JD wrote:
Some past News Snippets about Lincoln Hacks and P/H.
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From what I can gather the driver and vehicle in this incident may have been private hire.
Handsome Cabs are a Private Hire Company licensed in Lincoln.
The Mirror February 20, 1998, Friday
OAP FINED FOR LIMPING TOO SLOWLY;
TAXI DRIVER CHARGES DISABLED OAP 30P FOR WALK TO VEHICLE
A DISABLED pensioner was charged a waiting fee by a hard-hearted cabbie - because she took so long to hobble to the taxi.
The "taxi" was a PH
Partially sighted Lidia Fielder, 72, was charged 30p extra on a pounds 3 fare after taking three minutes to struggle 100 yards to the cab outside her home.
Blimey, she's got a big garden!
Lidia, who has a partially dislocated hip and walks with two sticks, yesterday said: "I was angry and disgusted.
"Most drivers give me a hand, but this woman didn't lift a finger. Then she told me I was being charged waiting time!"
Lincoln taxi firm Handsome Cabs sent the driver back to Lidia's house in nearby North Hykeham with a letter of apology.
Lincoln PH firm, Picking up out of area.
It has also offered her six months of free taxis.
Manager John Bishop said: "I have had words with the driver. It will NEVER happen again."
But it did, see below. PH eh? Same firm, and same driver.
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Lincoln Echo Nov 28 2002
On the subject of a hackney carriage fare increase Just one taxi driver voted against having any fare rise.
John Hart (56), from (deleted), Lincoln, said: "This will increase the drop price and I think that's high enough. I'm concerned this might put people off hiring taxis." There are 30 black Hackney taxis on the streets of Lincoln working alongside private hire cabs. The lack of taxis has proved a real problem in Lincoln.
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Lincoln Cabbies expressing their lack of confidence in the local councils ability to act fairly?
Lincolnshire Echo January 24, 2003
Drivers pledge to fight council
Angry taxi drivers are to take their complaints about Lincoln City Council to a government watchdog. The Lincoln Taxi Owners Association is planning to complainto the local government ombudsman because it claims the authority is constantly acting against their industry.
The association, which represents the city's 30 black cab drivers, believes the authority is pursuing an anti-taxi policy.
The move follows a row over the siting of a new taxi rank in one of three uphill areas.
Chairman Mike Sibbons said the council was effectively preventing drivers from improving their service.
"We are preparing a detailed complaint for the local government ombudsman," Mr Sibbons said.
A complaint which never saw light of day. Mr Sibbons now operates a PH company.
The ranks he wanted were in the Cathedral Quarter and would have been unused. Mr Sibbons had personal issues with the Council.
He said taxi drivers had been prevented from using advertising livery on their cabs,(untrue) were rarely consulted on transport issues (untrue) and received no help in preventing private hire vehicles breaking the law by illegally picking up unbooked customers.(true, but changing at long last, new enforcement officer)
"When I complained to the council's inspector about that I was told to hire a private detective to get detailed evidence," he said.
"Most local authorities police such matters. We in Lincoln get very little for our fees, which amount to about £300 a year." The latest row has blown up about the siting of uphill ranks. Lincoln currently has four but only the ones in St Mary's Street and in Lincoln Central Station's forecourt are full-time.
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In April 2004 Jimbo acting in his capacity of rep for the local Taxi trade wrote to the Local rag in response to an article about public safety where he reportedly said.
I note that Lincolnshire Police believe "more taxis would cut violent crime and improve public safety" (April 5).
As a taxi driver, I respectfully suggest this would be better achieved by appointing and deploying more police officers on the streets of Lincoln.
And I would still suggest it is the job of the Police to cut violent crime, not taxi's. Does anyone out there pick up passengers who should be picked up by the Police?
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Back in 1969 the local council were considering the benefits of alternative saloon vehicles as opposed to traditional black cabs, at a time when wheelchair access was an unknown in respect of Taxis provision.
Some might find the name of the relvant committee quite interesting?
HEADLINE: Lincoln cabbies may be allowed to use cars
Lincoln taxi proprietors may in future be allowed to use private saloon cars instead of regulation hackney carriages. After a lengthy discussion at last night's meeting of "Lincoln Fire Brigade and Licensing Committee" it was decided to meet local taxi proprietors and police representatives together with the Town Clark to thrash out details of procedure that would permit the taxi men to use private cars.
