TAXI  APPS: SCOTLAND

Michael McDougall  says licensing law must keep pace with developments in the provision of taxi services.

Taxi and private car hire booking apps are catching on fast so ordering your next taxi by phoning the firm’s office could soon be a thing of the past. Booking apps fundamentally change how customers’ book and pay for taxi and private hire services.

Gett launched in Scotland earlier this year and both Glasgow and Edinburgh have recently granted Booking Office Licences to Uber which means the company has permission to operate as a “premises” for the purposes of taking bookings.

However, there is a serious mismatch between the current legislation, Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 (Licensing of Booking Offices) Order 2009, and the type of operation required in today’s smartphone-focussed society to ensure appropriate licensing is in place to protect customers and drivers.

Traditionally, bookings have been placed by the customer phoning the booking office, where an operator takes the details and radios out the booking to a driver. The existing regulations licence a “premises”, thus the booking of a taxi or private hire car is regulated by conditions attached to that premises.

For example, some licensing authorities require the details of the bookings taken to be recorded, such as the name of the customer and the taxi/private hire car driver, and a record kept of taxis/private hire cars operating from the premises. In short, steps must be taken to ensure that passenger safety can be monitored by the police and the authorities. In addition the aforementioned records play a role in helping the police detect organised crime.

Web-based companies such as Uber, connect passengers to a background checked driver via a smartphone app and the firm take a percentage cut of the fare. Therefore, the back office systems of taxi booking apps are not tied to a premises, instead they operate in “the cloud” – a concept completely alien to the current regulations set up in the ‘80s.

The law needs to keep up with changes and various stakeholders, including licensing authorities and police, have lobbied the Scottish government to revisit the taxi/private hire car licensing provision in the wake of these apps. However, regulating these new businesses has caused some tension.

In the recent debates surrounding the Air Weapons and Licensing Bill, the Scottish government have committed to reviewing both the 1982 Act, and the Booking Office Regulations to ensure that they are fit for modern Scotland.

In the meantime it is important that taxi operators review their booking system and ensure that it complies with legislative requirements.

http://www.scottishlegal.com/2015/07/22/blog-licensing-law-must-move-with-the-times-to-regulate-taxi-booking-apps/
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EDINBURGH




THE city council’s taxi bill has soared by more than £100,000 in only two years – sparking demands for a full probe into the “dramatic” rise.

Nearly £664,000 was spent on cab journeys across the Capital during 2014-15, as the cost of ferrying children to and from school jumped from around £363,000 in 2012-13 to just 
under £507,000.

Officials said that with thousands of staff based in council premises throughout Edinburgh, the trips were necessary to ensuring services remained as efficient as possible.

Opposition figures today voiced concern at the rise, which comes as the city battles to save £107 million by 2020.

It has emerged that health and social care teams – currently battling to plug a £16.5m financial black hole – also ramped up spending from around £60,000 to nearly £67,000.

Staff in the city development, corporate governance and services for communities departments collectively billed the public purse for just over £63,000 in 2014-15.

Councillor Iain Whyte, Conservative finance spokesman, said: “I’m surprised that the cost is up so much because my understanding was that we were structuring those services to get the unit cost down as much as possible. It’s really about managing demand, making sure that criteria are being following, and looking more at coordinating some of this – if the journey can be shared, they should do it.”

Cllr Whyte also questioned whether the rate of increase could be justified by changes in the school population and wider demographic shifts.

“It needs investigation and I would be concerned to know whether the cost is rising because of the increased number of children in school or whether costs are rising ahead of that,” he said.

“A 20 per cent increase over the two years does seem very dramatic and seems to be a much higher increase than you would imagine would be necessary.

“This should be looked at to check the increase is needed and to contain costs where possible.”

Council officials admitted taxis could be used for attending meetings or carrying out other essential business, such as visiting and transporting clients.

But they said staff were always encouraged to use alternative means of transport.

A spokeswoman said: “This increase relates to journeys to and from school for pupils, including those with disabilities.

“Many of the city’s vulnerable children and those with disabilities require travel assistance, and this type of journey has increased as the client group and school population has grown.”

http://www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/news/city-council-taxi-bill-soars-by-100k-in-two-years-1-3837253
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 New York City has backed down in a row with taxi hailing app Uber, dropping plans to limit the number of cars it operates in the City.

Instead of the cap, Uber has agreed to take part in a a four-month study looking at the impact of its cars on traffic and pollution in the City.

In return, New York said it would not impose a car limit for this period.

The move comes the day before a City council vote, which could have seen the cap imposed.

The deal the city has struck with Uber appears weaker than the legislation in the vote, which called for a 1% cap on the firm's growth in the city and a year-long study.

But New York's first deputy mayor Anthony Shorris, currently in charge while New York mayor Bill de Blasio is away, told the BBC that the deal was a "smart and fair way" to address the issue, which matched the "values and interests of New Yorkers".

"Uber will share information for the study above and beyond what has previously been provided, with safeguards to protect privacy.

"Uber has also agreed to maintain its approximate current rate of growth and not flood the streets with new licenses and vehicles," he added.

In a statement, Uber also said it welcomed the agreement.

"We are pleased new drivers will continue to be free to join the for-hire industry and partner with Uber. Together, we can build an even better, more reliable transportation system," said Josh Mohrer, Uber NYC's general manager.

Since being founded in San Francisco in 2009, Uber has grown into a huge ridesharing enterprise - with services now offered in more than 200 cities.

But in many cities, local cab firms and drivers have staged protests against the service. In New York, complaints have centred around the idea that the firm has become too dominant, overtaking the city's iconic yellow taxis.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-33631617