LIVERPOOL

 Black cab drivers in Liverpool say they are being "bullied" into accepting card payments ahead of council plans to make it a mandatory requirement.

The council's licensing committee are set to approve a new law requiring ALL Hackney carriages to install a £280 card payment facility - despite fears expressed by taxi drivers that it would harm their trade.

Those against the plans have argued that as self-employed workers they should not be forced to pay for it, with some suggesting there is not enough demand for card payments from customers to justify the costs.

More than half (58%) who responded to a consultation on the proposals said they didn't think it would be a good idea, while 62% said it would not encourage more people to use black cabs, and 79% said they didn't think it should be a mandatory requirement.

In a list of objections, drivers said they should have the choice as to whether or not they offer card payments, with one person accusing the council of bullying self-employed workers into harmful decisions.

One representation said: "I think the trade is being bullied into decisions which will have financial problems to owners/drivers. If it’s not broken don’t fix it."


Another said: "Should be up to the driver if he wants card reader not compulsory, going to cost drivers £280 we pay enough out at present."

Hackney carriage drivers aren't happy about the city council's proposals

A third said: "In over 30 years I have never been asked for card payment, if installed open to fraud and non-payment, card invalid etc."

And a fourth said: "The council should not force taxi owners to pay for card readers. It should be encouraged but not enforced. No other business is forced to take card payments."


If the plans go ahead, Hackney drivers will have 12 months to install a card reader in the passenger compartment.

Original proposals suggested a time frame of six months, but this has been extended as a result of the "unfavourable responses" to the consultation.

The equipment will have to meet required standards and owners of the vehicles will be advised of the choices of devices available to use.

Some drivers said the council should provide the equipment if they want card readers to be part of taxi services in the city, while others said they should be able to choose their own cheaper methods of processing card payments.

But justifying the plans, Aziz Musa, licensing and regulatory officer, said it would improve standards of Hackney carriages in line with modern times.

In a letter to the city council, Mr Musa said card payments would be an easier and quicker method of payment for taxis and would improve public safety by removing the need to stop off and get cash late at night.

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 MANCHESTER

A helpless taxi driver watched as five vandals smashed up his cab outside his home in Crumpsall.

Nasar Rashid, 48, was woken up by his young son who told him "there's some people and they're smashing the car up".

He then watched the yobs damage his Citreon Grand Picasso by striking the back windows.

The dad-of-five works for Street Cars - a private-hire taxi firm.

But he will now have to take the next three days off while he waits for his car to be fixed.

The incident happened on Hazelbottom Road in Crumpsall at around 11.30pm on Sunday night.

"I was asleep, I work early morning shifts so I was just at home. My son woke me up and said 'there's some people and they're smashing the car up'", Mr Rashid said.

"I looked through the window and there was about five lads. I rang the police. They said to make sure that I don't go outside. I had to watch the whole thing."

Luckily the yobs didn't manage to smash the windows fully or take anything from inside.

But the taxi driver says he's left feeling scared after the incident.

He told the M.E.N he's spoken to the council about the high number of thefts in the local area.

The incident happened on Hazelbottom Road in Crumpsall

Mr Rashid added: "I'm fully insured but it's going to be at least three days before it's fixed and I am out of work.

"I've got five kids and it's not fair. It makes us scared to go outside and leave our own home. I am still waiting to hear from the police today."

Police confirmed they are investigating.

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 SWINDON

MORE highly polluting taxi cabs could be forced off the roads under mooted borough council plans.

Taxi drivers have called on Swindon Borough Council to bear in mind the high cost of new vehicles, urging officers to ensure the trade remains financially viable.

As part of plans to tackle illegal air pollution levels at the top of Kingshill Road, the borough has suggested tightening up licensing rules to reduce emissions.

Currently, nitrogen dioxide levels on the road need to be cut by a third to bring them below legal limits.The totem measure of an air quality management plan rubber stamped by Swindon Borough Council’s cabinet last week is a proposal to ban heavy goods vehicles from the road.

