Taxi Driver Online

Herald Express (Torquay)

November 27, 2007 Tuesday

No sympathy for plight of hackney carriage drivers

I have just finished reading your article entitled 'Town Centre cabbies fear for livelihood' (HE, November 16), with interest.

Although I agree that something needs to be done about the amount of businesses moving out of the town, I must say that I have no sympathy for the Hackney carriage drivers.

Mr Hext, it seems, is contradicting himself. In one breath he is claiming that people will have no choice but to drive out of town for their shopping needs and then in the next he's claiming that the roads will become dangerous and chaotic by Tesco Metro.

Mr Hext goes on to say that Tesco will become busier, and with the build-up of traffic it would become dangerous for pedestrians to cross the roads.

Apart from the fact that there is a perfectly good pedestrian crossing on this roundabout, if people will be driven out of the town for their shopping needs how does he also come to the conclusion that more people will be shopping at Tesco and there will be more traffic?

The subject of more rank space was tackled in depth in June of this year, and it was decided that additional rank space was not required at this location.

The amount of work the Hackney drivers are losing has nothing to do with the closure of shops in the area.

More and more people phone and book taxis these days because private hire vehicles often work out far cheaper than Hackney taxis.

My point is that the modern-day Hackney drivers are losing the work themselves through not giving a service that can compete with the private hire sector and that is why they are losing work and not because they need more rank space.

There was always enough rank space in the past when the town was booming. But now because of the competition the ranks are overflowing.

PAUL SNEAP

Price First Taxis
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November 29, 2007 Thursday

Taxi fares are about to go up in Colchester.

Cabbies asked for a 20p increase on basic rates and the rise was last night approved by borough councillors

The new charges have been made to cover the increasing cost of running hackney carriages.

It is the first price hike in two years and taxi drivers said they tried to keep it as low as possible.

The amount charged for the first 187 metres of a journey will go from £2.20 to £2.40.
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November 29, 2007 Thursday

New minicab ID plates easier for passengers

Andover Advertiser

FROM tomorrow all Test Valley licensed private hire vehicles - commonly known as minicabs - will carry new identity plates.

Following on from the successful introduction of new plates for hackney carriages, or taxis, the new plates - with a yellow background for minicabs and white for taxis - include details of the make and model of the vehicle together with how many passengers it can take.

The message to the public from Test Valley Borough Council is - do not use a vehicle unless it is properly licensed and within the expiry date.

The plates make it much easier for the public to identify an officially licensed vehicle and they can enjoy their journey safe in the knowledge that both vehicle and driver have had to pass detailed tests.

The new plates will also make it easier for the public to identify which vehicle they can legally hail and which they need to pre-book.

Minicabs can only be used on pre-booked journeys, while taxis can be hailed at any location in the borough.

Each plate also has the council's logo on it together with the date of when the vehicle's license expires.

Anyone with queries regarding the validity of a license should contact the licensing section on 01264 368023.
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Music to Mr Deltastaff's ears.

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IDFIMH