Taxi Driver Online

New weekend night time taxi ranks introduced

Taxi ranks are to be moved onto Union Street on Friday and Saturday nights from this weekend [Friday, 12 September and Saturday, 13 September] as part of a campaign to improve city centre safety.

There will be three taxi ranks on Union Street from 11pm until 5am on these nights. Other city centre ranks will be closed during these times.

The new ranks, which have been created in consultation with the taxi trade, as part of a night-time transport zone have been installed close to existing busy ranks located on side streets. They have been deliberately placed close to junctions which offer a wide choice of travel directions.

Two are on the north side of Union Street – one at St Nicholas Churchyard and the other close to Dee Street. The third rank is outside Soul Bar on the south side of the Street.

Illuminated pillars and new line markings on the road indicate the sites of the new ranks, which will be supervised by transport marshals.

The ranks are close to bus stops to encourage people to take the bus home if one pulls up while they are waiting in the taxi queue. The marshals at the ranks will also monitor behaviour of those at the nearby bus stops.

The marshals prevent queue jumping on taxi ranks which has in the past led to public order offences, all drivers have been advised they cannot pick up until they reach the front of the rank.


Moving the ranks to Union Street has the added security benefits of better lighting and CCTV coverage, which will benefit both the public and taxi drivers. There are wider pavements too, which should help to reduce the amount of jostling and reduce violence which can erupt as a result.

It will also enable the existing police monitoring of the city centre to be more centralised, and provide greater security for taxi drivers and customers at the ranks and bus stops.

It is hoped that the increased security will encourage more taxi drivers to work at night. The change has also led to increased visibility of the ranks and will help to meet customer demand.

The move is part of an ongoing initiative, which includes the Best Bar None scheme, Pub Watch, portable on-street toilets, enhanced lighting, and CCTV cameras to improve city centre safety and cleanliness.

Grampian Police Chief Superintendent Albert Donald said: "The introduction of the new weekend night-time taxi ranks is a positive step forward in the provision of a more accessible and visible transport service for members of the public who visit the city centre.

“It is crucial that good transport links are further developed within the city centre to aid people in their safe journey home. The positioning of the ranks, with improvements in lighting and CCTV should provide an improved environment for the public.

“This is one strand of a number of ongoing areas of work, involving various agencies, to address public concerns and support community safety within the city centre.”

The taxi-trade has been largely supportive of the move.

Russell McLeod, chairman of the Aberdeen Taxi Group, said: “"The taxi trade in Aberdeen has for some time now been keen to have ranks on Union Street.

"Aberdeen Taxi Group is very supportive of this move. We think moving taxi ranks onto Union Street on the busiest nights of the week is a good idea, both for public safety and driver safety.

"If this encourages more drivers to use the ranks, then it can only benefit the customers."

The Union Street late-night ranks are based on a similar, very successful project run in Glasgow.



If you have any queries regarding this, or any other news story, please contact Aberdeen City Council on: 01224 522000.

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