Electric only taxis move by York Council

TX-electric-taxi — More electric taxis may be coming to York

A Council report suggests that most taxis and hire cars in York will become battery powered over the next couple of years. The major change would see new taxi plate applicants advised to secure a electric vehicle although hybrid options would be acceptable.

The report also suggests that the existing number of taxi plates (183) should be retained for the City and that there would be no change to taxi ranks. 24% of vehicles are regarded as wheelchair accessible. There is no restriction on the number of private hire vehicles in the City.

There are 151 people on the waiting list for taxi plates in the City.

The plan to move to low emission vehicles is seen as a way of reducing emissions around the City. The report acknowledges that such vehicle are more expensive to purchase.

A concession is suggested for large wheelchair accessible vehicles.

The average age of the taxi/private hire fleet is currently 7 years. The Council is now proposing that 7 years should be the maximum permitted age of a taxi or hire car.

The report says, “there are many cars in the fleet that do not meet the latest Euro standards and there is still a large number of vehicles operating in the city which are Euro 5, Euro 4 and even some Euro 3 vehicles – including hackneys. It is well documented that Euro 5 diesels are a problem in respect of their emissions of harmful particulate matter”.

The report goes on to say new hackney carriage vehicles licences will only be issued to the following type of vehicles:

· Fully electric wheelchair accessible vehicles
· Plug in electric petrol hybrid wheelchair accessible vehicles (These vehicles are purpose-built taxis and have CO2 emissions of less than 50g/km and can travel at least 112km (70miles) without any emissions)

From 1st January 2021 new private hire licences will only be issued to the following type of vehicles:

· Fully electric vehicle
· Plug in electric petrol hybrid vehicle
· Petrol hybrid vehicle – Euro 6 class or better (less than 7 years old)
· Wheelchair accessible vehicles – Euro 6 diesel/petrol or better (less than 7 years old)

The Council is offering financial support to eligible CYC licensed hackney carriage and private hire drivers/vehicle licence proprietors to upgrade their vehicles to low emission variants.

There may be a concern that the proposals are ill timed.

Taxis – along with other types of public transport – have suffered reduced use because of the pandemic and lockdown.

Air quality levels are currently good in all parts of the City.

While passengers will welcome the move towards improved standards, some will argue that the current health situation suggests implementation of the new rules be delayed. New compliant vehicles can cost around £50,000. That is a big outlay against the background of a declining market.

Many will also argue that hire cars, registered outside York but operating in the City, should be subject to the same rules.

Criminal record checks on York taxi drivers

Council releases latest figures

The York Council is reporting that 917 (93.2%) of York Taxi drivers have successfully completed their Disclosure and Barring (DBS) checks. The checks were introduced to reassure passengers that drivers were “fit and proper” to hold a licence. A committee report goes on to say;

“There are 14 (1.4%) drivers with checks in progress with the DBS.
There are 22 (2.2%) drivers with whom we are checking ‘positive’ results. Please note that the DBS process flags all previous convictions and other matters which we may already be aware of.
Some 18 (1.8%) of drivers have indicated their intention to surrender their licence as they are no longer driving.
There are ten (1.0%) drivers who we have been unable to contact or begin the process for good reason (for example because they have a long-term illness) &
three (0.3%) drivers are refusing to co-operate”.

A report to the same meeting – which is taking place tomorrow (Monday) attempts to deal with the issue of UBER drivers operating in York. Last year the Council refused to grant a licence to UBER to operate locally. The issue now concerns UBER drivers, with licences are issued by other authorities,
are still serving the City .

The report says that the Council is satisfied that having regard to the independent Legal Opinion, the settled legal position remains as follows:

“Provided the three licences required in relation to a private hire vehicle (operator, vehicle and driver) have all been issued by the same authority, then the private hire vehicle (PHV) can undertake journeys anywhere in England and Wales. That is irrespective of where the journey commences, areas through which the journey passes and, ultimately, the area where the journey ends”.

An alternative legal opinion has been provided by local taxi operators.

Pretty much a “BREXIT” style stand off then which only leads to confuse potential customers.

6 taxi/private hire vehicles ordered off the road in York following safety checks.

Joint operation ensures taxi passengers’ safety in York

A series of checks on taxis and private hire vehicles in York has been carried out as part of a shared operation to ensure the vehicles are providing a safe service to passengers.

