Taxi Driver Online

The article below is more than a bit misleading. It makes it sound like the charges are for the running mile, so reads like they were getting £7.20 per mile on Sundays. But the figures seem to be for the first mile, and obviously the subsequent running miles will be at a lower rate.

I think the main change is to get rid of the £6/mile charge for eight-seaters after 2.30am, but there are obviously other changes too.

Anyway, this is the proposed tariff card, so it looks like for saloons T1 is £5.50 for the first mile, and £2/mile thereafter.

T2 is £7.80 for the first mile, and £3/mile thereafter.

For 4+ seaters there's roughly a 50% premium, but it's not quite that on T2 because the flag doesn't change, but the running mile is 50% more than saloons on both T1 and T2.


Image: Wiltshire Council/Wiltshire Times


Wiltshire taxi drivers fury at bid to lower fares

https://www.gazetteandherald.co.uk/news ... wer-fares/


Image: Wiltshire Times

ANGRY taxi drivers in north Wiltshire are threatening to stop working on a Sunday if new fares are introduced.

They say it won’t be worth their while working at the new tariff fares proposed by Wiltshire Council.

Currently, drivers can charge a higher rate of £7.20 a mile all day on Sunday, higher than the £5.20 Monday to Saturday day rate.

But the proposed new tariffs mean that would be cut to £5.50 a mile.

There are further changes proposed affecting fares in the early hours.

The current second tariff tier (£7.20 a mile), which runs from 10.30pm to 2.29am, would start at 10pm and be extended to 5.59am and the previous third tier (£8.50 a mile) removed.

Under the new proposals, it will start earlier at 10pm instead of 10.30pm and last until 5.59am at a flat rate of £7.50 per mile.

Vivienne Pepler, the representative for more than 330 north Wiltshire taxi drivers, said: “The changes mean they want us to work all through the week at tariff one, which is a much lower fare rate.

“Our taxi drivers in north Wiltshire say they will refuse to work all day Sunday if they don’t get tariff two. They are not willing to work for nothing.”

Mrs Pepler, 56, from Chippenham, says the time change means taxi drivers will be working 30 minutes longer and into the early hours of the morning for what amounts to a fare reduction.

“They have taken away the tariff two and our higher rates for working after 8pm on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve.

“Our taxi drivers say they will lose money working on a Sunday. They are telling me they won’t work on a Sunday because it’s not worth it.”

The current taxi fare rates have been in use since 2015 and now Wiltshire Council has opened a public consultation on its proposed changes.

Cllr Bridget Wayman, the cabinet member for transport, said: “We have been holding discussions with stakeholders in both the taxi industry and the night-time economy for the past two years, and have taken their feedback into account when creating these new proposals.

“We recognise that there are differing needs – and opinions – on tariffs in the North, South, East and West of the county.

“As such, the proposed new tariffs represent a compromise on the feedback we have had from taxi operators and businesses in these areas.

“We hope these proposals will bring a number of benefits, as they will ensure taxi charges are comparable to our nearest neighbouring authorities.

“They will encourage more people to enjoy the county’s night-time economy and they will reduce the number of people walking home late at night, which will make nights out even safer for residents and visitors to Wiltshire.”

To give your views before the public consultation expires next Thursday, February 20, go to the council's website and search for taxi fares.

I wonder how many drivers will actually respond and comment on the consultation ???????

Individually I suspect just a few, but if someone gets a petition up it could be 100+.

I wonder if the reason they have removed the Sunday extra is because someone forgot to put it on.

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IDFIMH

It has always puzzled me why Officers and Councillors want to do away with enhanced Tariffs for what is called out of hours working(anti social) but expect a full service to be operated by hackney carriage proprietors.
Council Officers or Councillors do not provide a 24 hour,7 days a week service,so why should hackney carriages provide that service without additional Tariff payment.

Probably because they know drivers will provide a service anyway

Apart from the festive season, in Fife we don't have premium tariffs for public holidays, or Sundays, or whenever, yet ranks still overflowing

Haven't done any proper research, but at a rough guess I'd say holiday and Sunday/weekend tariffs are more of a thing south of the border than up here in Scotland.

Anyway, here's the latest instalment from Wiltshire. A lot of repetition here, and to be honest it's not really clear precisely what the councillor's gripe is, and I can't be bothered going through all this again.

But (as I recall it) important to bear in mind that Salisbury City Council isn't a licensing authority, which in this case is Wiltshire Council.


Salisbury City Council leader speaks out against Wiltshire Council taxi proposals

https://www.salisburyjournal.co.uk/news ... proposals/

“BIASED” and “detrimental” is how the recent public consultation on taxi tariffs has been described by the Salisbury City Council leader.

At the extraordinary meeting of Wiltshire Council’s licensing committee, members approved changes to the county-wide five-tier taxi tariff system currently in place, and agreed the amendments should be put to public consultation so residents can have their say.

However these proposed tariff changes are different to what was discussed and agreed by Salisbury City Council earlier in the year, and Councillor Jeremy Nettle is now “concerned” for Salisbury residents and the night time economy.

