Taxi driver says he lost half his customers due to Burton roadworkshttps://www.derbytelegraph.co.uk/burton ... ks-3390946'We can't survive like this,' he says
Image: Burton MailA Burton taxi driver says he has lost around half his customers since a major Burton was closed for roadworks.
Now it has been revealed the work outside Burton Rail Station in Borough Road has been delayed.
Cabbie Nabil Razzak said: "If they come to us and say it's going to be eight or 12 weeks. I'll have to look elsewhere. We can't survive like this."
Borough Road, including the forecourt of Burton Railway Station, has been closed since Monday, July 29 for improvement works.
It has meant the taxi rank outside the rail station is shut, with drivers who usually occupy the taxi rank moved to the bottom of Borough Road, near the junction with Mosley Street.
The route was expected to re-open on Sunday, September 22, however it has been revealed by Staffordshire County Council, which is in charge of the works with Network Rail, that there will now be a delay.
It now says that the road will not reopen "later this autumn". The delay has been caused by the discovery of electrical equipment buried beneath the road and pavements encased in concrete.
Taxi driver, Mr Razzak, 40, has told BurtonLive that he is currently serving less than half the number of customers he had before the works began.
An average day pre-works would have seen him pick up around 12 people, while now he typically has five customers per day.
The father-of-three said on some days he only makes around £20 - far less than before the works began.
He said: "It's been a nightmare.
"When we were first told about it, we thought five weeks, we'll struggle but it is what it is.
"People now have to come all the way round and you can imagine, if you're elderly, disabled, it's raining, it's cold, people don't want to be walking half a mile just to get a taxi.
"We've lost at least 50 per cent of our work. It's not getting any better; it's a nightmare."
He is an independent driver, who says he relies on customers coming off trains, needing taxis rather than securing work through a call-line.
Image: Burton MailThe improvement project is costing roughly £350,000 and is being paid for by Staffordshire County Council.
According to the council, works will make the station "more accessible" by relocating a zebra crossing on the road.
Two new bus stops are being added, which will display passenger information in real time.
Better lighting and new planters are being placed outside the station, while Borough Road itself is being resurfaced across the railway bridge.
A new one-way system is being introduced to the forecourt, with the on-site taxi rank given a new layout.
A spokesman from Network Rail apologised for "any inconvenience" caused due to the delays to work.
They said: "While this work takes place there is currently no forecourt at the entrance, meaning the taxi ranks are temporarily at the bottom of the hill. They are signposted from the station and pedestrian access is maintained.
"There have been some delays to the work, due to issues with the ground condition and ongoing work to make this waterproof.
"We apologise for any inconvenience and are working to complete the interchange development outside Burton-on-Trent station in the next few weeks.
"This will include space for taxis and improved transport links for passengers across the area."
Mr Razzak said: "We'll have to look elsewhere if it continues. I haven't done anything drastic yet because we haven't heard anything official.
"And for the public, disabled people, it's a long way to walk from here, up the hill to come back round and into the station.
"For example, I had a couple call the other day asking to go to Uxbridge Street, I explained how the rank was now down the bottom.
"He said to his wife 'look by the time we've walked down there, we could be home', so they did. That's exactly what they did, they weren't young, but people aren't willing to come all the way round.
"It's our livelihood at the end of the day, we tolerate it for a bit and I think we've co-operated quite well.
"Not knowing what's going to happen is the frustrating thing."
Image: Burton Mail
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