Source: BBC News
Road safety charity Brake is calling on the government to limit the number of hours taxi drivers are allowed to work before they take a proper break.
The move is supported by the family of Gary Glymond who was knocked down and killed by a taxi in South Yorkshire on his 18th birthday in March last year. The driver admitted he had worked for more than 13 hours.
The Department for Transport said drivers had a duty not to drive tired, but there were no plans for regulation. Campaigners say a lack of proper legislation on the number of hours taxi drivers can work in a single shift is dangerous.
Many private hire and Hackney carriage drivers are exempt from the European working time directive, which would limit them to working a 48-hour week with a 20-minute break every six hours.
But Mr Glymond’s mother, Sue Jackson, said the law needed to be changed to include them. “We found out, as we’ve done the petition, that they can work 24 hours, which should not be allowed,” she said.
“Can I add it’s not a vendetta against taxi drivers, that we’ve done this. It’s for personal safety, for them, for other road users.”
Brake advises all drivers to take breaks every two hours on long journeys and the charity’s Helena Houghton says limiting hours would save lives.
Sue Jackson: ”Taxi drivers can work 24 hours, which should not be allowed” She said: “300 people are killed each year as a result of drivers falling asleep at the wheel.
“We need to be making sure that people aren’t put under pressure, especially in the current economic climate… to work more hours even if they’re putting themselves at risk and the people that they’re carrying in their taxis at risk.”
However, former cabbie Alan Fleming, who now gives legal advice to drivers, says the European Commission abandoned an attempt to introduce tachometers some years ago.
“They would have to re-write all the Hackney carriage laws because they’re very complex and go right the way back to 1831.”
He added that Hackney drivers could currently fall foul of licensing rules for refusing a fare on grounds it might take the driver past the end of a scheduled shift.
Experts say motorists are most vulnerable during the small hours of the morning and in mid-afternoon. Last month, members of the Unite union renewed calls to reduce the number of hours worked by bus drivers after members raised safety concerns.
Some drivers in Greater Manchester told the BBC the five-and-a-half hours they spent behind the wheel before a break put passengers at risk. Stagecoach, one of the city’s biggest bus firms, denied the claim and said safety was its “number one priority”.
Figures from the department of transport show that in 2007 (the most recent statistics available) there were 1,050 accidents involving taxi drivers; 222 were serious, 11 were fatal.
Too Many Taxis coupled with very low rates means more hours, Drivers are working more and more hours to make what they were making 10 years ago!
Hackney carriages,often slated for having high fares,work less hours than Minicabs who are often working with meter rates first introduced upto 10 years ago.This,on the face of it is great for the customer but it should be obvious that more hours are needed to make a living operating on such low rates. The Taxi trade has grown considerably over the last 10 to 15 years but the amount of trade has not grown at the same pace. Whilst Government,Councils and operators are still seeking to increase numbers of Taxis & Private Hire what option does the trade have but to work more hours. The case here is for capping numbers not Hours worked.
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