Taxi Driver Online

This is The West Country

March 14, 2007 Wednesday

Taxis fail test

COUNCIL bosses are to get tough with taxi firm operators after a series of spot checks on drivers found an alarming' 75 per cent of them failed to meet safety standards.

Eleven out of 15 taxi drivers stopped during the initiative across South Somerset were pulled up.

South Somerset District Council, Av-on and Somerset Police, and the Vehi-cle and Operator Standards Agency carried out the spot checks in Yeovil and Wincanton.

Eight taxis were given warnings due to having no first aid box or fire extinguisher onboard, and seven of those were allowed to carry on trading.

However, four vehicles were taken off the road immediately.

Taxis which had tyres below the minimum tread depth, or faulty lights were served with a Taxi Stop Notice' and taken off the road until they were repaired.

The council's licensing officer, Nigel Marston, said: "When dealing with public safety we have to take a very hard line.

"Taxi drivers perform a vital service to the community, but they have to meet minimum standards to keep their vehicles in a roadworthy state.

"We were shocked at the number of vehicles we had to issue tickets to, at nearly 75% it is alarming to see.

"We are here to ensure safety levels are kept to the highest standard, and to do that we had to take some vehicles off the road until they were fixed and in a roadworthy condition."

It is up to the taxi driver to check their vehicle is in a roadworthy state before drive it and the owner and operators must also check them on a regular basis to ensure they are safe.

Drivers who have had their vehicles taken off the road must fix the problem, get a new MoT, and have the vehicle checked by VOSA and the council before it is allowed back on the road.

Cllr Ric Pallister, the council's portfolio holder for housing, environment health, and inclusion, said: "This is an alarming number of taxis which are unsafe. Drivers cannot afford to take these risks when dealing with the lives of members of the public.

"We expect a high standard to be met, and at the moment there is a significant number who don't meet it."
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