The multi-agency operation ran twice in November and December, and involved officers from taxi licensing partners including City of York Council, North Yorkshire Police and the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA).

Over the two operations, a total of 25 private hire vehicles and hackney carriages operating in York were stopped and checked. Vehicles licensed by York, Leeds, Bradford and Wakefield were inspected.

All vehicles underwent full mechanical examinations for defects by the DVSA at the council’s MOT test centre at Hazel Court or at the roadside, to check they were driving were safe to carry customers on the roads. Checks were also made to ensure that the drivers were properly licensed and insured.

As a result, six vehicles were ordered off the road by the DVSA and had their licences suspended. Four of the six suspended taxis and private hire vehicles were licensed by City of York, three of which were suspended for a period of 4 – 8 days, with one vehicle still off the road.

The vehicles were suspended due to the following faults:

defective tyres
tyres fitted to the front axle of different sizes and no operable spare
defective or inoperative headlights
an illuminated engine warning light
defective coil springs.

A further twelve drivers were advised to repair minor vehicle defects and several others were also warned by enforcement officers about breaches of licensing conditions.

Anyone with concerns about the conduct of drivers or the condition of their vehicles should email public.protection@york.gov.uk so the council’s public protection team can investigate.
(more…)

Taxi driver to pay £1,404 for illegally plying for trade

A taxi driver who was found to have illegally plied for trade in York has been ordered to pay a total £1,404 and was given six points on his driving licence.

In August 2017 as part of a joint enforcement operation, City of York Council officers and North Yorkshire Police were carrying out routine checks of taxis and private hire vehicles in York city centre. Sohail Ahmed (aged 45 of Wensleydale Road, Bradford) was stopped on Holgate Road, while driving a Hackney carriage licensed by Rossendale Borough Council.
(more…)

Uber and out

….or not as the case may now be in York!

The council decided last night that – because of data protection issues and complaint levels – Uber’s York private hire license would not be renewed.

Whether it will make much difference remains to be seen.

The committee heard that the vast majority of Uber drivers in the City do not live in York anyway.

The company has a right to appeal.

Whatever people views might be about this particular company, many customers these days clearly do want to use an “App” to summon private hire vehicles. Knowing in advance the likely cost of a journey, and when the vehicle is likely will arrive, are viewed as advantages. Automatic billing is another plus point as is the opportunity for drivers and passengers to record their views on the quality of their journey experience. .

There seems to be a window of opportunity for an enterprising local company to set up a service using one of the rival IT platforms. Hopefully this would guarantee at least some “tech savvy” local drivers would have the opportunity to benefit from any growth in demand for private hire cars in York.

Currently the City has around 800 licensed private hire and taxi drivers. Of these, 10 locally registered Uber drivers.

UBER York private hire license up for renewal

A meeting taking place on 12th December will determine whether to renew Ubers operating license in York.

Uber London recently lost a similar license on the grounds that they are not a ‘fit and proper’ person to hold
a licence.

Over the last year the Authority has received 155 complaints relating to Uber vehicles/drivers. There were also 141 complaints about non Uber vehicles/drivers.

Uber driver complaints

A majority of the complaints about Uber related to matters such as alleged plying for hire,to many out of town vehicles operating in York, dangerous driving, smoking in vehicles and fares charged.

The majority of Uber drivers were from Bradford and Leeds.

Only 4 of the Uber complaints related to York registered vehicles/drivers

If the license application were refused, Uber drivers licensed in other local authority areas would still be able to operate in York.

Council officials say there is no obvious justification for not renewing the Uber York licence

Taxi safety shock following checks in York

Another series of checks on taxis and private hire vehicles in York has been carried out in a multi-agency operation involving council and police officers, to ensure the vehicles are providing a safe service to passengers.

Officers from partners including City of York Council, North Yorkshire Police and the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) supported the operations. Bradford and Calderdale councils were also involved as they represent some of the neighbouring authorities which licence taxis and which can legally operate in the region.

The operations ran throughout the evenings and into the mornings of Friday 13 October and Friday 3 November. Over the two operations, a total of 44 private hire vehicles and hackney carriages which were operating in the city that evening were stopped and checked.

