Taxi Driver Online

Not clear whether the permit PHVs can apply for to use the bus lane is just for getting to the health centre or whether it allows access to all lanes on the same basis as HCs.

Taxi drivers fined after dropping off patients outside health centre

https://www.stokesentinel.co.uk/news/st ... ng-1838872

Cabbies have branded the city council's enforcement of Hanley bus lanes a 'money-making scheme'

Taxi drivers are being hit with £70 fines – after dropping off passengers outside an NHS walk-in centre.

The private hire cabbies are landing the council fines after driving along bus lanes in Trinity Street and Stafford Street to reach Hanley Health and Wellbeing Centre.

They say they want to pull up outside the Stafford Street facility because many of their passengers are disabled or unwell and should not be made to walk too far.

But Stoke-on-Trent City Council only allows private hire drivers to use the bus lanes if they obtain a permit

Now the cabbies want the same privileges as Hackney carriage licence holders who are allowed to use the bus lanes without a permit.

Imran Akram has labelled the current system a ‘money-making scheme’ after landing a fine earlier this year.

Imran, from Lightwood, said: “I dropped my customer off outside the door like they asked and then days later I got the fine and a few other colleagues have had fines as well.

“We have to give our customers a door-to-door service or they will complain to our company. If the customer is disabled or blind you don’t want to drop them that far away because they need to be dropped off at the door.

“The rule that Hackney carriage drivers cannot get fined needs to apply to all private hire drivers as well because we are talking about accessing a walk-in centre.

“If we had to drop disabled or blind customers 100 yards away then I would be worried for their safety.

“On their way to the entrance they could fall and that would be bad because we are the ones who couldn’t drop them safely to the door.

“This is just a money-making scheme.”


Image: Stoke Sentinel

Fellow cabbie Arifur Rahman was fined when he took a mother and her sick baby – who was struggling to breathe – to the walk-in centre.

The 51-year-old dad-of-one, who lives in Newcastle and works for Roseville Taxis, said: “I don’t normally drop off outside the walk-in centre because of the fine. Normally I advise people to call an ambulance but this customer was insistent because of her baby. I wanted the fine to be dropped because of the baby but the council refused.”

Council leaders insist that private hire drivers must apply for a permit if they wish to drop off passengers outside the walk-in centre. The authority has so far issued 56 permits.

Councillor Daniel Jellyman, cabinet member for transport, said: “Private hire drivers should know they cannot drive through the bus lanes on Stafford Street and Trinity Street to access the walk-in centre unless they have a permit.

“There is clear signage about this and all private hire firms have been advised how to get permits.”

The signage shows that *taxis* can use the lanes, the newspaper's headline refers to *taxi* drivers, and the driver works for Roseville *Taxis*, so the average reader could be forgiven for finding the whole thing confusing.

Without seeing what the Traffic Regulation Order says it's difficult to say. I wonder if delivery vans have to buy a permit to enter the area?

The signage is correct,TAXI on signs is a vehicle licensed under 1847 or London acts,authorised vehicle means any vehicle permitted by the Council to use the road.
In this instance to be an authorised vehicle the PHVs have to register with the Council to become an authorised vehicle,there is nothing to stop every PHV licensed by the Council becoming authorised.
Difficulty would be permitting out of borough cars being authorised.

Yes, but there's no reason why an out of town car can't get a permit. Disability discrimination springs to mind as well.