Taxi Driver Online

Your advice and opinion gentlemen, if you may be so kind.

If the Council put in a rank, on private land – with the landowners permission – are the laws that apply to an “ordinary” rank still operable, and enforceable, it has been suggested by our LO that this is not the case.

The answer to this is crucial to our fight locally, so as ever any case law etc gratefully received.

Depends who's land it is on.
Airports and Railways can have byelaws restricting use to permit holders and imposing other conditions.
They must however, obey the law of the land. e.g they can't allow PHC, out of area taxis or unlicenced vehicles to use the rank.

It would help if we knew the exact nature of the problem.

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http://wingsoverscotland.com/ http://www.newsnetscotland.com/

The land adjoins a nightclub, and is in fact its car park and approach road, all of which is private land.

Currently the problem is legal Hackneys, out of area licensed Hackneys and local licenced PHV all queue and rank along the approach road – you can imagine the animosity that reigns.

This is the epicentre for the same kind of activity across the town.

For the first time ever the Council has admitted that vehicles are operating illegally there (thanks in no small part to the advice given to me from this forum – and many thanks for that.)

Their solution from the council is to put a rank down, which sounds great.

So far as we are aware, there are no additional conditions or byelaws in force on the land – it is simply private land.

BTW - one of our Hacks has been banned for “whistle blowing” and the rest of us are under threat for “making trouble”.

If the council adopt the rank, then it's the same as any other i.e. drivers may rank there and all their conditions/bylaws apply. So no queue jumping etc.

The land owner must agree to the rank being adopted, but that's really the only difference.

The only case listed by our good friend Mr Button in his book is http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/Admin/1997/482.html

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IDFIMH

The fact that the area/rank is on private land is irrelevant in terms of whether the out-of-town taxis are plying.

They are illegally plying for hire is they can be seen by Joe Public from the highway.

Same really for PH if they aren't taking proper bookings. Eastbourne is a good read for you LO.

http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/Admin/2000/410.html

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IDFIMH

Don't you worry about that fella, the law is on your side.

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IDFIMH

Thank you Sussex, I am a little concerned that the material from the infallible Mr Button concerns railway grounds though – our council seems to need the i’s dotted and the t’s crossed several times before they do anything.

Above all in the case , they are now saying they are seeking a compromise, when the obvious solution would be to properly ban the b*stards, for operating illegally (plying for hire, no insurance etc.)

I might be asking a bit much, but any chance some kind soul can point me at the legislation that says that such a rank is legally enforceable, and conditions/bylaws apply, or the relevant acts I can use to prove a point?

Sections 63 and 64 of the 1976 Miss Prov Act. The act can be found on the front page of the site ( www.taxi-driver.co.uk ), cos for some reason it wont let me paste it in one go.

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IDFIMH

Straight to the bullseye!!

Thank you so much Sussex – as ever

This question has been asked many times and just as Sussex says.

A taxi stationed on private land, such as a railway station forecourt or a shopping centre forecourt, is plying for hire in a street if likely to attract custom from members of the public in a public place, eg, an adjoining street: Eastbourne Borough Council v. Stirling (2000) The Times, November 16, DC (Town Police Clauses Act 1847,) s.38.

Regards

JD

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Copyright notice © The contents of this post are copyright of JD and are not to be reproduced outside of TDO without written permission.

The council can only put a taxi stand for local hackney carriages. In which case normal enforcement applies regardless of whether it is on private property.

Regards

JD

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Copyright notice © The contents of this post are copyright of JD and are not to be reproduced outside of TDO without written permission.

Any place where the public gather in numbers, is a public place. It doesn't matter who the private land belongs or the purpose or event for which it is being used. Any person who obtains custom from the event must be licensed to do so and in the authority where the event takes place.

See White V Cubit on TDO and the cases that relate to it.

You better advise your LO to visit us.

Regards

JD

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Copyright notice © The contents of this post are copyright of JD and are not to be reproduced outside of TDO without written permission.

