Taxi Driver Online

Birmingham Post

August 7, 2007, Tuesday

City Council taxi fares cost 1.7m pounds

Taxis used by Birmingham City Council employees cost the local authority more than pounds 1.7 million last year, it was reported yesterday.

The bill included pounds 175,000 worth of tips, with staff handing over a fixed 15 per cent of the fare for every journey.

Deputy city leader Councillor Paul Tilsley said he would be looking into the size of the bill but said in some cases there could be good reasons for journeying by taxi instead of public transport. Some of these were cited by the council's legal department whose lawyers clocked up a pounds 13,000 cab fare bill for attending court and meetings.

"The employees are not authorised car users, do not have access to council cars and do not claim mileage," explained a spokesman.

"These taxi journeys are preferred by clients as it works out cheaper than the hourly rates charged by the lawyers for travelling by bus."

Other examples in the city's accounts show one official taking a trip that cost pounds 25.18 from Kings Norton to the Council House - a bus journey would have cost pounds 1.40 - while the planning and regeneration department has brought in four pool vans to reduce its bill of pounds 37,000, the majority for officials making site visits to vet planning applications.

The council' s accounts also put down pounds 1,800 of the taxi bill to asylum seekers. A spokesman said cabs were used for security reasons when collecting vouchers for immigrants.
___________________________

And why the f*** shouldn't they use us?

How many billions are spent subsidising the buses?

_________________
IDFIMH