BELFAST

Fona Cab owner warns of 'outcry' if taxi reform equipment requirements are scrapped

Company invests £300,000 to prepare for law change

 The Department of Environment would be faced with an "outcry" if it were to change taxi reforms after their introduction in May, the owner of Fona Cab has said.

On May 31 the Department of Environment is introducing wide-ranging reforms, it says, to make it easier to hail a taxi.

Customers will be able to hail any taxi during peak times and firms will have to advertise maximum fares.

Drivers will also be required to fit new roof signs, have DoE approved meters and fit receipt printers in their cars.

The changes will affect Northern Ireland's near 9,000 taxi drivers.

DoE officials said they were taken by surprise by the advancements in the taxi industry and how firms such as Fona Cab, Value Cabs and Uber use apps and said the new reforms will be reviewed almost as soon as they come into being.

That review will include the need for drivers to have meters and printers, the DoE has said, along with a review of the individual component parts including taxi operator, driver and vehicle Licensing alongside a review of the powers provided to the department.

Given the forthcoming Assembly election, the review will fall to the minister of the new Department for Infrastructure in the next Assembly mandate.

Fona Cab owner William McCausland said his firm was investing around £300,000 in its fleet given the new equipment requirments.

He said there would be an "outcry" if those requirements were to change.

"Aand I don't see that they would do," he said.

"Taxi reform has been going on for so long now - since the 1980s - and we are just at the point now where we want to know what the reforms are and be left to do our job."

We asked Value Cab for a comment and they referred us to William McCausland.

Belfast's newest taxi operator Uber described part of the reforms as "outdated" as it says details can be recorded and accessed on smartphones without the need for meters and paper receipts.

It also said the new regulations would not lead to more reliable means of transport.

First launched in 2009, Uber has rapidly expanded across the world and is now available in over 300 cities across 67 countries and has become a multi-billion dollar business.

It launched in Belfast in December.

However, after hinting it may pull out of the city over the new reforms, Uber says it is committed to Northern Ireland as demand has exceeded initial projections.

It also addressed information published by the Assembly over the number of drivers it has operating under an Uber sign, which it said was "inaccurate".

In January a question from Alliance MLA Judith Cochrane revealed there were 26 drivers affiliated to Uber's operator's licence.

The Department of Environment said there are currently 25 drivers as of last week, which compares to Fona Cab's 567 and Value Cab's 674.

Kieran Harte, general manager for Uber in Belfast said: "The numbers released by The Assembly only reflect the partner-drivers that were affiliated to Uber's Operator license, they do not accurately reflect the number of who have signed up with their own operator's license.

"Around 100 professional drivers have signed up to drive on the Uber App since we launched."

He added: "The demand for Uber in Belfast has far exceeded our initial projections and we are delighted with the response we have received from local passengers.

"Uber is committed to Belfast and is currently looking at ways to optimise the app when the new reforms come into force.”
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 COVENTRY

 A taxi driver from Coventry who had his licence revoked after he injured his passengers in a crash has lost an appeal against the decision.

Rugby Borough Council had revoked Mohammed Ali’s taxi and private hire driver’s licence on November 24 after his cab crashed into a parked car on October 11.

Both of his passengers had to be taken to hospital.

Ali, of Blythe Road, Foleshill, failed to report the accident to the council within 72 hours - as required by the conditions of his licence - and police discovered the cab had two bald tyres

Ali was informed his licence was to be reviewed.

He told the council he was unable to drive his cab because of the damage, but he was asked to inform them if he resumed driving a taxi before the review hearing.

However, on November 10 a council officer spotted a taxi driving through a red light at a pedestrian crossing in the town centre.

An investigation identified Ali as the driver of the cab, and his licence was immediately suspended pending the review hearing.

At the hearing, the licensing and safety committee upheld Ali’s suspension and voted to revoke his licence on the grounds he had failed in his duty to protect the public by driving his taxi in an unroadworthy condition and not reporting the accident to the council within 72 hours.

The committee also noted Ali’s “disregard for the condition of his passengers” following the accident.

Ali’s appeal against the decision was heard at Nuneaton Magistrates Court on February 9.

Magistrates were told despite Ali failing to report the accident to the council within 72 hours, he had taken photographs of the damage to his cab and informed his insurance company.

After hearing submissions from both the council and Ali’s solicitor, magistrates upheld the committee’s decision to revoke his licence.

Speaking after the hearing, Coun Kathryn Lawrence, chairman of the licensing and safety committee, said: “We have a duty to ensure all taxi drivers in Rugby comply with the terms and conditions of our licensing policy, which places paramount importance on the safety of the public.