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Copyright notice © The contents of this post are copyright of JD and are not to be reproduced outside of TDO without written permission.

Stands for hackney carriages.

A district council may make byelaws fixing the stands for hackney carriages.

For the purposes of its functions under the Town Police Clauses Act 1847, a district council for an area to which Part II of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976 applies may from time to time appoint stands for hackney carriages for the whole or any part of a day in any highway in the district which is maintainable at the public expense and, with the consent of the owner, on any land in the district which does not form part of a highway so maintainable and may from time to time vary the number of hackney carriages permitted to be at each stand.

Before appointing any stand for hackney carriages or varying the number of hackney carriages to be at each stand, a district council must give notice to the chief officer of police for the police area in which the stand is situated and must also give public notice of the proposal by advertisement in at least one local newspaper circulating in the district and must take into consideration any objections or representations in respect of such proposal which may be made to it in writing within 28 days of the first publication of such notice.

Nothing can empower a district council to appoint any such stand:

*
(1) so as unreasonably to prevent access to any premises;
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(2) so as to impede the use of any points authorised to be used in connection with a local service within the meaning of the Transport Act 1985 or PSV operator's licence granted under the Public Passenger Vehicles Act 1981, as points for the taking up or setting down of passengers, or in such a position as to interfere unreasonably with access to any station or depot of any passenger road transport operators, except with the consent of those operators;
*
(3) on any highway except with the consent of the highway authority,

and in deciding the position of stands a district council must have regard to the position of any bus stops for the time being in use.

Any hackney carriage byelaws for fixing stands for hackney carriages which were made by a district council before a certain date in the area of the council and were in force immediately before that date cease to have effect, but any stands fixed by such byelaws are deemed to have been appointed.
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Tell your LO that I said, "it might be best for all concerned if he gets a job he understands, rather than flounder in the depths of uncertainty for the rest of his working life.

Regards

JD

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Copyright notice © The contents of this post are copyright of JD and are not to be reproduced outside of TDO without written permission.

Prohibition of other vehicles on hackney carriage stands.

In an area to which Part II of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 19761 applies, no person may cause or permit any vehicle other than a hackney carriage to wait on any stand for hackney carriages during any period for which that stand has been appointed, or is deemed to have been appointed, by a district council. Notice of this prohibition must be indicated by such traffic signs as may be prescribed or authorised for the purpose by the Secretary of State in pursuance of his powers. If any person without reasonable excuse contravenes these provisions, he is guilty of an offence. In any proceedings against the driver of a public service vehicle it is a defence to show that, by reason of obstruction to traffic or for other compelling reason, he caused his vehicle to wait on a stand or part of a stand and that he caused or permitted his vehicle so to wait only for so long as was reasonably necessary for the taking up or setting down of passengers.
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It's pointless posting all the relevant information in respect of the illegality of unlicensed drivers ranking up and illegally plying for hire because practically every second case posted on this site appertains to such events. I know it takes a long time to digest each case but you soon come to realise how the law works in relation to illegal plying for hire.

We can only interpret the law as it has been interpreted by the courts over 160 years, no matter what side of the fence you sit on.

The facts are these regardless of whether your licensing officer turns a blind eye to them or not?

It is illegal for any person to ply for hire with an unlicensed vehicle in a public place whether they are sat on a Taxi rank, or near to a taxi rank, or anywhere else where the public gather.

Now that is not something I have made up, it is something the courts have established over a long period of time.

If your LO wishes to do nothing about it then there isn't a lot you can do except prosecute these alleged law breakers yourself.

If these out of town vehicles weren't parked on your taxi rank then it would be harder to convince a magistrate that they weren't there legitimately waiting for a job. The perceived activity is the crucial part of obtaining a conviction and that is why it would be far easier to obtain a conviction from a driver who is sat in a vehicle on a taxi rank because the presumption would be that he is sat there plying for hire.

Regards

JD

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Copyright notice © The contents of this post are copyright of JD and are not to be reproduced outside of TDO without written permission.