comment-3272 @ian shanks, People may ridicule your Grammar but you are good with words:
I’ll put you right…You said:
“If you think plates in rear screens and top signs are of the highest priority then crack on fighting the fight !! “and when you have sorted it maybe you can start on the license trade of LONDON who’s private hire industry are allowed only a tax disc size sticker in the front and rear on there vehicles !!! Its shocking isn’t it!!!”
The key word is ‘allowed’ we are not allowed to have plates in back windows.
You imply that I have a problem with London policies and that I then go on to make a double standard by saying we should look at other cities. My point is we should look at the good examples set by other cities which have proved to be good for both the hackney and Private Hire trades whilst you seem to look for something negative elsewhere in the country. I don’t have any thoughts on making the trade better anywhere other than on Tyneside but where I see success I would wish to emulate that success but you and I will view success in completely different ways, for example have you by any chance studied the Taxi trade in Ireland and learnt anything from that? You would possibly view the Irish Taxi trade situation as a success whereas I view it as a complete fiasco. Which leads me on to your next comment:
Your Comment:
“We need to have a National licensing organisation like VOSA for our industry! As it’s the local authority’s who have this job stuffed with all the various different standards!”
Isn’t this similar to Ireland where a private company runs Licensing resulting in Lots of Taxis, very little work between them and lots of revenue for the Licensing Company?
SGS Ireland were awarded the contract for the licensing and
Inspection of all taxis and hackneys nationwide. The main
Objective for the Irish Taxi Regulatory Commission was to
Rationalise the licensing process by minimising the points of
Contact and visits the drivers and operators had to make and a
Major step towards a ‘one-stop-shop’ concept is now underway.
Is this what you mean by a National licensing organisation?
If so look at the fees for Licensing in Ireland since Farming out Licensing:
Application for a small public service vehicle licence is made to the Local Authority in the area where the applicant proposes to operate. The present fees set for grant of vehicle licence are €6,300 for taxi licence, €125 for wheelchair accessible taxi licence and €250 for hackney or limousine vehicle licence. The present fee for the renewal of all categories of small public service vehicle licence is €125.
I may be wrong but I think renewal now costs €1250 unless the vehicle is wheelchair accessible then it is still €125.
If we get your type of licensing will we be happier?
All the talk on here over the last few months about going to Berwick because it is cheaper would fade into insignificance, don’t you think?
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
well said admin i have watched all the dublin deregulation videos and find it an even bigger joke than the trade here on tyneside (but only just).
operaters like ian would gain massivly financialy from de regulation because sitting three hundredth car on a rank would push drivers towards private hire offices who, no matter how much work or how many cars they already had would welcome every new driver with open arms
The views expressed in this site do not necessarily reflect the views of TooManyTaxis or the general U.K. Hackney Carriage Trade
@a berwick plated driver, You’re not the first to mention this and it has been said many times on this site that it is not the majority that flimp.I would urge you to read the post ‘Admin reply to Ian Shanks’ re:fees etc.The Berwick situation or out of town cars could eventually cause a Local Authority to wash their hands of Licensing alltogether and farm out licensing to a private company as has been done in Ireland and also London. The savings of a couple of quid per week by licensing your car elsewhere would not have been worth it if this were to happen.If Hackney licenses were to be de-limited then a private company may well be the way LA’s go and then P/H and Hackney would pay out a lot more than ever before.P/H would not dissappear due to de-limitation as all new plates would have to be Wheelchair accessible. This situation is not with us but if we make a big enough mess of the trade it could well be. http://www.toomanytaxis.com/2009/05/12/admin-reply-to-ian-shanks/
The views expressed in this site do not necessarily reflect the views of TooManyTaxis or the general U.K. Hackney Carriage Trade
I have already posted a comment to Ian Shanks concerning his ideas on 1 national body like VOSA..
As I said before to Ian,he is full of this idea,BUT, if Ian were to get over himself,(and his own importance) he would realise that VOSA is not nessesarily the `holy grail` that HM Gov, would have us all believe. How many cars,(not taxis) are there on the roads today without insurance or road tax. VOSA and the insurance dadt base was supposedly going to put an end to that.
How many `taxis` have we in newcastle,with no plate(or hidden plates behind smoked glass), possibly no tax or insurance.
Remember folkes,if you have no `plate`,or no license,you therefore have NO INSURANCE either.
Would 1 national licensing body sort that out…of course not. Just make it easier for the limited few illegal b******s we have in our trade to get away with it for longer.
As for the `plates in windows`, I don`t have the relavent legislation to hand at 06.17 am,while i type this,BUT,from memory,i believe it goes….the operator of any hackney carriage vehicle,(same for PH),shall cause such `plate or marking` bearing the carriage`s number to be displayed in such a manner as to be easily legible from outside the said carriage. That means to some thick shite such as the likes of you lot and me…you stick the plate on the bumper or back body of the vehicle,shopping trolley,or push bike…what ever you drive,somewhere that it can easily be read by who so ever wants to read it. NOT behind your favourite cushion,coat,or what ever else holds it behind the rear window of your car,van….or what ever,so that as your windows are all (in some cases) almost blacked out nobody can see it unless they happen to have xray vision.
As far as I know the Police,council,or any other agency don`t employ `steve austin` (remember lee majors..6 million dollar man)to check plates.
Lastly, our friend,Ian Shanks goes on about what goes on in London,325 miles to the south of us. Why? surely what ever ideas they may have….unless good ones…(not many of them lately)..If Ian likes the Conditions of Fitness so much…then why does he put all the stickers on his cars.
In London,`private hire (minicabs),which after all is what Ian is operating…are only allowed a disc the same size as a `tax disc` one front and one back. To my knowledge,NO other form of advertising is permitted on the vehicle,therefore if we go down that route,all `bluelines` advertising on their cars is illegal…..think about it Ian.
Thats my rant anyway,any flack im in line for will have to wait or find me on a rank….i`m away to bed at 06.40 UTC…auf wiedersen…
The views expressed in this site do not necessarily reflect the views of TooManyTaxis or the general U.K. Hackney Carriage Trade