“Taxi drivers hold a position of trust and have a duty of care, and when drivers fail in this duty we have no hesitation in revoking their licence.”

http://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/coventry-news/coventry-taxi-driver-loses-appeal-10928634------------------------------------------------------------------------

EXETER

A taxi driver has been cleared of outraging public decency after a Judge threw out the case against him.

Alexandru Dragan was alleged to have put his hand inside his trousers while taking a family from Exeter to a holiday cottage at Cheriton Fitzpaine.

A judge at Exeter Crown Court dismissed the case after ruling that there was no case to answer even if the account of the 17-year-old girl in the front seat and her mother in the back were accepted by the jury.

Recorder Mr Philip Mott, QC, said the test of what amounted to outrage was very high and the alleged actions did not constitute the offence.

He said:"I conclude it would not be safe to leave this case to the jury. The House of Lords have made it clear that outraging is a very strong word and goes beyond offending susceptibilities or even shocking reasonable people.

"It would have to involve very offensive sexual displays and there is a question of whether what is alleged her, even taken at its highest, amounts to that.

"There was no removal of clothing or even the sight of underwear or flesh. There was no exposure of the genitals or sign of an erection.

"It does not in law amount to conduct as strong as outraging public decency, however improper or offensive it may have appeared and clearly was perceived to be by the girl."

The case ended before Dragan was able to put his side of the story to the jury but in police interviews he said there had been nothing sexual in his actions.

He blamed a nervous tic which he has suffered from since childhood and discomfort arising from a gall bladder operation for his 'jerking movements'. He said his use of a mobile phone on his thigh may also have been misinterpreted.

Dragan, aged 36, of Exwick Hill, Exeter, denied outraging public decency and was found not guilty on the directions of the judge.

http://www.exeterexpressandecho.co.uk/Exeter-nervous-tic-taxi-driver-cleared-outraging/story-28784917-detail/story.html
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 FORD UK
 
 Ford's Uber-rivalling GoRide taxi service to come to UK in 2016
Blue Oval attempts to steal a march on Google, Apple

The Uber taxi service is set to face serious competition with the impending launch of Ford’s new GoRide project.

It will allow users to summon, via an app, a shuttle van that, according to Ford, will be more spacious and comfortable than a conventional cab but cheaper, because the cost will be shared by up to eight passengers, some going to different destinations.

Ford, which is running a pilot scheme in America, says GoRide will arrive in Britain by the end of the year.

Motor executives have been panicked by the rise of services such as Uber, which offer an alternative to owning a car. The proportion of young Britons learning to drive fell from 36% to 29% in the five years to 2014, and is expected to drop further with the advent of driverless cars.

“You’re talking about the end of human driving, the end of private ownership, the end of the internal combustion engine and the end of car dealerships,” said Adam Jonas of Morgan Stanley.

Ford said it was trying to pre-empt the expected arrival of similar services from Apple and Google.

The pilot service is being run in Dearborn, Michigan, where the company’s world headquarters is based and where 21 Ford Transit minivans carry up to 300 staff a day to 129 destinations.

Users tap their destination into an app, which calculates the journey time. If the passenger accepts, Ford works out which of its fleet can get them there most efficiently without making the passengers already on board the bus late, then instructs the driver.

Driverless vehicles could be used in future.

http://www.driving.co.uk/news/fords-uber-rivalling-goride-taxi-service-to-come-to-uk-in-2016/
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BOSTON USA.

 The Boston Police Department on Monday began the process of fingerprinting all of the city’s more than 6,000 licensed cab drivers.

The department said in a statement that the new initiative would give the city’s Hackney Carriage Unit, which licenses all taxis in the city, another resource to conduct more thorough background checks on drivers and “ensure the highest standards of safety for the traveling public.”

Police Commissioner Williams Evans lauded the new effort.

“The cab drivers in this city are hardworking men and women who welcomed this new safety requirement,” Evans said in the statement. “When the citizens of Boston get into [a] cab, they trust that operator to get them to their destination safely every single time. Fingerprinting is another step we can take as a police department to help make sure that happens.”
  

Going forward, Boston taxi drivers will be required to submit fingerprints as part of their annual license renewal process.

Fingerprinting of those who drive for ride-hailing services such as Uber and Lyft could also be on the horizon. One of two bills the state Legislature is currently considering to regulate the so-called “transportation network companies” would require all drivers be fingerprinted.

http://www.wbur.org/2016/02/22/boston-taxi-driver-fingerprinting