Taxi Driver Online

A rare piece from the Stray Ferret

Quite a formulaic article about a rank redesign, though. Cycle lanes, blah, blah, trade up in arms, but council respond with the usual 'regeneration' comms blather.

And, like the recent Brighton piece, council seems to be saying the trade cock-a-hoop about it all, but in reality it's a bit different.

And one particular bone of contention seems to be a special priority space for WAVs

Photos looked small enough on the Stray Ferret, but turned out a tad big here, so just the links to the photos below, but they're not particularly exciting anyway


Cabbies angry over plans to shorten Harrogate taxi rank

https://thestrayferret.co.uk/cabbies-an ... taxi-rank/

Cabbies have reacted angrily to plans to shorten the length of the main taxi rank in Harrogate as part of the £11.2m Station Gateway scheme.

The rank on Station Parade, opposite the train and bus stations, currently accommodates about a dozen hackney carriages.

Councillors want to reduce this by two vehicles and introduce a new bay over the road under plans to introduce single-lane traffic on Station Parade and create new cycle paths.

North Yorkshire County Council, which is leading on the gateway scheme, included the taxi rank proposals in new design plans that went out to consultation yesterday.

Tania Weston, the council’s programme manager for the gateway scheme, told a media briefing about the new designs last week that cabbies were satisfied with the new arrangements, which also include creating extra bays outside Mainline Taxis further along Station Parade.

Paul McMahon, who owns PM Taxis, said cabbies were told in talks with the council that the Station Parade rank would stay in its entirety.

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Image: The Stray Ferret

He said: “They have completely backtracked on what we were told.

“How can you possibly service a busy railway station, especially when conferences are in town, when you shorten the taxi rank?”

Kevin O’Boyle, who owns Central Taxis, said several town centre bays would be lost if the part-pedestrianisation of James Street also went ahead. He said: “This would be an unfair, derogatory step.

“Problems were pointed out at council liaison meetings a good six months back but it appears to have changed nothing.”

Mr O’Boyle said shortening the main rank and creating a new bay over the road, which he understands will be for wheelchair-accessible taxis, would cause tensions among cabbies.

He said drivers sometimes already had to loop round Harrogate because spaces weren’t available on the rank and the situation would get worse.

He added it would also cause a scramble for customers on two fronts and cause ill feeling amongst cabbies waiting on the current rank who saw a wheelchair-accessible vehicle nip into the new bay over the road and pick up a non-wheelchair user.

Mr O’Boyle added: “They need to get it into their heads that taxis are part of the infrastructure of the town.”

“Creating another rank will only cause divisions within the taxi trade.”

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Image: The Stray Ferret

Ms Weston said in a statement: “During the second consultation we received feedback from taxi drivers and companies about the proposed changes.

“As a result, we are retaining the current taxi rank on Station Parade but this will be slightly shorter.

“There will be a relocated taxi space on the opposite side of the road.

“We have also included a raised table on the northern part of Station Parade (between Bower Road and Cheltenham Parade) to make easier for people to cross the road to access the taxi company.

“Previously taxi drivers requested additional taxi rank spaces on the west side of the town centre and we will offset any loss through the Transforming Cities Fund project by providing new spaces in this area.

“Additionally, should a decision be taken to progress the scheme, the contractor will be contacting taxi companies to understand their requirements during construction, including the potential location of temporary taxi ranks.”

‘Fantastic regeneration project’

The gateway project is one of three active travel schemes in North Yorkshire, and 39 nationally, being funded by the Department for Transport’s Transforming Cities Fund.

It is supported by North Yorkshire County Council, Harrogate Borough Council and West Yorkshire Combined Authority.

Councillor Phil Ireland, Harrogate Borough Council’s cabinet member for carbon reduction and sustainability, said last week hailed the scheme as a “fantastic regeneration project and the first major investment in Harrogate in 30 years”.

But business groups have expressed concerns about its impact on retail.

just like down the road then

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

Reminds me of the likes of the pedestrian crossing point for the thronging mass of people that was installed when the car park opposite the station here was extended. Of course, none of the drivers knew anything about it until it suddenly appeared, and at first there was a good bit of bickering about whether we were allowed to park across it. Not sure what the official version was, but the drivers finally seemed to agree that we weren't allowed to park across it, so that was at least one space lost when there was already a lack of space

(And the crossing point is potentially a bit of a safety hazard as well, but let's not go there...)



Anyway, it's all change for the Open, and this year a big park and ride was installed for golf fans in the field opposite the station and, as per usual, there were cones and diversions and restricted access stuff everywhere

But the taxis normally use the double yellows beside the opposite pavement to drop and pick up pre-booked runs.

Which one (female) driver did at around the time I took the photo.

Cue all these stewards kicking off, saying she wasn't allowed to do that because of the yellow cones, which mean you aren't allowed to stop at all

Anyway, a very loud row ensued, and it went on and on and on. The driver was accusing the stewards of aggression and being argumentative, but was giving as good as she got.

Tried to keep out of the argy-bargy, but when it died down slightly I went across to get the full SP. I just said that this sort of stuff always happens during the Open, and to a degree rules are just made up as they go along, and different people interpret those sort of rules differently.

Of course, I should have pointed out the traffic management truck which was actually up on the pavement, but it totally missed my mind - you just expect stuff like that, so it didn't really register until I looked at the photo later and noticed there was a small truck on the pavement when the stewards were kicking off about the taxi driver stopping a bit further up.

But, as regards the photo, I was more interested in why they dropped the three red and white cones beside the pedestrian crossing point. Which I never quite worked out precisely, but it was presumably because they were expecting more thronging masses than normal. But hey-ho