Move over Uber! The Merseyside cab firm taking on taxi app giant

The company hopes people will switch to a firm with the same features as Uber that supports local businesses

Private hire and hackney licenses alike are set to go up (Image: Andrew James, South Wales Echo)

A Merseyside cab firm is looking to take on taxi-app giant Uber and is hoping local people will come with them for the ride.

Uber has become a dominant force across the country - and local private hire firms are worried for their future as more and more people choose the convenient app-based technology that Uber offers.

But one famous local firm is fighting back - and believes it can take Uber on at the technology game.

After 30 years in business, Britannia Taxis - a family owned firm based in Huyton, has overhauled its technology strategy and launched a new automated service working with software provider iCabbi.

iCabbie is a taxi booking software firm based in Ireland - and Britannia bosses believe the collaboration means they will be able to compete with Uber in Merseyside.
 
Private hire firms - as well as hackney drivers - have become increasingly concerned about the presence of Uber in our region.

They have pointed out how many drivers are getting licensed elsewhere and coming into Liverpool on busy days to take work from local drivers.

Mayor Joe Anderson has previously threatened to ban Uber from the city as he is unhappy with how they operate.

Now Britannia bosses believe their new technology is one way that local firms can take on the app giant.

James Aden, Director, Britannia Taxis stated: “Using iCabbi, Britannia customers can now book or pre-book via our booking app but also see their taxi’s ETA, fare estimate and pay by card.
 

"These are all features that have become standardised with the arrival of rideshare giants, such as Uber.

“Partnering with iCabbi makes it easier for small firms to be able to provide these features to remain technologically relevant but also to reduce operational costs."


He added: “iCabbi has reduced our operational costs, driven growth, in fact so much so that I’ve hired 80 more drivers since going live."

Gavan Walsh, iCabbi CEO and Founder adds: “We believe that the taxi industry has an exciting future and we are here to help them.

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TAXI drivers have urged the council to act over Uber drivers working in York. 

The licensing committee discussed the legal position around Uber’s operations in the city at a meeting on Monday. 

Mike Palmer, secretary of York Private Hire Association, told councillors at the meeting: “The cab trade you regulate are being sidelined to favour a toxic company which is out to make our business an unqualified, minimum-wage, unregulated mess. 

“Our public should be able to get into a well-maintained car which is clean and tidy, driven by a well-mannered and safe driver who knows the routes to take in York. This should be a matter of pride. Uber need banishing from our city.” 

City of York Council’s current position means that if a private hire vehicle’s three licences - operator, vehicle and driver - have all been issued by the same authority then the driver can undertake journeys anywhere in the country, regardless of when the fare starts or ends.

But York taxi bosses commissioned a legal opinion from Gerald Gouriet QC - a barrister who specialises in licensing issues in England and Wales - which argues that out-of-town vehicles and their drivers are illegally operating in York.
Council officers said it is important to stress that this alternative view has not been tested in the courts and they have sought independent legal guidance. 

The committee is expected to receive the legal advice at the end of this week and will discuss it at a meeting in March. 

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