Taxi Driver Online

Rail bosses trying to close taxi garage are stopped in their tracks



RAIL bosses have been stopped in their tracks in their bid to buy out a small taxi garage under the railway arches in London’s East End.

Their plans to end a taxi motor-repair workshop lease and put up a luxury block of flats have hit the buffers after their planning application was turned down by Tower Hamlets council.

The ‘David and Goliath’ battle has ended with garage owner Fikret ‘Lofty’ Hassan winning the day after organising a petition with 200 signatures to stop Network Rail replacing his business at Three Colts Lane in Bethnal Green.

“My mechanics are relieved to have their jobs,” he told the East London Advertiser today.

“There are not only a lot of jobs on the line, but also many customers would have been hit.”

His A1 repair business got into first gear 25 years ago under another railway arch in Malcolm Place nearby, before it was shunted on to a second railway arch, then finally in 2000 to Three Colts Lane.

“We lose out every time,” the 54-year-old entrepreneur recalled. “Each time I have to keep re-establishing the business.”

Lofty looks after a fleet of 16 taxis as well as doing car repairs and has customers from all over London.

He meets Network Rail officials on Thursday to confirm his lease on the railway arch he rents, which is due to be renewed in the summer.

He received a letter from Tower Hamlets this week informing him Network Rail’s application had been booted out. He has managed to put a break on plans for yet another apartment block in the neighbourhood which is threatening London’s cab repair trade in Bethnal Green.

The planning application was refused due to “loss of existing employment” and overall detriment to the local economy, said the Town Hall. The proposed block was also unsuitable for the area and was not providing a varied enough mix of accommodation.

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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin

Taxi garages in railway arches are the backbone to the London trade.
Serefe Fikret!

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Charlton's lost past http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsFKWGlrze0
London's future? http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/ ... rants.html

This is this cross rail project, of all the places, and the most congested places to bring it out from under London, they choose Three Colts Lane in Bethnal Green.

As Captain Taxi says, this is the heart of the London Taxi repair business and of course home to GBC's A grade garage.

I wouldnt ever use back street arches/phil mitchell greasy hand garages

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Of all the things ive lost, i miss my mind the most

Clearly he wasn't offered enough to go elsewhere.

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IDFIMH

Then that is your loss. Some of them are miles better than a main dealer and they actually look after their regular trade, instead of ripping them off.

Usually cheaper as well.

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

This is true, Mann and Overton loose staff hand over fist as experienced mechanics realise they make more money, and tips out in the real world.

I reckon I pay between around a third to a half less for Taxi maintenance and servicing by using an independant garage, and they see you the minute you drive in.

Is that the same arches that the chop shop was filmed in, where Berny and leapy change the appearance of cars

What?

I believe it is in the same area skippy.

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stressed controller!!!

Nice to see small firms standing up against the big guys and winning. Well done to the owner of the garage.

i wouldnt ever deal with main stealers either except for warranty work, had citroen charge me £188 for an oil change+filter once/1st sevive/new van

i have a very good relationship with a northgate sevice agent with a workshop full of BT, british gas, Britvic and other vehicles who always did my 3 van fleet proud

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Of all the things ive lost, i miss my mind the most

didnt you see the taxi they did?.....lol

be afraid, be very very afraid...

http://www.discoverychannel.co.uk/chops ... ar_4.shtml

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Of all the things ive lost, i miss my mind the most

Took my car into a Vauxhall Dealership last year for a service, they gave me a invoice for £672 I asked what work they'd done? Oil change + filters, new brakes, new fluids brake and clutch all for £672. When I went to the car there was oily hand prints all over the bonnet I went back to the service reception and kicked off at them, they washed it and polished it all for nothing bless their cotton socks.

£672 for a service?? you got to be having a F***ING laugh.

Thanks for that rambo, I thought GBC had done the knowledge