Despite residents getting an opportunity to express their views on the updated tariff system, Cllr Nettle said: “Wiltshire Council’s licensing committee is ignoring a democratic process and has chosen to carry out its own biased questionnaire, which is not only detrimental to the residents and their families in Salisbury, but also to the city’s evening and night time economy.”

At the Salisbury City Council Planning Committee meeting on January 6 councillors unanimously agreed to back tariff changes in which the countywide five-tier system will instead be spilt into three in Salisbury, and pricier tiers four and five will be abolished.

It was approved by Salisbury councillors that hackney carriages - taxis that can pick up passengers from the street or from ranks - use tariff one, offering the lowest prices, between 6am and 10.59pm, tariff two between 11pm and 5.59am, as well as all day on Sundays and on Boxing Day, and tariff three on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day only.

However, at the extraordinary meeting of Wiltshire Council’s licensing committee on January 27, these members approved that hackney carriages with up to four seats should use tariff one between 6am and 9.59pm, tariff two between 10pm and 5.59am and tariff three all day on Easter Sunday, Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year’s Day and bank holidays.

The authority also approved that vehicles with more than four seats should run tariff two between 6am and 9.59pm, tariff four between 10pm and 5.59am and tariff five on the same public holidays as listed above.

It was agreed that an additional 30p will be added to all flag rates.

Cllr Nettle pointed out that the city council did not agree on tariffs changing depending on taxi size, and he has raised his overall concerns with Wiltshire Council.

He said: “If the licensing committee or any other Wiltshire committee wants to consult with our residents then my request is talk to Salisbury City Council first, as other strategic departments at Wiltshire Council have.”

The public consultation ends tomorrow and it is anticipated by Wiltshire Council that the updated system will be implemented in the summer.

If the proposed taxi tariff and fare schedule is voted against however, discussion will return to the licensing committee.

As previously reported, Bridget Wayman, cabinet member for transport, said that there are "differing needs" across the county, but the proposed new tariffs "represent a compromise on the feedback [the council has] had from taxi operators and businesses in these areas".

She added: “The current tariffs have been in place since 2015, and following feedback from businesses around the county, this is the right time to make these changes.

“We have been holding discussions with stakeholders in both the taxi industry and the night-time economy for the past two years, and have taken their feedback into account when creating these new proposals.

“We hope these proposals will bring a number of benefits, as they will ensure taxi charges are comparable to our nearest neighbouring authorities; they will encourage more people to enjoy the county’s night-time economy; and they will reduce the number of people walking home late at night, which will make nights out even safer for residents and visitors to Wiltshire."

It is getting harder and harder to get a taxi on a Sunday here, There are only 2 drivers who cover the mornings and up to 4 in the afternoon and a maximum of 3 in the evening.
We don't do Sundays at all unless it is a damn good job booked by at least the Saturday. We don't have anyone in the office to answer calls on a Sunday because it is possible that we wouldn't be able to take enough money to pay both the drivers and the office staff without putting our rates up. Mind you the ones that do work on Sunday at the moment are quite worried in case we do decide to work Sundays again and take a slice of the work they do at the moment.

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Grandad,
To support my charity text MAYORWALK to 70085 to donate £5

we usually have between 12 and 14 taxis on the rank by 08.00 on a sunday morning unless it was a very busy saturday night which is quite a rarity

it used to be a great day years ago with big money to be made but not any more I cover till about 09.30 by which time i have 2 cars in and if I've done £20 I've done well and we have T2 time and a half on sundays

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Taxis Are Public Transport too

Join the campaign to get April fools jokes banned for 364 days a year !

What a waste of time.

I love working Sundays, but it's not as good as it once was.

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IDFIMH

Starline Taxi firm forecasts a rise in crime if drivers give up working late at night because of fare changes

https://www.wiltshiretimes.co.uk/news/1 ... e-changes/

A TAXI firm manager in Warminster has warned that plans to cut tariff fares could result in more crime.

Adrian Berridge, of Starline Taxis in Warminster and Westbury, says the changes could have the opposite effect to that intended by Wiltshire Council.

Consultation on the council's proposals comes to and end today [last week] after which the council will make changes.

The council wants to change tariffs to enable more clubbers and pub-goers to catch taxis home late at night and in the early hours of the morning.

Cllr Bridget Wayman, the cabinet member for transport, said: “They will encourage more people to enjoy the county’s night-time economy and they will reduce the number of people walking home late at night, which will make nights out even safer for residents and visitors to Wiltshire.”

But Mr Berridge, who represents 45 Starline taxi drivers, says the cuts will result in more cabbies giving up late-night and early hours work.

He said: "These changes will kill the late night trade. I used to have 10-12 drivers working the late shifts, now it's down to just three or four.

"If they change the tariffs, it will reduce the drivers' income. They will just decide to give up and stay at home and get a good night's sleep.

"My drivers often earn next to nothing between 1am and 3.15am. When the pubs and clubs close, they frequently have to deal with drunk and abusive customers.

"If the new tariffs come in, many of my drivers will just give up working late at night.

"There could be problems created by drunk people trying to make their way home."