Taxi drivers will protest Transport for London's (TfL) taxi policies by driving through central London at a snail's pace at 2pm tomorrow.
The London Taxi Drivers Association (LTDA) said:
"TFL’s inability to deal with the growing threat to Londoners safety of illegal minicab touting, unlicensed operators and electric Rickshaws are the main grievances of the cabbies although the proposed Cycle Crossrail (Barmy Boris’s Barking Mad Bike Scheme) is now firmly in their sights."
Leon Daniels, TfL's managing director for surface transport, responded this afternoon in a press release:
It is regrettable that a number of taxi drivers – whose job it is to help keep this city moving – plan to cause unnecessary disruption to other road users.
The taxi trade has several forums with TfL and the Mayor. We urge them to communicate directly with us on the specific issues they wish to discuss.
TfL says bus routes will also be affected by the protest, with cyclists being urged to take extra care navigating the swathes of black cabs on the roads. The tube is touted as the best option for getting about town in the afternoon.
Back in June large parts of London were brought to a standstill as London's black cabs staged a mass protest against taxi app service Uber.
The LTDA argued Uber is not compliant with laws regarding taximeters. TfL has held the position that Uber's app does not constitute a taximeter, which can only be used by black cabs.
http://www.cityam.com/1411486976/taxi-protest-central-london-faces-severe-disruption-tomorrow-cabbies-lash-out-against-tfl?
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London’s cabbies demonstrate over Mayor’s failure to deliver
Unite’s London cab section will today (Wednesday 24 September) take part in a drive in demonstration at Trafalgar Square over London Mayor Boris Johnson’s failure to protect the iconic black cab from unregulated competition where many have described him as a ‘complete disaster for London taxi trade’.
London’s taxi drivers, many of them members of the UK’s largest union Unite, are now saying enough is enough. They are demanding Boris should go now so his successor can get on with the job of actually running London for Londoners.
Under Boris Johnson’s Transport for London (TfL) taxi drivers have suffered a regulatory authority that has outsourced many of its responsibilities to private agencies with the net result, being a deep fall in service levels and ever increasing costs to the trade. The Mayor’s policy of licence and forget satellite offices, rather than properly regulated taxi ranks, has seen the trade lose out on work that should have been available to London’s taxi drivers.
Peter Kavanagh, Unite London and Eastern regional secretary said: “Boris Johnson may have attempted to play the populist card with London cab drivers at election time, but he has failed to deliver anything to a trade that is widely regarded as the world’s finest. His time as Mayor has been a complete disaster for the London taxi trade.
“From failing to tackle the increasingly hazardous rickshaw brigade to shrugging his shoulders and allowing the Uber app, which doesn’t take bookings or even pay tax in this country, to be licensed as a private hire operator has showed his true colours.
“Confusion over emissions policy, congestion and pollution increasing with his scrapping of the Western Zone, privatisation and outsourcing of the regulatory functions within TfL are all a slap in the face for taxi drivers and their customers.
“Maybe it’s time for ‘two jobs Johnson’ to spend more time with his future potential constituents in Uxbridge, explaining his plans for decimating tens of thousands of jobs at Heathrow in place of one of his many fantasies – Boris Island.
“We need a Mayor that understands the need for an integrated, fully funded transport policy and who believes in quality, investment and regulation. We need a Mayor who understands that running a city like London is a full time job.”
http://cabtradenews.wordpress.com/2014/09/24/london-taxi-drivers-demonstration-24th-september-2014/
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Harrogate Borough Council is warning taxi drivers only to pick up legal fares or face the consequences of a significant fine – a clear message to drivers who may be tempted to act outside the law.
The warning comes after a private hire driver was recently convicted of plying for hire without a licence after accepting an unbooked fare on King’s Road in Harrogate in the early hours of the morning. The driver, whose actions were witnessed by an Enforcement Officer, was prosecuted and fined £380, and ordered to pay £328.50 in costs and a surcharge of £38 (totalling £746.50).
It is illegal for private hire drivers to ply for hire, tout for business, or accept passengers who have not pre-booked their journey, as the driver may not be insured. All bookings for private hire vehicles (which can be identified by red door plates) must be made through a licenced operator. Only hackney carriages (with blue door plates and roof signs) are able to pick up fares from the street and taxi ranks.
Hackney carriage drivers are also warned that the town is monitored by Enforcement Officers and they must not loiter touting for business in popular locations.
Councillor John Ennis, Harrogate Borough Council’s Licensing Committee Chairman said: We have received a growing number of complaints from licenced drivers that their pre-booked jobs were being taken by drivers who were picking up customers illegally, resulting in lost time and income. Harrogate Borough Council takes this matter very seriously and we hope that the recent conviction sends out a message to drivers, who may act outside the law.
All taxi drivers must ensure they are aware of the rules and regulations which they must abide by. The vast majority of taxi drivers operate within the law, but the council will continue to monitor and will take action against any private hire driver who picks up unbooked fares or any driver who does not comply with legal requirements.
Passengers should also be aware that illegal pick-ups can put themselves at risk by invalidating the vehicle’s insurance.
http://www.harrogate-news.co.uk/2014/09/23/harrogate-taxi-driver-receives-heavy-fine-accepting-unbooked-fare/?
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Unconfirmed reports that the European Court opinion on Bus lanes is due today.
Addison Lee’s legal battle to win the rights to use bus lanes alongside black taxis could be decided in the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg after the British Court of Appeal asked for a ruling on European anti-competition law.
The European court could rule that black cabs are effectively receiving illegal state aid. If it agrees that “making a bus lane on a public road available to black cabs but not minicabs, during the hours of operation of that bus lane, involves the use of ‘State resources’ of Article 107 (1) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union”.
This is the section of the European Treaty originally intended to stop member nations from illegally supporting their major industries to give them advantages over other nations. It was used to force Royal Bank of Scotland to sell hundreds of branches as a condition of its state bail-out during the financial crisis.
Addison Lee, through its subsidiary Eventech, has been fighting with Transport for London (TfL) for several years to win equal rights to black cabs. In April the battle reached the Court of Appeal with a ruling now awaited. Documents been officially released which revealed the court wanted a European decision on state aid.
A spokesman for Addison Lee said: “We are pleased that the matter has been referred to the European Courts as we believe that the current legislation is a breach of the EU and UK law. You can’t discriminate between two types of taxis and we are pleased to have the opportunity to continue the fight against this injustice.” A TfL spokesman said: “In the original judicial review proceedings, we explained to the court that taxis are allowed to drive in bus lanes because they can ply for hire, whereas minicabs cannot. It would be more difficult to hail a taxi, especially on a busy road, if the vehicle concerned was not near to the kerb.” Mr Justice Burton agreed.
“The Court of Appeal has referred to the European Court of Justice the issue of whether or not TfL’s policy, which allows taxis but not private hire vehicles to drive in bus lanes, amounts to State aid.
Once the European Court has given its judgment on this aspect, the case will be referred back to the Court of Appeal for a decision on the wider appeal. Pending that outcome, we continue to maintain our policy on access to bus lanes and to contest the appeal.”
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