Taxi drivers in Wolverhampton are protesting outside the civic centre about plans to increase the number of Hackney Carriage drivers in the city.
The city council said it wants to increase the number of licensed cab drivers from 129 to about 300 to help reduce queues for taxis at the weekend.
Taxi driver Kulwant Cheed said work had dried up as clubs and bars had shut.
He said: “If there was the work that’s fair enough but we are struggling to make ends meet in the recession.”
Councillors are due to decide later whether to give the plan their approval.
{ 12 comments… read them below or add one }
Private and Confidential message to Alan Fidler
Alan,
I suggest we don’t tell anyone what the decision was at Wolverhampton, or that you and I advised and assisted the hackney trade in resisting the council’s proposals to increase numbers.
I’ve got to say, for two people who are almost constantly accused of being pro-private hire, it was a tremendous achievement to have ‘won’ (or, at least, to have contributed to the winning of) this battle for the hackney trade!
As no-one here is going to give us any credit for this achievement, we’ll just have to be satisfied with knowing that we know the truth!
David
The views expressed in this site do not necessarily reflect the views of TooManyTaxis or the general U.K. Hackney Carriage Trade
@David Wilson, what u didnt invite mr walls down with you’s lol
The views expressed in this site do not necessarily reflect the views of TooManyTaxis or the general U.K. Hackney Carriage Trade
@north tyneside hack driver,
No I was not with them, as I do try not to get involved in anything outside North Tyneside, as I am only Licensed within North Tyneside as a Hackney Carriage Taxi Proprietor and Driver, but I do still hold a PCV Operator Licence(applied for in 2005, as a backup just in case) for upto two 16 seat PCV Vehicles, but as I never purchased any 16 seaters, due to not winning any tenders for services, and the new changes within PCV Operator Licensing, I believe I will not be able to renew my Operator Licence in 2010, because you will I believe, as it is not confirmed as such just yet, that you can only hold a PCV Operator Licence, if you own a vehicle after my expiry date in 2010, meaning less competition in the tendering of contracts from people who may only wish to purchase vehicles, if they won a new contract for services.
Its a case of the big bus operators controlling the industry, and I can understand that line of opinion.
Thanks
Dave Walls
The views expressed in this site do not necessarily reflect the views of TooManyTaxis or the general U.K. Hackney Carriage Trade
@David Walls, Why can you understand that line of opinion dave ?
The views expressed in this site do not necessarily reflect the views of TooManyTaxis or the general U.K. Hackney Carriage Trade
@ian shanks,
Hello Ian,
I understand that line of opinion, because the Industry Traffic Commissioner(who is God by the way, and he will remove a persons “Good Repute” if you challenge him unsuccessfully)does not respect people who do not lawfully operate PCV Operations in the “spirit of the law” and therefore innocent “Operator Licence” holders need to be put in one bracket with the none compliant “Operator Licence” holders who have PCV vehicles and swap the “Vehicle Discs” between vehicles instead of one disc per vehicle, and this apparently is how the New System is going to work, meaning no vehicle, no operator licence, as there is going to be no charge for the operator licence possibly with the charge built-in to the Vehicle Licence Disc and Test Costs.(Still under review at moment with VOSA for 2010 implementation, but I stand to be corrected, as it does not concern me until 2010, when my renewal is needed).
I believe your CPC holder should be able to furnish you with more details, if you ask him, and I say this with respect to Lee and well as yourself Ian. (Thats if Lee is still your CPC holder employee you talk about having)
Thanks
Dave Walls
The views expressed in this site do not necessarily reflect the views of TooManyTaxis or the general U.K. Hackney Carriage Trade@David Walls, @David Walls, WTF this is toomanytaxis.com not donthaveabus.com ?????and we don’t giveafuck.com/anyway who said owt about buses ?????? why do u feel the need to talk about yourself so much/ every time u answer a question we get your CV we don’t care about your qualifications i mean has it got you any work what so ever ?????? i don’t think so i wait 4 your 5 page reply but try not talk about yourself and what u have done or going to do do because we don’t want to know
The views expressed in this site do not necessarily reflect the views of TooManyTaxis or the general U.K. Hackney Carriage Trade
@David Wilson, I hope you plugged TMT in Wolverhampton!
