Taxi Driver Online

Taxi Fares 2006

The TfL Board has approved changes to taxi fares to take effect from Saturday
1 April 2006.

As in recent years, the main revisions are based on the changes in the level of the taxi cost index. This index has been revised following a recent review and consultation with trade associations, to ensure that it continues to reflect cost changes affecting the taxi trade in London.

The revised index shows an increase of 3.7% in the year to January 2006. This corresponds to an increase of 36p to the average fare (excluding the 20p environmental charge). The flagfall will remain unchanged and the distance and time allowed for each 20p increment will be decreased so as to have the effect of increasing the average fare (excluding the 20p environmental charge) in each tariff. The tables attached show the cost index changes and the revised tariff rates, with illustrative fares based on distance only and typical fares likely to be charged in practice.

The following additional changes will also apply:

• the ‘extra’ for journeys from Heathrow airport will increase from £1 to £2, to reflect the increasing costs to taxi drivers;

• the supplement for journeys made in the Christmas and New Year holiday periods will increase from £3 to £4, corresponding to the increase in the taxi cost index since this was last changed;

• some of the fixed fares for shared journeys from Paddington Station and Buckingham Palace will increase by 50p.

9 February 2006 Roy Ellis
Head of the Public Carriage Office

Annex A: Licensed Taxi Cost Index Changes 2006

Index Component1 Cost Increase2 Weight3 Contribution to Total4
2006 values Last Year
Vehicle Cost -2.7% 10.0% 11.7% -0.3%
Parts 2.6% 3.8% 6.9% 0.1%
Tyres 0.0% 0.6% 0.5% 0.0%
Garage & servicing – premises -0.6% 0.6% 4.8% 0.0%
Garage & Servicing – labour 5.4% 1.9% 6.9% 0.1%
Fuel 11.1% 9.4% 8.4% 1.0%
Insurance -1.1% 3.7% 7.4% 0.0%
Miscellaneous -1.9% 1.2% 1.0% 0.0%
The Knowledge 4.1% 5.5% 4.9% 0.2%
Social Costs 4.1% 2.8% 2.5% 0.1%
Total Operating Costs 3.2% 40% 55.0% 1.3%
Average national earnings 4.1% 60% 45.0% 2.5%
Grand Total 100% 100% 3.7%

Notes
1. The index components are as normally used in the cost formula. Further details are available on request.

2. Cost increases are the latest available year-on-year percentage changes.

3. ‘Weight’ is the proportion that the component contributes to the total cost per mile. The ‘2006 values’ column shows the weights used in calculating the total cost index change this year. The ‘Last year’ column shows for comparison the weights use in the April 2005 cost index, before the review was concluded.

4. ‘Contribution to total’ indicates the importance of each component’s cost change in determining the overall cost change. It is calculated for each component as the product of its percentage cost increase and its revised weight. The Grand Total is the sum of the individual components’ contributions.

5. The ‘current’ column under ‘Data availability’ indicates the dates to which data in the ‘cost increase’ column relates. The ‘normally used’ column shows the dates relating to the data traditionally used for an end of April tariff revision.

Comments
The table above takes account of changes recommended in the cost index review carried out by SDG. The main change is the re-weighting of national earnings from 45% to 60% of the total. The weights for parts and garaging and servicing components have been significantly reduced. If all last year’s weights had been used instead the total cost index increase would have been 3.2% rather than 3.7%.

A previous draft of the cost index for April 2006 circulated to taxi trade organisations showed an increase of 4.2% compared with the actual final figure of 3.7%. The main reason for this reduction is a decrease in the vehicle cost component, caused by the sales value of older taxis and HP rates for vehicle purchase loans have turned out lower than forecast.
Annex B: 2006 Tariff Changes – 3.7% increase*
* Increase applied to base fares before addition of 20p environmental charge, which is unchanged.

