Taxi Driver Online

Usual contradiction here - HCA saying they can't earn a living, yet at the same time saying he thinks the rise will attract more drivers...

And he's saying they'll still be cheaper than Uber, yet someone in the comments says this will make them
more likely to use Uber...

A fixed £1 across the board isn't a particularly big 'hike', though, at least in terms of averages. But never sure it's a good idea to increase the flag by such a sum while leaving the running mile at the same price.


Medway Council committee recommends £1 increase in taxi flag rate due to cost of living pressures

https://www.kentonline.co.uk/medway/new ... re-301731/

Taxis in one part of Kent may see their flag rate - the starting price of a cab - rise from £3 to £4 in order to help drivers with the cost of living.

Medway Council's licensing sub-committee has heard how the Medway Licensed Taxi Drivers Association (MLTDA) had decided to ask for an increase after a survey of their members.

Cabbies considered raising the yards travelled and waiting time tariffs but ultimately decided against this due to concerns it might make cabs uncompetitive.

Rates for yards travelled will remain at 20p per 170 yards and 20p for 40 seconds of waiting time.

Nigel Jackson, chairman of the MLTDA, said the requested increase would help drivers earn a sustainable income, would ease pressure on them, and make being a taxi driver a more attractive career.

He said: “The £1 increase on the flag to some could seem quite substantial, but in relation to our costs, it will certainly help the trade to earn a sustainable living.

“With this we can attract drivers into the industry saying this is a good job to work in”

The Towns' tariff is currently the 172nd highest in terms of median taxi fare in the UK out of 344 local authorities - the increase would see it rise to around the 51st highest.

Mr Jackson said following the increase Medway would drop back down the leaderboards over time as other areas adjust their rates and the rise was not excessive.

He added that the decision to ask for the increase was not taken lightly and discussed at length by members, however even with the rise in flag rate, he said, Medway taxis were still cheaper than third party apps such as Uber.

The last time taxi drivers received an increase in tariffs was in September 2022.

Mr Jackson said a survey of cabbies had shown they were needing to work up to 70 hours a week to earn a living.

“You shouldn’t have to have drivers as slaves to the job to try and put food on the table for their families," he said.

“This is purely to cover our rising on-going costs as an industry.”

Sub-committee chair Cllr Dan McDonald (Lab) said it was important to work with licensed cab drivers as they ensured a safe, reliable service for residents.

Members approved the decision to recommend the report to cabinet for approval.

Couldn't make sense of that highlighted bit at first - normally the yardage would be reduced to raise fares - but it means "cabbies considered raising the yardage travelled...tariff...", thus "cabbies considered raising the running mile tariff", effectively


Common to refer to the PHTM rankings (pardon pun) as 'league tables' but never seen them referred to as 'leaderboards' before

Sounds like they've gone from football to golf, or something like that

makes sense gives them an increase on all fares without making longer fares (which are more profitable anyway) any more expensive

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Taxis Are Public Transport too

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Increasing the flag has its pitfalls, as well as its benefits.

Clearly, the benefit here is £1 a job which is easy for the driver to calculate his increased income.

The pitfall is that it might scare off, or pi** off, punters.

What I would do is increase the flag a little bit, and decrease the amount punters get for the flag before the first click over.

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IDFIMH

Looks like it's been rubber-stamped. Not much to see here, really, and it's more the likes of meaningless blather from both the 'portfolio holder' and council leader rather than anything like economic rigour...

On the other hand, don't think it was mentioned above, but this will be the first increase in the flag for 15 years. And it's going up from £3 to £4 in what presumably won't be one of the cheaper parts of the UK, since for a start it'll be within the London commuter belt, and the running mile isn't changing

So you don't really need to be an economist to work out that in the grand scheme of things it doesn't seem that much...


Medway Council agrees to increase starting taxi fare by £1

https://www.kentonline.co.uk/medway/new ... -1-303484/

The starting fare for taxis has been increased by £1 to help cabbies with the cost of living.

Medway Council’s Cabinet approved the change of the starting price from £3 to £4 earlier this week.

Councillors accepted a recommendation made by the authority’s licensing sub-committee to increase the flag rate.

It comes after Nigel Jackson, chairman of the Medway Licensed Taxi Drivers Association (MLTDA), made the request following a survey of members.

Although the starting rate will rise, rates for yards travelled will remain at 20p per 170 yards and 20p for 40 seconds of waiting time.

This is because drivers felt that increasing these rates as well would make taxis less competitive.

Cllr Tristan Osborne (Lab), portfolio holder for community safety and enforcement, said the rise would help keep the taxi industry in Medway sustainable as it would support drivers to earn a decent living.

He said: “We all wish to have a taxi trade which is profitable and supporting local people.

“This is about ensuring our industry is sustainable going forward and people who work and support our communities by helping people get around are supported and can support their families.”

Mr Jackson, speaking last month at the sub-committee, said the rise would mean cabbies could earn a sustainable living, as some drivers were having to work up to 70 hours per week to make ends meet.

He explained: “The £1 increase on the flag to some could seem quite substantial, but in relation to our costs, it will certainly help the trade to earn a sustainable living.

“With this we can attract drivers into the industry saying this is a good job to work in.”

Members of the cabinet said the rise was fair considering the increasing costs cabbies face, which was causing many to leave the industry.

Council leader Vince Maple (Lab) supported the rise, saying it would directly help drivers facing higher costs.

He said: “This is a council which takes its relationship with small and midsize enterprises seriously, and many of these taxi drivers are sole traders so they need this support.

“The flag rate hasn’t risen in 15 years – there’s not much else that hasn’t gone up in that time.

“I do think this is the right move and something taxi drivers deserve.”

Following an agreement at the meeting, there will now be a two week period from March 21 where the change is advertised and open for comments in the taxi trade.

If there are no objections then the fair rise will come into effect immediately at the end of the 14 days.