Next Meeting
- Tuesday 18 November 2008 (to be confirmed)
Previous Meetings
Guildhall Bath
Chair:
- Councillor Sir Elgar Jenkins
Present:
- Andrew Jones, Licensing Manager
- John Dowding, Senior Licensing Officer
- Burniece Brown, Team Administrator
- Barbara Selby, Traffic and Transportation
- David Horne, Transportation Planing
- Dorothy Miley, Parking Services
Apologies:
- Councillor Lorraine Brinkhurst
- Samantha Jones
The meeting was opened by Councillor Sir Elgar Jenkins who
thanked everyone for attending.
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Update of last meeting held on 19 April 2005
(responses made by Council or Police Officers)
Busgate
We have now received guidance for enforcing the bus gate
regulations and are now working on implementation.
- The problem of drivers using the busgate illegally appears to
be an ongoing problem as police cannot always be on the
scene.
Illegal Parking
- This is an ongoing problem. It is suggested that these
occurrences are reported to Barbara Selby at the time they take
place. There are no parking attendants on the streets in the
evenings to deal with this. There is a particular problem
with a van parking at the top of Milsom Street outside RSVP.
If this is causing an obstruction the police could deal with
it.
Other Actions Taken
- John Dowding has dealt with the matter of private hire
operators touting for trade in South Parade. Advice has been
given to Abbey Taxis and there has been no further feedback.
It is therefore assumed that the problem is dealt with.
- John Dowding also stated that it is illegal to leave taxis
empty when parked on a rank. There is a risk of prosecution
if this occurs. He also stated that legislation allows for
Public Service Vehicles to set down and pick up from Taxi Ranks,
but not Private Hire Vebicles.
- Some discussion followed on the lack of Taxi Ranks in the
City. Cllr Jenkins stated that the problem is once of lack of
space. Barbara Selby said that more research will be done on
this problem and it should be discussed in more detail at the next
meeting when this research is completed. Any suggestions to
resolve this problem should be put in writing and sent to Barbara
Selby.
- John Dowding stated that there are a number of Ranks in
the City that are not fully utilised by hackney carriage
drivers.
- There is a problem with the public parking on the rank at
Midsomer Norton. The problem is due to poor signage and lack
of enforcement, and will be dealt with by Barbara Selby.
- There remains a problem with the placing of barriers at the
Abbey. This is compounded by a burger van serving onto the
road. Andrew Jones will follow up on this.
- With regard to the problem with road markings, any such
problems should be reported to Barbara Selby, and she will try and
follow up on this.
- With regard to the provision of more taxi ranks in Bath, it was
suggested that the current ranks are not all being used. It
was suggested that it would be sensible to change some ranks over
with coach parking. Anyone wishing to follow this idea up
should liaise with Dorothy Miley.
- Barbara Selby does not think that allowing taxis to use the bus
lane at Green Park would work and some debate followed concerning
the use of the bus lane during certain hours. This will be
looked into.
- Barbara Selby will look at improving the markings and
signage at the Walcot Street Rank.
- With regard to Bus Tokens, a report will be taken to the
Executive in early December and it is hoped that this will be
resolved at that time.
Items raised by the trade
- Taxi Rank in Keynsham - The problem with signage is currently
being dealt with.
- Yellow Hatched Box At Gt Pulteney Street - It was agreed that
this should have been replaced and it will be followed up with the
Highways Department.
- Parking Attendants Attitude to Accessible Vehicles - Dorothy
Miley said that if drivers could prove the need to stop, that would
be taken into consideration. This should be put in writing to
her.
- Club Queues in Pierrepont Street - This problem will
be followed up with the Club by the Licensing
Enforcement Officer.
Presentation from Verifeye on “In Cab Security”
This presentation on security cameras in Taxis was made by Mr
Ian Trew, who presented some interesting statistics in relation to
Taxi and Private Hire security. Leaflets are attached.
JD/AJ - Report to Vic Prichard on the use of security
cameras in Taxis.
Any Other Business
Vic Pritchard raised the issue of the limitation policy and
stated that the Executive had decided to continue this practice on
the understanding that the trade made certain improvements, such as
acting as “Ambassadors for the City”, and in future, surveys
can be expected at regular intervals.
