LITTLE LEVER

A MOTHER has spoken of the terrifying moment a rock was thrown at the window of a taxi she and her young daughter were travelling in.

Jenna Hunt was returning to her home in Little Lever with eight-month-old Mia-Grace when the rock was hurled at the vehicle in Radcliffe Road, Darcy Lever, at about 8.15pm on Sunday.

The impact cracked the rear window of the taxi, just inches from where Ms Hunt and her daughter were sitting, leaving the pair startled.

She said: “There was a loud bang, it scared me to death because of my daughter being there.

“My anxiety went from 0 to 10 in seconds.

“It is terrifying to think about what could have happened if the window had smashed.”

Initially relieved that the window had not shattered, Ms Hunt says the taxi driver later told her that the window had been cracked by the rock.

However, things could have been far worse for the mother and daughter.

“The driver handled it all really well,” said Ms Hunt.

“He could have veered off the road or it could have smashed the window completely.

“If it was an elderly person then they could have had a heart attack because of the noise it made.”

Ms Hunt said she did not get a clear view of the people who had thrown the rock, but says she saw two men, who she described as being in their late teens, running away from the road.

When contacted, Greater Manchester Police said they had not been made aware of the incident.

The incident happened just nine days after another young mum was left fearing for her life after a huge rock shattered the windscreen of the car she was in.

Melissa Evans, aged 25, was sat in the front passenger seat of her friend’s black Nissan Juke, as the pair drove past Moses Gate Country Park, in Hacken Bridge Road, also in Darcy Lever, in the early hours.

It was at this point that the car was hit by a rock and shards of glass flew into her eye.

Miss Evans later went to hospital with the glass in her eye and was told her cornea could potentially be damaged.

However, she complained that police had not taken the crime seriously enough.

Following the incident, Insp Nicola Williams of GMP’s Bolton district said: “With thousands of fewer officers across Greater Manchester, we have had to make changes to the way we work to meet the public’s need. Inevitably, we have to make difficult decisions when prioritising calls to provide the right service to those who need it most.

“On this occasion, there were numerous ongoing serious incidents that officers’ attendance was required at, including a high risk domestic incident and a priority call concerning a woman’s welfare. Those involved in this incident have since been contacted by the police and updated on the investigation.”

https://bit.ly/2G3MnvN

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 MYTAXI/FREENOW

This week mytaxi rebranded to FREE NOW as the firm seeks to introduce broader mobility options to users.

In the UK, FREE NOW is looking to pilot its taxi sharing scheme, “Match” in some cities outside of London in the coming months. Furthermore, the company is lobbying for legislation of e-scooters which they say will be a great addition to UK cities, especially for shorter, inner-city trips.

In the UK, FREE NOW is looking to pilot its taxi sharing scheme, “Match” in some cities outside of London in the coming months. Furthermore, the company is lobbying for legislation of e-scooters which they say will be a great addition to UK cities, especially for shorter, inner-city trips.

FREE NOW is part of the brand family created through the mobility merger of BMW and Daimler. The other verticals within that family are SHARE NOW (Carsharing) REACH NOW (multi-modal), PARK NOW and CHARGE NOW.


“​We believe that being part of a global mobility brand family will be a very strong advantage for us, especially when all verticals have finished their rebranding”​ , ​Thomas Zimmermann, FREE NOW Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) explains. “​For us, FREE NOW means freedom of mind. We want to free our customers - both passengers and drivers - from everyday worries and stress. We want our passengers to lean back, enjoy their ride and let us take care of the details of getting them from A to B.​

“​We want drivers using our app to be confident in us taking care of getting them enough jobs so they can earn their well deserved living”​ , Zimmermann reveals. In order to raise brand awareness FREE NOW is investing a double digit million euro budget into an international brand campaign, which starts today.

