The boss of Wolverhampton’s Private Hire Taxi Association has given his backing to the requirement for drivers to undergo random drug and alcohol testing, as a way to improve safety measures for passengers.

Mr Raheel Shah, the association’s chairman and founder, also said that business for many firms and individual drivers in the city had not been good since around 2015, and called for a firmer course of action to improve conditions for drivers.

He said that too many drivers were not up the strict standards of the job, and endorsed the legislation from the council’s licensing chiefs.

“It is also incredibly important that any new drivers inform the council if they are ever arrested for anything or have any work or alterations carried out on their vehicles,” said Mr Shah, who is the association’s chairman and founder.

In recent months, the council has been in consultation with the local private hire trade group over proposed alterations in the way companies conduct business in terms of base, driver and vehicle procedures.

“Any assistance we can get from the council will be greatly appreciated,” said Mr Shah.

“These days it is a lot simpler and cheaper for drivers to get a licence, and unfortunately this has resulted in a lot of non-professional drivers taking up work.

“This is problematic for us and can give a lot of us a bad name as private hire drivers. A lot of the new drivers don’t know the roads, the correct health and safety procedures, and haven’t taken a proper practical test.

“Also, with self-employment rights, drivers can now work for more than one firm, meaning a lot of drivers in the city don’t make a decent living because there simply isn’t enough work to go round. There are more private hire cars on the roads than ever before,” he added.

Licensing chiefs say amendments are necessary due to new technology being taken up by many businesses, alongside the introduction of cross-border hiring with neighbouring counties.

A spokesman for Wolverhampton Council’s Licensing Services said: “Although there is no legal requirement to consult with the private hire trade groups, we are doing this in the interest of positive working relationships in the city.

“The onset of technology within the trade and also the intricacy of cross-border hiring means that several changes are necessary.

“Base operators will now need to provide drivers with each customer’s contact details to enable them to have immediate access to satellite offices and systems, as well as being able to use interactive voice response.”

Private hire taxis differ from the black Hackney cabs at the city centre ranks in that they must be pre-booked by telephone in advance and cannot be flagged down or picked up on the street.

http://bit.ly/36iHSJd