting frustrated which leads to problems.”
The publican believes that the number of licences issued is only part of the
issue.
He went on: “I don’t think the number of licences is the issue, it’s definitely more to do with drivers not working at the weekends.”
The meeting will hear from a delegation of the Renfrewshire Public Hire Association, which represents local cab firms, and who will give their view on the proposals in the report.
Councillors will debate the report next week, with a number of options set to be discussed on the future of taxi provision in the town, especially during busy weekends.
A Renfrewshire Council spokesperson said: “The regulatory functions board commissioned an independent survey report into taxi demand which took evidence from a wide range of stakeholders including the taxi trade and local businesses.
“One of the key findings of the report is that there is ‘significant unmet demand’ for taxis including late at night on Fridays and Saturdays in Paisley.
“The report presents a range of options on how best to meet taxi demand and address the persistent problems at weekends
“Councillors will now consider the way forward on those issues at Thursday’s board meeting.”
Read more at
http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/frigh ... Q7yVcXF.99
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