The subject of road re-surfacing was bought up and it was asked
if this is monitored as in many parts of the city the re-surfaced
road is already breaking up. This is particularly the case in
Broad Street. Dorothy Miley agreed to look at this and report
to the relevant office.
On the subject of taxi disabled access, it was asked when this
is expected to start. John Dowding stated that 2010 is the
current date. It was asked if fares would rise to compensate
for the cost of providing disabled access vehicles. This will
be dealt with at that time.
Vic Pritchard bought up the subject of the new Licensing Act
which commences on 24th November and which will possibly cause more
people to be on the streets until a later hour. He wondered
if drivers had given any thought to potential problems with
this. It was generally thought that this would be
self-regulating, depending on when there would be a demand for
their services.
Cllr Jenkins thanked everyone for coming and the meeting was
closed.
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Date of Next Meeting
Tuesday 28 March 2006.
Action Notes
Guildhall Bath
Chair:
- Councillor Sir Elgar Jenkins
Present:
- Councillor Vic Pritchard, Executive Member
- Andrew Jones, Licensing Manager
- Annemarie Thorne, Team Administrator
- Rab Smith, Traffic and Transportation
- David Bath, Parking Services
Apologies:
Top of page
These notes form an outline to the points raised at the
meeting.
The meeting was opened by Cllr Sir Elgar Jenkins who thanked
everyone for attending.
Update on Last Meeting
Busgate
The Council are currently waiting for approval from government,
it is hoped that it will start in December this year.
Illegal Parking
There is a van that parks outside the Abbey which has been a
problem. The situation with coach trips for the Christmas
Market this year is that when the coach park is full, then the
coaches will be parking on Wellsway. The Council is
currently looking at a strategy to deal with the issue of coach
parking on a more permanent basis. There also followed a
lengthy discussion on buses parking at Orange Grove, the taxi
drivers complained that they received no instant response to calls
made reporting buses on the taxi rank.
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Items Raised by the Trade
There has been a request made by Turtle Cars regarding the
cleaning of the taxis after someone has been sick in the back of
them. They recently lost 24 hours of business due
to this.
The cost of cleaning can be claimed from the individual and, if
you get a name, you can pursue this through the civil court.
The concern from the drivers was that if they take action to
retrieve the money from an individual they are the ones who could
end up in court, the Police station is not open, so drivers cannot
take their passengers there. Another concern was that if a
driver refuses a fare due to the people being too drunk, they are
not believed by the authority because the customer seems to be
believed over them, and there were fears raised about licenses
being taken away for not doing their job. Cllr Jenkins stated
that the drivers must take some responsibility for the people they
allow into their cars. Cllr Pritchard said that the city
centre streets are being patrolled more frequently and that with
the introduction of street marshals and Police Community Support
Officers (PCSO) until 3am; it is not the responsibility of the
driver to pick up a fare if they believe they are
drunk. It was agreed that the Council should be more
supportive of the drivers when they put their point of view
forward.
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Any Other Business
The issue was raised of the cc of the car required by the
Council in order to be a taxi. A driver stated that there
were lower cc engine diesels on the market which still had the same
or larger cabin space as a bigger cc car., and he was looking to
buy one. The driver was advised that he would need to state
his case to John Dowding.
The policy of Hackney Carriage Licenses was raised. The
Council undertook a survey and it was decided that there should be
an increase of two additional licenses over three years i.e. six in
total. The point was raised that it causes some instability
to the other drivers. Cllr Jenkins mentioned that it was
deemed necessary to have the survey and that we are committed to
it. We will also be having another survey in another two
years time (2008).
A driver raised the point that some of his drivers only want to
do the school run, and do not want to go through the hackney
knowledge test. Cllr Jenkins pointed out that this will
always be a contentious issue, and that there will always be
disagreements.
An issue has been raised for the agenda for the next meeting
that other councils charge the same fee as us, but the licence
lasts for 3 years and not one. Officers will look into
this.