Average Fares (excluding 20p environmental charge)
Current average New average Increase (£) Increase (%)
Tariff 1 £8.77 £9.09 £0.32 3.7%
Tariff 2 £10.17 £10.55 £0.38 3.7%
Tariff 3 £11.92 £12.37 £0.45 3.7%
All Week £9.69 £10.05 £0.36 3.7%

Average Fares (including 20p environmental charge)
Current average New average Increase (£) Increase (%)
Tariff 1 £8.97 £9.29 £0.32 3.6%
Tariff 2 £10.37 £10.75 £0.38 3.6%
Tariff 3 £12.12 £12.57 £0.45 3.7%
All Week £9.89 £10.25 £0.36 3.6%

Tariff Rates (including 20p environmental charge)
Tariff 1 Tariff 2 Tariff 3
Current New Current New Current New
minimum fare £2.20 £2.20 £2.20 £2.20 £2.20 £2.20
minimum units 2 2 2 2 2 2
metres/unit < 6 miles 167.9 160.5 136.0 130.2 109.8 105.3
secs/unit < 6 miles 36.1 34.5 29.2 28.0 23.6 22.6
metres/unit > 6 miles 117.7 112.5 117.7 112.5 117.7 112.5
secs/unit > 6 miles 25.3 24.2 25.3 24.2 25.3 24.2
Units at lower rate 57 60 71 74 87 91
Metres at lower rate 9570.3 9630.0 9656.0 9634.8 9552.6 9582.3
changeover fare £13.40 £14.00 £16.20 £16.80 £19.40 £20.20

Mr GBC will now be able to buy two houses by his bloody cold lake.

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IDFIMH

Is that after I've had the above formula decifered by a mathematics professor?

Yes, exactly, just as I worked it out a few days ago.

Miles and metres do not go together very well.

Miles and decimal miles however, work splendidly, as long as thirds and two thirds are avoided (0.333333 and 0.66666) because of course they are not exact when expressed as a decimal.

That means that miles can be divided into exact yards and expressed as exact decimal miles.

I might be missing something here, but working out what the running mile costs from the above tariff looks less than straightforward to me.

Personally as a passenger what I need from a tariff sheet is simply a table of representative fares for various distances and various traffic conditions.

For instance a table might have journey distances from 1 mile to 15 miles laid out on the top row, with three row names underneath, such as Light, Medium and Heavy Traffic.

Thats now a table showing forty five representative fares for tariff one.

Two similar tables for the other tariffs underneath with a brief note on waiting time, the soiling charge and any extras.

And thats the passenger and driver friendly tariff sheet sorted.

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The higher the fewer.

Oh and a meter that shows me only the following, would be great too:

What tariff I'm travelling on.

What the average traffic conditions are.

How many decimal miles I have covered so far.

Thats all I want to know. I dont want to see the ever increasing cost as I'm going along - it spoils the journey. If I want to know the cost I can use the tables on the tariff sheet in front of me. The driver will click the meter at the end of the journey and show me then.

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The higher the fewer.

Yes, the average tariff card is almost completely useless to most passengers and drivers.

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Taxi Driver Online
www.taxi-driver.co.uk

Yes the tariff explanation is unsatisfactory. The reason for this is that when it was previously laid out in a more comprehensive way it was possible analyse the information. By doing it by this way it tries to keep owners ignorant of the extent of the actual changes.
With the meter showing a non linear fare between 0-6 miles any increase in the intial drop reflects negatively on the 6 mile fare.
Taxi journeys in London average around 2.5 miles so setting the fare must always ensure that they are adequate at that point if the system built around LTI is to survive. Effectively it is a seesaw pivoting around 2.5 miles, if the initial drop goes up (that is the distance is decreased), the 6 mile return per mile goes down ,or vis versa.
Such an achievement of a fare decrease at 6 miles by the trade organisations undertaking the fare negotiations would not be seen as satisfactory by the bulk of the vehicle owners, who look upon the meter result rather than return per mile as their trading objective - so by obscuring the information this way it is hoped to avoid bad feeling.
Regards,
Jeff

For anyone who wants this thread translated, we're getting a 3% increase.

I've always tried my best to keep the meter out of normal eye-sight range.

And I really hate, really really hate the lippy kids that keep on mentioning when the meter clicks over.

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IDFIMH