TAXI FARES from Royal Ascot will be hiked up by...

50 per cent during race week to help cab drivers with ‘nightmare’ journeys.

This comes after bosses at the Royal Borough of Windsor of Maidenhead (RBWM) introduced a trial run for the new price formula earlier this year.

 During race week 2019, which ran from June 18 to June 22, taxi drivers were allowed to charge 50 per cent more for journeys from Ascot to within the Royal Borough.

Greg Nelson, licensing officer at RBWM, said the feedback from drivers was that it was “very helpful.”

He added: “It was good for drivers.

“Nobody else seemed to have any comments for or against it.”

The move, which was given the green light by councillors at a RBWM meeting on Tuesday, October 8, means a fare from the event to Windsor increases by more than £10.

 Initial plans for the new prices came about after taxi drivers complained to the council about the ‘45 minute to an hour’ drive to get back to Ascot Racecourse taxi rank after returning from another journey at a meeting in April.

One taxi driver, who has been taking racegoers back and forth from Ascot for ten years, told councillors in April that the current rates drivers are allowed to charge were “not sufficient enough”.

All councillors but one backed the price hike, after Cllr John Davey said: “Drivers have to earn a reasonable living and getting in and out of Ascot is a nightmare.”

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NORTH TYNESIDE

Would-be taxi drivers could have to scrap ageing vehicles and face up to mandatory criminal record checks if a proposed licensing shake-up is given the green-light.

North Tyneside Council will launch a public consultation at the end of the month over proposed changes to the way the borough’s taxis and private hire cars are licensed.

Cabinet members agreed on Monday to seek the views of local drivers, residents, and businesses on a revised policy which aims to ensure the safety and welfare of the public, encourage environmental sustainability, and ensure efficient taxi and private hire services in the borough.


Under the draft proposals, no new licences would be granted for vehicles more than four years old. Other key amendments would see the introduction of online applications and mandatory criminal checks.

Coun Carl Johnson, who is responsible for environment and transport, said the proposals were would make sure residents got a good service from local firms.

He said: “This is very important when you consider our fleet is very old, this is important to make sure residents get the best possible service from taxis as well as reducing emissions.”


Coun Gary Bell added: “Historically North Tyneside residents use taxis more than other boroughs around the country.”

A range of stakeholders will be asked for their views on the introduction of a new vehicle age requirement, as part of a plan to improve air quality as outlined in the council’s transport strategy.

This comes after the council’s declaration of a climate emergency in July, when councillors pledged to fast-track the authority’s Low Carbon Plan 2016- 2027 to achieve a 50% carbon reduction four years ahead of schedule.

The public will also be asked their views on things like tinted windows, in- car digital advertisements, and changes to the knowledge test.

The authority licenses around 183 taxis, 1030 private hire vehicles and there is 1097 drivers and 23 operators in the borough. The consultation period will start on October 28 and last for eight weeks.

Stakeholders will be able to provide feedback online as well as in writing. The draft policy will then come back to Cabinet on February 24 2020 and, it is anticipated, the revised policy would be implemented on April 1 2020.

The draft policy can be viewed in the ‘decision making’ section of the council’s website.

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ANOTHER UBERK PERV

An Uber driver who groped a female passenger while she vomited out of the door of his cab has been convicted of sexual assault.

Temur Shah, 45, assaulted a 27-year-old old woman in his car in the early hours of January 15 2018, after collecting her from an address in the West End.

Isleworth Crown Court heard his passenger said she felt unwell and during the journey, Shah stopped the car and insisted she sat in the front seat.

When the woman said she was going to be sick a short while later, Shah stopped the vehicle again and leaned over her to open the door, sexually touching her as he did so.

Shah continued to sexually assault the vulnerable woman as she leaned out of the car vomiting.

After the assault, the passenger told Shah not to touch her again but had to stay in the car as she had no money or battery on her phone in order to call for help.

She reported the incident to police after she was dropped off near her home.

Officers from the Metropolitan Police's Taxi and Private Hire Policing Team used CCTV and GPS data from Uber to identify Shah as the suspect.

