THAILAND

Public health authorities were expected to announce the results of novel coronavirus tests on samples from two ill taxi drivers on Friday afternoon.

Dr Sopon Iamsirithavorn, director of the Bureau of General Communicable Diseases, told reporters on Friday morning that the results were coming from the Medical Sciences Department and Chulalongkorn University.

The two cabbies each picked up Chinese tourists, later fell ill and sought treatment two days ago. The tourists had arrived in Thailand before the Chinese government suspended all outbound trips by its citizens.


The test results would reveal if human-to-human transmission of the novel coronavirus had started in Thailand. Such transmissions had already been confirmed in Germany, Japan, South Korea and the United States, Dr Sopon said.

In Thailand there have been 14 confirmed cases of the illness. Seven patients were cured and discharged. Another 280 people are being closely monitored, according to the Public Health Ministry.

www.bangkokpost.com
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STOKE

A taxi driver has told how he has been forced to sell his cab to make ends meet - after he was stabbed in a terrifying street attack.
Arslan Saeed was rushed to hospital after being knifed in the stomach in a dispute over scaffolding at his Burslem home.

The 28-year-old underwent a major operation to repair the five-inch wound before his skin was stapled back together.

Now three months on, Arslan is still unable to work as he continues his slow and painful recovery.
He has even had to take the drastic decision to sell his taxi for £4,500 so he could cover the cost of his mortgage and other bills.
And he also had to flog his TV for £50 to put food on the table.

Arslan, of Leonard Street, said: "I moved to my house in August and we had to put scaffolding up to repair the roof.
"I went out in the street to explain the scaffolding would be coming down in two days when this man appeared with a knife in his hand and stabbed me in the stomach. I was bleeding a lot.
"My missus was screaming but there was no-one in the street because it was raining.


https://www.stokesentinel.co.uk
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LUTON

A taxi company is having to reapply for its licence to operate in Luton - based on mobile phone technology - because of a change of director.

Ola Cabs was given permission to expand its service into the town nearly a year ago.

The company, a rival to Uber, was granted a private hire operator’s licence by the borough council’s licensing sub-committee in February 2019.

Ola UK Private Limited has been operating an App-based booking platform for taxi services with local private hire vehicles and hackney carriage vehicles.

But having appointed a new director, Karl Lutzow, the firm is due to have its licence reconsidered by the council's taxi and private hire licensing panel tomorrow (Friday).

Ola currently has an office at Capability Green, having started its UK operations in South Wales, Bristol and Exeter.

One of the taxi company’s representatives Darryl Supersad said last year the firm is planning to extend its operation to every city in the UK.

It uses local private hire drivers and vehicles, similar to Uber, and also includes black cabs across the whole market.

The company was also planning to provide executive services to and from London Luton Airport, the licensing sub-committee heard last year.

Drivers and vehicles used are licensed by the council, with the cabbies self-employed.

Bookings are web-based only, and the website provides phone numbers to deal with support and complaints.

Ola was proposing to employ 100 to 500 drivers and vehicles initially, and hoping to increase to 2,000 in the long-term.

Passengers and taxi drivers have to register via the app, so payments are made digitally at the end of a trip, rather than direct to the driver.

Drivers would not be required to work exclusively for Ola, but records would be kept of all their activities for the company.

The sub-committee decided in February to grant the application for the operator’s licence, with exemptions to the current council policy over keeping records electronically instead of in a handwritten bound book.

It also requested that an application for licence renewal should be reviewed in full by a panel, instead of by the licensing service under delegated authority.


https://www.lutontoday.co.uk