Taxi Drivers Strike Over Numbers
Wednesday 28th October 2009
Taxi drivers in Chelmsford called an immediate strike after council chiefs refused to stop licensing more vehicles – and have threatened more disruption.
Members of Chelmsford Taxi Association had agreed to put strike action on hold while they held talks with council chiefs.
But when Chelmsford Council announced on Monday at noon that it would not de-limit, the drivers went on strike.
Terry Michel, secretary of the CTA, said the council had “ridden roughshod” over their demands.
He said: “We are very angry because they have not listened to what we have said. They have just paid lip service to all the issues.
“We have set up a dispute committee and further action is planned.”
The drivers say they are facing bankruptcy because there are too many Hackney Carriage vehicles on the roads describing the town as “saturated”.
Mr Michel said the strike finished at 6pm on Tuesday – but he added “further actions are being discussed and will be varied and numerous”.
He said: “The electorate needs to be prepared for wildcat strikes that are being forced on us due to Chelmsford Council’s inability to listen and assess the actual situation they have caused.
“Many of us cannot afford this course of action, but on the flipside know that we have to dig deeper or there will be 20 more cars in a year, meaning this business will take a certain trip to the bankruptcy courts.”
After the meeting Cllr Ian Grundy, cabinet member for safer communities, said: “The leader of the council and I have been working with our officers to ensure residents are given a good choice by the licensed vehicle trade and at the same time ensure operators do not suffer hardship during this time of economic uncertainty.
“Meetings with the GMB union representative and the leader of the CTA have been constructive and a number of long standing issues, such as the number of taxi ranks needed in the town, have been resolved.
“We have advised the union that the council cannot agree to limit the number of taxis and we also feel that it is unnecessary to ask drivers to pay for a ‘needs-based’ survey at this time.
“I hope the drivers will reconsider their decision to take strike action and accept that the borouigh council will carry out its own survey early next year to ensure the number of vehicles operating in the borough continues to meet residents’ expectations.”
Source; chelmsfordweeklynews.co.uk
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