Shah, of Park Crescent, Harrow, was arrested over the sexual assault on February 2 2018, and released under investigation.

He was charged with sexual assault on January 19 this year and was convicted on Monday after a one-week trial.

Shah will now be sentenced on November 12 and has had his private hire licence revoked by Transport for London (TfL).

Detective Superintendent Andy Cox, from the Roads and Transport Policing Command, said: "Shah despicably took advantage of his position as a trusted licensed driver and sexually assaulted a passenger in a vulnerable state. His conviction was down to a meticulous investigation which left the jury in no doubt as to his guilt."

Mandy McGregor, head of transport policing and community safety at TfL, said: "This attack on a vulnerable passenger was predatory and disgusting, and we are pleased to see that Shah has been convicted.

"I would like to thank the young woman for coming forward and reporting this so TfL and the police could investigate and take action against the driver. We expect the highest standards from TfL licensed taxi and private hire drivers."

Last month TfL granted Uber a two-month temporary extension to its licence after refusing to grant the firm a full-five year permit over concerns including worries about passenger welfare.

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LONDON

A taxi driver has told a jury that he panicked and made 'a massive mistake' by throwing both of his mobile phones into a river after his ex-girlfriend was allegedly murdered.

Ben Lacomba, 39, said he thought police might believe he was involved with mother-of-five Sarah Wellgreen's disappearance.

So, he dumped the phones into the River Thames at Greenhithe, Kent, on October 14 2018, before officers could download any data from them.

Today, he told London's Woolwich Crown Court: 'It was stupid. I made a mistake, a massive mistake.

'Now I am not tired and panicky. They could have downloaded everything and I may be not sitting here today.'

Lacomba denies murdering Ms Wellgreen, 46, on October 9, 2018, and claims he was in bed asleep all night before waking at 7am to find her missing.

The beautician has not been seen since disappearing from the home she shared with Lacomba, in New Ash Green, Kent, in October last year.

Despite extensive searches by Kent Police, Ms Wellgreen's body has not been found.

The prosecution say Lacomba murdered her in a 'premeditated and calculated act' and may have been motivated by the potential loss of his property and his children.

He then dumped her body in an unknown location, it is alleged.

There was a flurry of unanswered calls and messages from Ms Wellgreen's worried family to her phone, and Lacomba reported her missing to police.

Detectives searched for thousands of man hours for Ms Wellgreen's body after she went missing in New Ash Green, Kent, last October - but it has never been found

It led to extensive police searches at Lacomba's home and a request by them to look at his mobile phones, including the deleted material on it.

Lacomba, who described himself as 'tired and stressed' at that time, told the jury that the continued police presence had led to 'bickering' and 'upheaval' in his home.

He said he wanted to help the police because 'the priority was to try to find Sarah and if they (the police) felt it was necessary - that was their job'.

Lacomba and Ms Wellgreen, who were no longer a couple, had been living under the same roof since May 2018.

He told the court he panicked when police asked to see the deleted telephone information because he had previously written 'nasty' tit-for-tat messages in draft to Ms Wellgreen.

These were unsent but dated back to an 'acrimonious' period after they had split as a couple, the court heard.

The prosecution allege that 'compelling evidence' points to Lacomba's guilt, including the switching off of CCTV at his home and deliberately parking out of view of his neighbour's security cameras.

The jury has also been shown footage of what the prosecution say was his taxi driving along country lanes in the early hours of October 10 to dispose of Sarah's body.

But Lacomba maintained during cross-examination that he was asleep in bed all night, and denied throwing his phones in the river so police could not discover what he had been up to.

He also claimed that an occupant at the house who told police that they had woken to find neither he nor Sarah were in the house had been 'confused'.

But Miss Morgan said the witness, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, had 'got it spot on', and that Lacomba had 'the shock of his life' when he returned home from getting rid of Sarah's body to find the occupant downstairs.

Lacomba replied however: 'That's not true because I was asleep in my bedroom.'

The trial continues.

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