Taxi Driver Online

Several bases covered here (pardon pun ) as well as the fares - the post-pandemic environment, fees etc. But not sure what the stuff about 'mandatory technological updates' is all about - maybe the booking and despatch software, or something like that, rather than directly related to fares


Taxis in Inverclyde are facing 'survival battle', council told

https://www.greenocktelegraph.co.uk/new ... ncil-told/

TAXIS in Inverclyde face a ‘survival battle’ according to the managing director of one of the area's biggest firms.

Inverclyde Taxis boss Henry Glasgow outlined the challenges facing the industry on behalf of Inverclyde Taxis (IT), ABC Taxis (ABC) and the Operators Liaison Group (OLG) to Inverclyde Council.

His submission was sent to the council’s General Purposes Board as it undertakes its annual review of taxi fare scales.

He said: “We remain in difficult times, which has and continues to affect everyone in very different ways. The post pandemic years have been extremely challenging to say the least in relation to a significant downturn in business.

“[We] continue to face challenges to sustain the status quo, we find ourselves caught squarely in the middle of a survival battle.

“It should be acknowledged that the taxis provide an essential service to the public of Inverclyde and we are sure Police Scotland will confirm this is the case, particularly in the evenings when taxis assist in getting the public home promptly and safely”.


Image: Greenock Telegraph

According to Mr Glasgow, taxi operators also face ‘significant increases’ in insurance costs – between 45 and 60 per cent, despite some having more than a decade of No Claims Bonus.

He says the cost of ‘mandatory technological updates’ has increased by 31 per cent, above inflation despite using the same long-term suppliers the correspondence claims. The cost of new vehicles, vehicle parts and labour rates have also risen.

The taxi chief believes Inverclyde Council do not offer support to the trade, ‘only looking short term’ and annually ‘raise taxi and test fees increases without any consultation'.

He says the ‘only way’ to cover taxi and test fees from the council, which were increased last year and may be increased again, is by raising the meter tariffs.

He claimed: “Taxi operators within Inverclyde suffer some of the highest licensing and test fees in Scotland.

"We would welcome the opportunity to revisit licensing and test fees the trade must pay, which are significantly higher than those of fellow taxi operators and drivers in Renfrewshire.

“Inverclyde Council need to be ever mindful that the evening and night economies have abated and unlikely to return to historical levels, thus drivers have a small but definitive window throughout the daytime only to generate a limited income.

“As operators and drivers are self-employed, they require an increase in the meter tariffs to attain the national minimum hourly rate.”

IT, ABC and OLG called on the council to approve an increase of at least seven per cent on the flag fall (initial charge), and seven per cent on the running mile on all fares. Increases of the same amount were also approved in December 2024.

Additionally, they would like taxi booking office licence fees to be reviewed as they say Inverclyde Council’s is ‘extremely excessive’ compared to neighbouring Councils.

Inverclyde Council General Purposes Board will review the proposals on Wednesday, February 11. Once the board has reviewed the taxi fares and other charges, there will be a further statutory consultation with a further report to the board.

There are quite a few comments on the newspaper's website, and there's a lot of chatter about an app they're now using, so maybe that's what the technological updates are all about

Also lots of the usual chatter about 'foreign' drivers. And don't forget the council here was the one proposing to relax vetting on overseas drivers who don't have a proper history...

Not much new here, but they're still not happy


Inverclyde Council moves closer to 8 per cent taxi fare hike

https://www.greenocktelegraph.co.uk/new ... -per-cent/

TAXI customers across Inverclyde look set to pay more for their journeys after councillors agreed to move a step closer to raising fares across the district.

Plans to increase the initial 'flag fall' charge, and the 'rate per mile', by eight per cent will now be put out to public consultation and, subject to the feedback received, should come into effect later this year.

Inverclyde Council's general purposes board heard this week that representatives of the local taxi trade had asked for a minimum seven per cent rise, but that this was significantly less than reports from industry professionals had suggested they ask for.

Speaking at the board's meeting this week, Chris McAteer, general fleet manager for Inverclyde Taxis, said the requested increase had been reduced to take into account the ongoing cost-of-living crisis affecting many local residents.

Mr McAteer said: “If you look at the reports that have been concluded by Professor James Cooper – who does all the surveys and any taxi reports for Glasgow City Council – they’ve got double digit increases.

“What we're mindful of is the area, the environment. It's easy to turn around and say you're looking for [an increase of] 15 or 20 per cent, but you have to apply a bit of caution. It's got to be sensible.

"We're looking for a sensible discussion, with a sensible agreement, and that can get rolled out, and hopefully and the public will understand why."

Under the proposals approved for public consultation, the initial charge for a taxi journey from a rank or a 'flag' hiring will be £3.56 between 6am and 11pm, up from £3.30.

The initial charge for hires between 11pm and 6am, and all pre-booked hires begun between 6am and 10pm, is proposed to go up from £3.41 to £3.68.

In an email sent previously to the council by Inverclyde Taxis (IT), ABC Taxis (ABC) and the Operators Liaison Group (OLG), representatives of the industry said it was in a ‘survival battle’.

The email read: “We remain in difficult times, which have and continue to affect everyone in very different ways. The post-pandemic years have been extremely challenging to say the least in relation to a significant downturn in business.

“[We] continue to face challenges to sustain the status quo. We find ourselves caught squarely in the middle of a survival battle.

“It should be acknowledged that taxis provide an essential service to the public of Inverclyde and we are sure Police Scotland will confirm this is the case, particularly in the evenings when taxis assist in getting the public home promptly and safely.”

The operators said they were facing increases of between 45 and 60 per cent in insurance costs, and that the cost of mandatory technical updates had gone up by 31 per cent.

The cost of new vehicles and vehicle parts has also risen, as have labour rates.

Professor James Capture, perchance?

Aye, the 'industry professional' who recommended increasing the Glasgow soiling charge from £35 to £41.776, but was gracious enough to round it to £42.70

Why?

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