Neither passengers nor drivers will have to install a new app. The change from mytaxi to the new FREE NOW app will happen through a regular update, which is available on Google Play and the iOS Appstore from today on. Also all accounts and their settings remain unchanged.

The ride-hailing app currently operates in 100 cities across Europe, with 14 million passengers and more than 100,000 drivers. In the UK, FREE NOW is available in London, Manchester, Nottingham, Edinburgh, Brighton, Reading, Oxford, Derby and Leicester.

https://bit.ly/2RRQteP
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A Sandwell taxi driver was hauled before the courts after a terrified disabled passenger almost fell out of his wheelchair TWICE.

The passenger, who has cerebral palsy, felt he could have been ‘seriously injured or even killed’ if his carer had not been present as driver Sajid Mohmood had failed to secure disabled ramps to his vehicle properly.

Mohmood, 54, had denied a charge of failing to exercise proper care toward a disabled passenger but was found guilty at Dudley Magistrates Court last month.

The passenger, who communicates using a computer, told the court he had travelled from his home in Perry Barr to Birmingham city centre in Mohmood’s private hire taxi back in October 2018.

When he arrived, Mohmood had struggled to fit the ramps to the vehicle to help the passenger into the car, the court heard - and when they arrived at New Street Station, he tried to fit the ramps to the wrong side of the vehicle, forcing the carer to intervene.

The court was told Mohmood had initially attempted to push the wheelchair forwards down the ramp, which could have resulted in the man falling from his chair.

Mohmood, of Marshmont Way, New Oscott, then tried to move the man’s wheelchair again, causing it to topple sideways due to the ramps not being correctly affixed.

The court heard the man’s carer had to “physically catch” the passenger to stop him falling from his chair and off the ramp.

Mohmood, who had received training on the correct handling of wheelchairs, was prosecuted by Sandwell Council’s taxi licensing and legal teams and was given a 12 month conditional discharge.

https://bit.ly/2Yw29Xp 
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SWANSEA

A businessman and former taxi driver raped a girl dozens of times over two years.

Vincent Matthews groomed his victim, who was under the age of 13, into thinking she was in a relationship with him.

But instead the former director of Morriston RFC was abusing his victim.

The 56-year-old, of Cwrt Cilmeri in Morriston, pleaded guilty to six counts of raping a girl under 13 and two counts of attempted sexual assault.

Swansea Crown Court was told the actual number of offences was estimated to be "dozens".

John Hipkin, prosecuting, told the court Matthews' grooming had "succeeded in making her (the girl) believe she was in a relationship with him."

He added: "He began by squeezing her leg and kissing and cuddling.

"She did not know about or understand anything sexual, but this proceeded to taking her upstairs to a bedroom, paying her compliments, suggesting she take a bath, and proceeded to having sexual intercourse with her.

"She mentioned pinning her arms down to achieve the act, but it is emphasised by the Crown this case is one of extensive grooming.

"He would put a blanket over her mouth to prevent her screaming. He told her not to tell anyone what they were doing."

Susan Ferrier, defending Matthews, said: "It is clear he is somebody who does need help and by pleading guilty he is making himself available to whatever help is available during what he accepts will be a long sentence.

"He apologises not just to you (the judge) but to the victim and her family and his family. He has lost everything.

"He had his own business, that is gone. He will have a long time in custody to reflect what from the outside looked like the life of a successful middle age man and that is something he has to live with.

https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/vincent-matthews-court-swansea-taxi-16528076
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 MERSEYSIDE
A woman was rushed to hospital after being knocked down by a taxi during rush hour.

Emergency services were called to Strand Road in Bootle at around 4.20pm to reports that a pedestrian had been involved in a collision with a Skoda.

The woman sustained a head injury during the crash and was taken to hospital for treatment but her condition is not yet known.

A spokesperson for Merseyside Police said: "We were called to reports of a collision at 4.20pm, involving a female pedestrian and a Skoda private hire taxi.

https://bit.ly/2XH4Vvz