Ald S. A. Campbell said that for the public of the city it would be far better for the taxi drivers to have a fleet of modern mechanically sound cars with all the necessary facilities than a battered lot of old London taxicabs.
The matter arose as a result of an application by a taxi proprietor to revert to saloon cars.
The alderman said Lincoln taxi men were at present being forced to buy discarded old London cabs in a very poor condition.
Taxi men were in keen competition with private hire firms, he added.
Coun. Cyril Ladmore said that second-hand London cabs were only discarded when they had done half a million miles. Taxi men in Lincoln chose of their own free will to use these old cars. No one compelled them to do so.
Ald. Wilfred Pixsley, chairman, said taxis had to be up to a certain standard to be allowed to stay on the road.
Where were you in 1969, JD? Me, I was in the Royal Navy.
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In 2004 in the interest of safety and a lack of Taxi provision at certain times of the week caused late night buses to be introduced on a wider scale.
Lincolnshire Echo August 24, 2004
HEADLINE: Night buses laid on for revellers
Late night buses are to be run in Lincoln in a bid to cut crime and help people get home safely. The Lincoln Late Bus service will ferry pub, nightclub and restaurant-goers home from the city centre for a flat fare of £3 up to 3am.
The only crime that was committed was the waste of taxpayers money.
Services will run at regular intervals after pub closing times on Friday and Saturday nights. And each bus will carry one or two passengers.
Three services will run from Silver Street destined for the Ermine, Birchwood and North Hykeham, dropping people off on demand along the way.
The eight-week trial scheme begins on Friday, September 3, and will use a fleet of double-decker buses with onboard CCTV and security staff.
Dropped years ago due to lack of use.The security staff tried throwing people on to the buses, but even that ruse failed dismally.
Mark Welsh (34), bar manager at the Varsity in Lincoln's Guildhall Street, said: "It's an excellent idea because it resolves the issue of people getting home.
"As I understand it the taxi service in Lincoln is pretty stretched at times so anything that helps people get home has to be good." Jonny Paylor (27), joint manager of The Cheltenham in Guildhall Street, agreed. He said: "I know in bigger cities they run this sort of service.
"When people are standing around trying to get taxis it can become a bit of a flashpoint.
"It would also be good for the people who work in the city centre at night and I'm all for it." Lincolnshire Police are backing the scheme and estimate that when city centre pubs close at 11pm, up to 340 people begin making their way home.
This rises to 680 people between 11.30pm and 12.30am.
And by 1am there can be up to 3,222 people on the streets, joined by potentially another 2,810 by 2am.
There are 142 taxis in Lincoln and there can be queues for these up to 5am. A Lincoln taxi trade representative said there was a shortage of people wanting to drive taxis at night.
I thought there were only 30.
"The reason they're putting the buses on is because the police have an issue with people walking the streets looking for taxis," he said.
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In 2004 the council lifted a ban on the colour white, which had previously been reserved for vehicles run by "dial a ride".
Lincolnshire Echo November 3, 2004
HEADLINE: 'Whitewash' fails to excite cabbies
Taxi drivers in Lincoln say they are unimpressed with a decision which allows them to 'whitewash' their cabs. From today, hackney carriage licence holders in the city have permission to drive white taxis instead of the traditional black, burgundy and navy blue vehicles.
There had been an outright ban on using the colour because it was exclusively available to the Dial-a-Ride charity for its own taxi service.
Well,for it's PH plated service.
The organisation, which offers free transport to the elderly and housebound, is no longer using its white metro cab - opening the way for hackney carriages to go white.
White Metrocab. Ever seen one? Ughhhhh!!!!
Lincoln City Council members agreed to the move last night at a meeting of their licensing committee.
Previously drivers have been forced to pay for any white vehicle to be sprayed a different colour - at a cost of up to £1,500 - so people would not become confused between commercial taxis and the one operated by Dial-a-Ride.
But licence holders told the Echo that the move it would make little difference to their businesses.
Frank Young, who has been a hackney carriage driver for 25 years, said: "It was wrong for the council to give the right to have white over to an external organisation in the first place.
He bought a Metro off Dial a ride, in white, you know.
"The taxi drivers were here first and should have come first.