However, also mentioned in the plan is a potential change to taxi licensing regulations.

There are 1,000 private hire cars vehicles and 104 hackney carriages in the town, they said. “It is not known what proportion of the traffic on this road is a taxi or hackney carriage, but it is clear that the road is an important route into and out of Old Town, and so private hire and hackney cab vehicles will make up a meaningful part.”

By 2024, the deadline given to Swindon council to fix pollution problems, the majority of taxi cabs would be compliant with stringent emission regulations - known as Euro 6. Under the regulations, introduced in 2014, diesel cabs should produce no more than 80 microgrammes of nitrogen dioxide per kilometre travelled.

The council plan said: “We will put forward proposals to the Licensing Committee to improve the emissions of the taxi and hackney carriage fleet through licence conditions; beyond that already mandated.” In a table of potential measures, the council lists as a potential success measure whether all hackney carriages are run on electricity or alternative fuels by 2024.

Andy Lucas of the Swindon Taxi Association stressed the importance of Swindon Borough Council speaking to drivers about the plans: “We need to be fully included in any consultation on pollution reduction measures and understand that this will be discussed at our next regular forum meeting with the Council. Many taxis are required to be wheelchair accessible and all new taxis are Euro 6 compliant.”

New cabs can cost £30,000 to £50,000: “The council must pay regard to the high cost of these vehicles and take a balanced view when making recommendations, so our trade remains viable.”

Responding, a Swindon Borough Council spokesman confirmed officers would be consulting cab drivers. “We believe that the Air Quality Action Plan shows what needs to be done to improve air quality along Kingshill Road. This follows engagement with local residents, businesses and councillors.

“We have already started to progress the actions to improve air quality and have implemented a relatively small, but significant, change by altering the time we collect waste along Kingshill Road so it coincides with a much quieter time of the day.

“We will also engage with a number of partners and clearly taxi and Hackney Carriage drivers are an important stakeholder group who we will be speaking to in the near future as we continue our push to improve air quality in Swindon.”

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 BRADFORD’S taxi drivers have launched a new scheme offering discounted trips in an effort to save people money and also reduce the number of ‘empty’ trips drivers make.

The Hackney Carriage Association, with the approval of Bradford Council, has started the new campaign, and is hoping to get as many drivers on board in the coming weeks as possible.

Members of the public travelling into Bradford city centre will now be able flag down taxis heading back into the centre if they are empty, and will only be charged £1 per person for the trip.

All people have to do is look out for taxis displaying signage which reads, “Going to town? Flag me down” to take advantage of the offer.

 It only applies for journeys into Bradford city centre, and does not apply to private hire cars. Trips from the city centre will be charged at the normal fare rate.

Mohammed Khan, chair of the Hackney Carriage Association, said he hopes the new scheme will reduce the number of “empty” trips drivers have to make - journeys carrying no passengers - and also offer people affordable travel into the city centre.

He said: “We were just waiting to get formal approval from Bradford Council to put banners in our taxis.

“We are licensed to be flagged down in the street, and it will cost only £1 per person for people going into the city centre.

“A lot of our drivers are interested in signing up, and we have more than 30 drivers signed up so far.

“We are hoping to get as many drivers as possible signed up soon so people don’t miss out on the offer.”

A spokesperson for Bradford Council said the authority welcomes the new scheme.

She said: “The Hackney Carriage Association sets fares with the local authority.

“We welcome their recent proposal which will allow people to flag down and use vehicles who are returning to the city centre as it will reduce the number of trips being made without passengers who can also benefit from a reduced fare.

“Taxis can offer a reduced fare but they cannot offer a fare above what has been approved.”

According to Bradford Council’s Hackney Carriage Conditions and Standards, “two children under the age of ten years shall be regarded as one person, and children under the age of three years shall not be reckoned, provided they are accompanied by an adult”.

There are a maximum of 222 Hackney Carriage drivers in Bradford, all of whom have to pass driver training modules, hold a valid DBS and be fit to drive.