Taxi Driver Online

Whats that quote "hatred measured in gold" thing all about?

Is hisbollah a peace campaining organition?

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Former taxi driver

Unfortunately this law is coming to england and is a nightmare for cabbies because we are going to get fined for not curbing other peoples antisocial behaviour. It's the age old saying you can lead a horse to water etc etc. only in this case it's you can tell a smoker he can't light up but you can't force him not to

A couple of weekends ago some nice kindly passengers thought they would be clever and remove the no smoking signs from the cab windows then smoked a cigarette arguing that there was no signage. Now that wasn't the drivers fault but under the new law as I read it. firstly I would be fined for inadequate signage on the vehicle secondly the driver would be fined for allowing passengers to smoke and thirdly if it was challenged in court there is no chance of getting the passengers (even if you could identify them) to admit to removing the stickers

It's a no win situation all round unless you've got cctv surveilance and sound recording equipment fitted in case it's needed in court which i most definitley haven't

Have you actually been watching the news this past few weeks or the last 60 years come to that?

Israel murders innocents whilst the rest of the world sits back and allows it.

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There's no excuse for animal abuse. If you ain't vegan you are an animal abuser.

And remind me how many countries haven't done likewise in the last few years?

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IDFIMH

And Hizbollah just want to live in peace with their neighbours?

Or do they wish to destroy a sovereign nation?

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Former taxi driver

Daily Record

August 29, 2006, Tuesday

HEADLINE: DRIVERS FAG BAN BLITZ

SCORES of taxi, bus and delivery drivers have been fined for flouting Scotland's smoking ban.

Renfrewshire Council's enforcers netted nearly 50 for having a crafty puff at work.

Glasgow City Council only issued four pounds 50 fixed-penalty notices over the same period.

Neil Rafferty of pro-smoking group Forest, said: "A taxi is a piece of private property and it is up to the cab driver what he does in his own cab.

"Politicians have no right to tell them what they can do."
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Right here are a few home truths for the rural ares in England when the smoking ban comes in.
1, Things will be OK for about a month, until the smokers who go to the pubs and clubs decide they have had enough of having to go outside.
2 The Monday to Thursday nigh time taxi trade will dry up.
3 All drivers that smoke will have to get out of the cab to light up and they will be fined £30 if they are caught smoking in the cab, or £200 if they let there punters light up
4 Pubs and clubs will close down with job losses.
5 Drivers will leave the trade due to lack of work and reduced income.

This is already happening in Scotland, the brewers association has said that there has already been a 36% decline in bar sales, and some pubs have closed, mainly premises that cannot provide outdoor shelters, and they expect that to go up in winter.
Well the next thing that could happen is the council tax might go up to cover the lost revenue from rent and rates, and drink sales revenue for the government

Now my insurance is Hire and reward and Social Domestic And pleasure.

So, being Private Hire when i'm not hired i am in effect not working, in so much as i cant be flagged by a member of the public. Does this mean im then using the "social" side of my insurance and therefore exempt? I have by the way a normal MOT as well so others can drive it who dont have a PH licence.

I'll add by the way, that if/when it happens here i'll make sure im pulled to test this stupid law, it'll be worth £30 plus costs.

Don't know where you got the 36% figure from Skippy, the big story in the paper last week said takings were down 11%, and that was figures provided by the Scottish LTA.

But only around 3% of their members responded to the survey, and I would imagine it would be those who have lost trade that would respond, and this could be for other reasons, so the figures don't really tell us much.

I mean, only 2 pubs have closed and have claimed it's because of the ban, but if the association has 10,000 members then you'd expect more than that to have closed due to the normal business environment.

Not that I'm a big fan of the ban, but I think some perspective is required. Did you read what the Health Minister said-



What a lot of guff - every pub you go past there are people standing around outside, and I doubt if many of them are in favour of the ban. And the winter weather is unlikely to help that much.

As in most things the fear of what might come to pass is often greater than the reality hence the expression "that wasn't so bad" I doubt the smoking ban will make trade any worse than it already is on quiet nights rocketing beer prices have already had a nuch greater effect

The real problem is going to be where enforcement is rigorous which probably won't happen round our way the council doesn't spend much money on enforcement they'd rather spend it on litter wardens

Well you cannot do that smiffyz as the cab is used by punters, read what happend to the cabby in Fife at the start of this thread

Its quite easy, any hint of anyone who even thinks he's/she's going to get in with a fag or even lights up has another thing coming, the footbrake and the door

I find I don't get this now, "can I smoke", this is history, its out the window, never get asked now

I admit I am a smoker myself, but not at work, only when I get home with a nice Scotch Wisky, and only in one room where the pc is, wife's ex smoker, the worst

How you can be fined for someone elses actions is beyond belief, we have all had them in the cab who won't take NO for an answer

I had a bunch of blokes in the cab one weekend from away, this is the comments they gave, they was sick and tired of being told what they can and can't do after they went round town

We have come from so and so for a good night out, the food establistments says you can't come in, the bouncers on the Pub/Nightclub door say you can't do this, you can't come in like this, your dress is not right, you can't come in here, then we get in a cab and the driver say you arn''t doing that, you can't eat that in here, etc etc, then they do whatever they want to annoy the driver, till the brakes are pressed.

Thats my point.
My car is only a PH vehicle when i'm working, when not working it's a private car and as such exempt from the smoking ban isnt it?

To stretch it further if i'm not "hired"..........................................

It may be different in England, but up here any taxi or PH vehicle is covered all the time, even if the driver is unhired or off duty - one of the first cases in Scotland was an off duty driver who works in St Andrews but who was carrying his daughter in Dundee who was smoking a fag. The driver was fined £200 for letting his daughter smoke in the taxi.

Vans and trucks are covered, even if they only have one driver, but I think company cars are generally exempt.