All vehicles underwent full mechanical examinations for defects by the DVSA at the council’s MOT test centre at Hazel Court or at the roadside. Checks were also made to ensure that the drivers were properly licensed, insured and that the vehicles they were driving were safe to carry customers on the roads.

As a result, seven vehicles were ordered off the road by the DVSA due to the faults found including:

a defective tyre (sidewall bulging/casing separated)
a tyre with less than the minimum tread requirement
defective or inoperative headlights or brake lights
a serious fuel leak.

Another seven vehicles were found to have faults and the drivers were given three days to fix them and get MOT approval. The variety of mechanical defects included:

defective
engine oil
split drive shaft cover
defective seat belt
anti roll bars inoperative

A further eight drivers were advised to repair minor vehicle defects and several others were also warned by taxi enforcement officers about breaches of taxi licensing rules.

In addition, eight private hire vehicles were suspended from working due to mechanical defects and other breaches of taxi and private hire licensing rules.

A pizza delivery vehicle was also seized by police for having no insurance.

“Anyone with concerns about the conduct of drivers or the condition of their vehicles should email public.protection@york.gov.uk so we can investigate.”

Inspector Andy Godfrey, of York City Neighbourhood Policing Team, said: “We have continued to conduct joint operations with City of York Council in an effort to improve safety for taxi customers.

“Members of the public who use taxis and private hires in York can be reassured that once again, the majority of vehicles are safe and in good order.

“Our most recent operation, however, has identified some issues and I would remind all taxi drivers that it is their responsibility to ensure their vehicle is in good order, and free of defects before they use it, regardless of if it is a company vehicle.

“We will continue to carry out similar operations in the near future to ensure that standards are being maintained.”

Crackdown on cross border private hire car operators in York

TaxiPrivate The York Council is joining forces with neighbouring authorities in West Yorkshire in an attempt to root out rogue private hire vehicle operators.

Licensing standards in different authorities vary. It has been alleged that some companies exploit these differences to operate with minimal standards.

Currently York Council officers have no powers to conduct any enforcement activity on taxis or private hire drivers or vehicles not licensed by the authority. Operators may choose to be licensed by authorities with less rigorous licensing standards and simply transfer bookings from the York district to that operating base. There may be significant difficulties in verifying whether a pre booking was in place, when investigating plying for hire concerns.

A report to a Council committee details the objectives of having a common policy across York and West Yorkshire

Safeguarding- child sexual exploitation – human trafficking – a common minimum training standard for the trade.
Driver application process – improved common minimum standards
English comprehension – common minimum standards for new applicants, it would only apply to existing licence holders where there was an identified need, with the focus being on training and development within an agreeable timeframe.
Convictions Policy and Convictions Criteria – standard criteria be adopted.
Decision making-scheme of delegation – all local authorities introduce a scheme of delegation to Officers for decision making.
Private Hire Operator Conditions – a common standard across the Combined Authority.
Private Hire Vehicle Conditions – all West Yorkshire and York licensed vehicles have similar recognisable door livery which deforms when removed.
Common Byelaws – Hackney Carriages – a common standard across the Combined Authority.
Authorised Officer status – Licensing and Enforcement Officers able to carry out inspection and suspension powers on a vehicle licensed by any Combined Authority, through the scheme of delegation of powers being coordinated across all the authorities to enable more efficient enforcement action.

While steps to safeguard the public interest will be welcomed in the City, the current proposals do not appear address cross border issues concerning vehicles from other parts of North Yorkshire or Teesside.

York Council set to adopt new taxi licensing policies

Users expecting fares to go down in wake of fuel cost reduction

Click to read

The York Council is expected to produce a new licensing code for taxi and private hire operations when it meets on 8^th February. The proposed regulations include little that is new and will be subject to a consultation period.

Private hire licences will be available for 5 years and some “cross border “working will be allowed.

Compulsory training on child sex exploitation is also being introduced.

Most passengers will be looking with anticipation at the new fares stricture due to be introduced in April.

Fare levels are worked out using an index agreed by the taxi trade several years ago. A Freedom of information request at this time last year revealed that there should be a small reduction in fare levels, but this was never introduced.

Sustained low fuel cost levels over the last 12 months should mean a more significant reduction is due this year.

NB The same meeting will consider an application to renew a sex establishment license at 53 Micklegate (Mansion club)