Taxi Driver Online

Calls for more frequent checks on taxis

CALLS have been made to bring in more frequent checks on Worcester’s taxi fleet in a bid to clamp down on the number of vehicle defects.

Councillor Roger Knight, deputy leader of Worcester City Council, said he thought having at least two, maybe even three, mandatory checks on the vehicles would help to raise standards among the trade.

There are about 220 vehicles in Worcester’s taxi fleet, operated by about 380 drivers, and they are already checked before a driver’s licence is renewed on an annual basis.

Coun Knight’s calls followed news of the latest enforcement evening carried out by Worcester City Council’s licensing officers in conjunction with Councillor Mike Layland, West Mercia Police and officers from VOSA (Vehicle and Operator Services Agency).

Out of the 18 vehicles checked on Friday, February 12, one was served an immediate prohibition notice – for a faulty rear light – while five were served delayed prohibition notices.

The vehicles checked had been identified by licensing officers before the start of the exercise so the council said the 33.3 per cent figure of vehicles stopped getting served notices is not reflective of the trade as a whole.

However, Coun Knight said he thought bringing in more frequent mandatory checks would help to rid the city’s taxis of any niggling mechanical faults.

“I still think that if we did that on every vehicle in Worcester a lot of what we have seen would disappear,” he said.

The Worcester Taxi Drivers’ Association was unavailable for comment.

We previously reported in your Worcester News how a new penalty points system, supported by the police and the taxi drivers’ association, will be implemented in the near future and will act as another tool aimed at raising standards among the taxis.

The penalty points system, which could result in a taxi driver having their licence suspended or revoked if they commit too many offences in a year, will help to free up officer time and reduce tedious paperwork.

Currently, drivers who breach conditions or commit offences are either hauled before a licensing sub committee or sent to court and those procedures will still be in place.

source: http://www.worcesternews.co.uk/news/

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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin

I would assume cab numbers up..... earnings down.....standards drop....
What's new CC?

More checks would be ok if they were just about unsafe vehicles but imho if the Taxi would pass a standard MOT then it should be allowed on the road.

The last two times I have had my plate renewed I have had to spend lots of money on resprays because of some minor scratches. I have yet to hear of a punter refusing a cab because he doesn't like the look of the paintwork.

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There's no excuse for animal abuse. If you ain't vegan you are an animal abuser.

We have that here it's not just about being mechanically fit when you are a taxi/ph driver. Presentation is important and especially more so in a place that attracts tourists.

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Note to self: Just because it pops into my head does NOT mean it should come out of my mouth!!