MANCHESTER LICENSING UNIT
  
Fri, 8 Nov, 13:00

The Licencing Unit wish to bring a number of matters to the attention of
the  HC/PH trade under the following headings:

1. Peter Street

2. Credit/Debit Card charges

3. Inconsiderate/illegal/dangerous parking
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1. Peter Street

Those of you involved in the night time economy will be aware that Peter Street has steadily grown in popularity as the destination of choice in the city centre over recent years.  The increased footfall has resulted in many more vehicle movements and the area has become congested with traffic
especially on Friday and Saturday nights.  GMP and MCC are holding regular meetings to discuss the problems that this is causing and have already taken some steps to ensure that the area is as safe as possible for visitors.  Other proposals are being worked on and will be implemented when ready.

Those already in force:

Parking Bays outside Revolution de Cuba have been suspended to create more space

There are 4 dedicated Civil Enforcement Officers [CEO's] now patrolling Peter Street during the night time economy at weekends issuing parking contravention notices where appropriate.

Currently, arrangements are being made to obtain the necessary powers to close Jerusalem Place and Marron Place to traffic at night time at weekends for the foreseeable future.  Both these streets run between Peter Street and Bootle Street.  These closures will be implemented as soon as the necessary powers are obtained.  Their effectiveness will be monitored and if successful may be extended to other streets in the area.

Private Hire drivers are reminded that if they are unable to demonstrate that they have a legitimate pre booking in the area, that waiting will not be tolerated and CEO's are likely to issue parking contravention notices.

Drivers are asked to park and wait elsewhere in the city and only make
their way to the Peter Street area when a legitimate pre booking is being responded to.  Double parking, blocking junctions and inconsiderate parking will be dealt with by the relevant authorities in the strongest means possible.  Divers are also asked to refrain from the performance of U turns across Peter Street which adds to the congestion in the area.

Hackney Carriage drivers are asked to be mindful of their driving conduct
and  to use the rank on Peter Street that is Marshalled on the weekends.
Drivers are also asked not cause obstructions and not to perform
U turns along Peter Street, especially when exiting the rank, a manoeuvre that can add to congestion in the area.

2. Credit Card Charges

On 13 January 2018 the law changed to prevent retailers and service providers from levying a surcharge on customers who chose to pay for goods and services with a debit or credit card. This move was widely publicised at the time and as we are all consumers very few people can claim not to have noticed that these surcharges are no longer applied when goods and services are paid for either face to face or online.

  These rules also apply to licenced drivers who accept electronic payments from passengers,however despite the rule change, the Licensing Unit  continues to receive complaints from passengers about the levying of this surcharge by some drivers. This practice is regarded by the Licensing Unit as both a breach of these new rules and an overcharge on the fare.

  Hackney Carriage drivers will note that the ability to levy a surcharge was removed from the fare card and the current fare tariff which came into force on 16 July 2018 does not permit the levy of a surcharge, this in line with the new rules.

3. Inconsiderate/illegal/dangerous parking/waiting

The Licensing Unit continues to receive complaints from around the city in regard to the driving conduct of licenced drivers.

These complaints will be investigated by the Licencing Unit and where appropriate drivers will be warned about their future conduct. 

Repeat offenders who demonstrate a pattern of driving conduct that falls short of what is expected may be referred for a review of licence.

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 WEST YORKSHIRE

The rise of Uber has made the issue of safeguarding taxi passengers “even more complex”, a meeting of councillors from across West Yorkshire has been told.

Derek Benn, manager of the Calderdale Community Safety Partnership, said that regulating the industry was “complicated”, because of different licensing rules in various parts of the region.

The issue was discussed at a Police and Crime Panel meeting on Friday, at which one Leeds councillor expressed concern about the numbers of serious sexual offences taking place in taxis and Leeds.

Councillor Amanda Carter said: “In Leeds, councillors and MPs have been prohibited from giving references for taxi drivers.

“But what are we doing to protect the vulnerability of young women?”

In response, Mr Benn said that Calderdale was pro-active in handling public safety issues, but stressed that most taxi drivers are law-abiding citizens.

He added: “This is a complex area, made even more complex by the emergence of Uber.

“Every district does things slightly differently so it’s sometimes difficult to get synergy across districts.

“What I do know is that from my general experience, should we have any information that suggests that the travelling publlic are at risk, from for example, a taxi driver, positive action is taken.

“I do have to say though that though that the number of taxi drivers is very high. The vast majority are very decent and reliable drivers.

“It’s a very complicated issue and one that does attract a lot of attention.”

Uber was contacted for comment but did not respond.

Councils across the region are in the process of trying to make their licensing rules for taxi drivers more similar, in a bid to avoid discrepancies.

And local authorities will soon have access to a national database of cabbies who’ve either been stripped of their licence or denied one.

It follows concerns that the government’s deregulation of the industry, in 2015, has caused problems, with cabbies able to operate anywhere in the country provided they have a licence from just one authority.

http://bit.ly/2qBxuvA