"I bought a white-coloured cab and had to pay to have it changed.
You weren't forced to buy it Frank.
"It was a huge job because all inside the cab, including the upholstery, had to be ripped out. It was very expensive.
But the Metro was cheap.
"No driver is going to spend money having his cab sprayed white just because he can." Fellow driver Luigi Ziccardi said: "As long as a taxi goes OK, what does it matter what the colour is? "This not really going to make any difference." Licence holders must have the colours of their cabs approved by the council.
Lincoln Taxi Owners Association chairman said the decision was not a precursor to the city having cabs of all colours.
"Only standard manufacturing colours are currently allowed," he said.
"There is no benefit in anyone respraying their cab at the moment but, if they buy a cab in white, then it will save them having to go to the expense of having the colour changed." Last year an outright ban on (full liveried) advertising on Hackney carriages was lifted in Lincoln for the first time.
Then, this year, the council ordered taxi drivers to remove the England flag from their vehicles.
How do you remove something that isn't there?
They were then allowed to fly the flags during the Euro 2004 football tournament.
After the meeting last night, licensing committee chairman David Jackson said: "This is the second time we have agreed to different colour schemes in recent years.
"What is important is that the hackney carriages can be distinguished from other private hire vehicles.
"These vans have a distinctive shape and an orange taxi sign so we are satisfied with the decision
Yes indeed, white is now allowed, we could have took the council on over the issue, but who wants white anyway?
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In 2005 Jimbo wrote to the local rag over an incident regarding a private hire company charging double fare for a disabled passenger. Jimbos details have been ommitted.
Lincolnshire Echo August 5, 2005
HEADLINE: Chair charge not in taxi tradition
As chairman of the City of Lincoln Taxi Owners' Association I feel shocked that disabled mum Jacqui Bailey was charged double the standard fare to travel in a Private Hire vehicle of Handsome Cabs. And rather than apologise for this disgraceful act, the firm (August 2) sounded rather proud of the fact that it doubles the fare for disadvantaged people, although it would appear to be discriminatory to do so.
Perhaps Mrs Bailey and others would like to know that Hackney Carriage vehicles, or taxis (you know they are that because they say 'Taxi' on the toplight whereas private hire cars do not) will gladly carry them and will not double their fare merely because they are a wheelchair user.
It would be most helpful if the Echo and other publications would clearly differentiate between Hackney Carriage and Private Hire vehicles, for the safety of the public, and it would seem, the contents of their purses.
Should any intending passengers require the service of a taxi that is wheelchair friendly, they could call me on (deleted).
Incidentally, taxi meters were first fitted into London (Hackney Carriages) in the early 20th century. Consumers liked them for their reliable charging of fares.
The word taxi is from Latin, tax (fare) and meter (measurer). This was shortened to taxi for vehicles fitted with the measuring device, and that is why Hackney Carriage vehicles are called taxis today.
A taxi is a taxi because it says so on the tin (or rather toplight) and can be hailed in the street.
A private hire vehicle cannot be hailed; it must be booked in advance.
(deleted) I was disgusted to read about the disabled lady charged extra because she is in a wheelchair.
But I was equally upset that it said "taxi" when it was not in fact a taxi but a private hire vehicle. People might have presumed was a hackney taxi doing wrong when it was in fact a private hire vehicle.
Taxis were forced into changing from saloon cars to wheelchair-accessible, purpose-built vehicles (not cheap to buy) to cater for the disabled person; we also have Lincoln black cabs in operation (call 01522 717171) and we will come directly, door-to-destination, for both disabled and able-bodied persons. So come on Lincolnshire Echo, get it right; if it's a 'private hire' vehicle say so.
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JANE CLOVER Barlings Lane, Langworth.
If anyone is confused, JD has juxtaposed two seperate letters, above.
I live next door to Mrs Bailey and have often seen the drivers move the wheelchair in and out of the cars. It takes them at the most a couple of minutes, about the same as it takes for them to remove shopping for other customers. No way does it justify double charging.
Disabled people often have to rely on private hire companies to transport them to and from town, and this double charging is nothing short of disgraceful. It is blatant discrimination.
Perhaps the other companies in the city could rise to the challenge and agree to transport electric wheelchair users for the standard fee.
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She never did call me, either.
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