Taxi Driver Online

EVENING CHRONICLE (Newcastle, UK)

August 18, 2006 Friday

HEADLINE: Change for the worse

BYLINE: By Peter Young, The Evening Chronicle

Disabled woman says taxi service not as good as old buses

A disabled woman has criticised a new transport lifeline for housebound people - despite changes designed to improve the service.

Patricia Boyle, 54, who has cerebral palsy, claims the new taxi link is not as good as the care bus network it replaced.

TaxiLink was introduced three weeks ago by transport operator Nexus which says the vast majority of people are happy - but changes were made after some passengers, including Ms Boyle, highlighted difficulties. The main concern was that only one of the 11 taxis provided would cross local authority boundaries, which means some people faced problems travelling between districts in Tyne & Wear.

This week Nexus relaxed the rule and now most of the taxis will travel into neighbouring areas while one will continue to provide a longer distance service across Tyne & Wear.

Ms Boyle travels regularly from her home in Newcastle to visit boyfriend Johnny Galea, 51, who has multiple sclerosis and uses a wheelchair, in Howdon, North Tyneside. The couple used the care buses for outings including shopping in Newcastle city centre and the MetroCentre in Gateshead. The service is designed to provide disabled people with a lifeline to the outside world but Ms Boyle said they are still facing difficulties even after the changes.

A taxi she ordered to take her home from Howdon didn't turn up and when she rang she was told there was no record of her request. She had to catch two buses to get home. She was then told she could not have a taxi to take her from Newcastle to Howdon the next day. "It's nowhere near as good as the old service," she said.

A Nexus spokesman apologised and said the problem was a clerical error but insisted the vast majority of people are satisfied with the new service and an extra 1,500 have subscribed.

Under the scheme, people are provided with door-to-door journeys for a flat rate fare of £1 and officials say that on a typical day 196 out of 200 requests were met. He said: "TaxiLink remains primarily for shorter local journeys, which make up the vast majority of bookings we take."

For information on TaxiLink, ring (0191) 202 0777.
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