The views expressed in this site do not necessarily reflect the views of TooManyTaxis or the general U.K. Hackney Carriage Trade
@David Walls, WTF this is toomanytaxis.com not donthaveabus.com ?????and we don’t giveaf*ck.com/anyway who said owt about buses ?????? why do u feel the need to talk about yourself so much/ every time u answer a question we get your CV we don’t care about your qualifications i mean has it got you any work what so ever ?????? i don’t think so i wait 4 your 5 page reply but try not talk about yourself and what u have done or going to do do because we don’t want to know
The views expressed in this site do not necessarily reflect the views of TooManyTaxis or the general U.K. Hackney Carriage Trade
I think I’ve just seen David Walls coming out of the off licence with six boxes of chocolate liqueurs. He was waiting at the bus stop so he mustn’t have one of his own.
The views expressed in this site do not necessarily reflect the views of TooManyTaxis or the general U.K. Hackney Carriage Trade
Is there anybody reading these comments who might be able to help me out. I am desperately trying to find out if the 1940’s Sunbeam trolley bus had a Metro-Cammell- Weymann body or a Park Royal body?
It is giving me sleepless nights through worrying over this and I will be forced to take the poster down above my bed if it doesn’t have the correct data attached.
I have a spare 12 litre diesel engine to give away to the first person who can help me.
The views expressed in this site do not necessarily reflect the views of TooManyTaxis or the general U.K. Hackney Carriage Trade
@David Walls, Dave, You say “Its a case of the big bus operators controlling the industry, and I can understand that line of opinion”
My point is that you understand, and therefor agree that the big operators should be controlling the industry! but you are verbal against the large taxi company’s controlling the industry?
WHY
The views expressed in this site do not necessarily reflect the views of TooManyTaxis or the general U.K. Hackney Carriage Trade
@David Walls,
Ian,
You ask me WHY in your response I am verbal against the large taxi company`s controlloing the industry.
Well first of all you have a “Private Hire ” Operator Licence, not a Hackney Carriage Operator Licence, as there is no such thing, meaning you are not a Taxi Company as the discription is used in the Transport Act refers to “Plying for Hire or at Rank Stands within the Borough” Hackney Carriage Vehicles, not Pre-booked in Advance “Private Hire” Vehicles.
Secondly, to look at what is possibly going to happen in the PCV Industry, it involves regulating that service of “Hire and Reward” with controlling the Vehicles and Operators in line with their required Planning Permission, that is a requirement that must show that the PCV Operator holds the “Financial Standing” of £6200 for its first Vehicle and then £3400 for every other Vehicle meaning if you have 100 Vehicles you must have £342,800 and the Depot for 100 Vehicles to Park off-street for everyone of those 100 vehicles, then at present you pay for a five year Operator Licence a Fee, plus a fee for a number of window disc`s you wish to use in service, but you can choose to remove a disc from a Vehicle, if for instance it is in a state of dis-repair and you hire another bus, you simply at the moment put the dis-repair vehicle disc in the hired vehicles window that shows the operators name.
From 2010 you will no longer be able to do this, or at least this is the idea.
This will mean effectively every vehicle will be attached to an “Operator Licence” at all times and the “Planning Regulations” will be checked as well as “Parking Facilities” for every PCV Vehicle that will recieve a Vehicle Test and Disc with the New Price reflecting Yearly Operator Checks on the Financial Standing, Parking and Planning when an Vehicle Test is needed.
Now Ian, if this was applied to the “Private Hire Industry” it would mean if you have Planning and off-street Parking for only 10 Vehicles then 0101,0102,0103,0104,0105,01,06,0107,0108,0109 and 0110 would be the only Private Hire Plate Numbers issued to that “Private Hire Operator Licence”.
With the greatest respect, I do not think you want this system do you ?, as that is what can happen if we let “Private Hire Operators” run the show, with Self-Enforcement rules being adopted.
Over to you Ian.
Thanks
Dave Walls
The views expressed in this site do not necessarily reflect the views of TooManyTaxis or the general U.K. Hackney Carriage Trade