CCTV – A driver was assaulted by two people on Orange Grove over
the weekend, and when he looked at the camera he noticed it was
trained on the Guildhall car park as that seems to be the default
setting. Cllr Pritchard will look into the possibility that
the default setting should be the taxi rank.
George Street – It has been noticed that cars are parking on the
taxi rank after 9pm even though there are double yellow lines and
clear signage to say it is a taxi rank after this time. The
representative from the parking officers stated that this was
illegal, and the police should be involved the next time this is
noticed. A similar incident has been noticed on Westgate
Street as well.
A request has been made that the badges for the licenses could
be made smaller, as the larger ones are falling apart.
Recommendations made to Dorothy Miley earlier this year by the
taxi drivers have not been actioned. The main issues
were that the taxi rank at the bottom of Milsom Street is used by
delivery vehicles and the issue regarding taxis and buses in Orange
Grove and North Parade.
Traffic Congestion – It has been noticed that the single lane
outside the Guildhall is causing Congestion.
Some drivers have received parking tickets whilst parking in
Bath Street to see John Dowding regarding their cars and
licenses. Andrew Jones will look into the possibility of
organising a notice for the drivers to place in their car to ensure
they do not receive any more tickets.
People are finding it difficult to distinguish the different
roof signs. Andrew Jones will look into the possibility of
changing them.
Would it be possible for the taxis to turn right into James
Street West, and The Avenue at Combe Down?
It was noted that the traffic lights on Lansdown Road, and
Cleveland Bridge were slightly askew, and the drivers could not see
them. This will be looked into.
The issue of safety on the Pulteney Bridge with the Orange Buses
which always appear to be full. Cllr Jenkins stated that the
structure of the bridge is regularly checked.
Open top buses have been seen by the drivers to drive very
slowly along roads which they ought to be driving the regulated
limit. The drivers were recommended to call either the police
or the traffic commissioner.
The traffic lights on the bus gate at New Bond Street do not
seem to give the same right of way to the taxis as to the normal
flow of traffic.
The issue was raised of parking attendants picking on some
drivers. The representative from the parking services then
said that if drivers can note the number of the attendant and
report them to parking services.
Cllr Jenkins thanked everyone for coming and the meeting was
closed.
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Next Meeting
The date for next Taxi Forum: March 2007 (to be
advised)
Possible items for the agenda:
- Southgate development
- Smoking in taxis
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Guildhall Bath
Chair:
- Councillor Sir Elgar Jenkins
Present:
- Councillor Vic Pritchard, Executive Member
- Andrew Jones, Licensing Manager
- John Dowding, Senior Licensing Officer
- Burniece Brown, Licensing Team
Administrator
- Wendy Stokes, Licensing Team Administrator
- Adrian Clarke, Transportation Planning Manager
- Sue Green, Health Development Officer
- Reggie Tricker, Transportation Planner
- Don Reed, Bureau 4
- Silas Freeman, Safe and Sound
- Peter Brook, Highway Network Manager
Apologies:
Top of page
These notes form an outline to the points raised at the
meeting.
The meeting was opened by Cllr Sir Elgar Jenkins who thanked
everyone for attending.
A brief report was given by Sue Green, Health Development
Officer, on the forthcoming new legislation banning smoking in all
public places. This covers all public vehicles, including
hackney carriages and private hire vehicles.
The legislation comes into force on 1 July which means that all
public vehicles must be smoke free from 6.00 am on that day.
One of the things to consider is signage. It is a requirement
that a sign must be displayed in the vehicle and the Government has
been sending out information packs to taxi offices.
Literature was available for drivers to take including “No Smoking”
signs.
If anyone has any queries about vehicles to contact Debbie
Lear on 01225 477523
John Dowding stated that he will be sending out signage and
information to all drivers. He also wanted to clarify that
all licensed vehicles must be smoke free for 24 hours a day even
when the vehicle is used for private purposes.
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Update on Last Meeting
Busgate
Cameras are now in place. Getting the OK for cameras was
the problem – eventually after 2 years we have got the necessary
clearance. After the second week there were 350 prosecutions
started and another 400 plus are in the pipeline.
There is concern over the phasing on the traffic lights which
seems to give the general traffic much longer than the time that
taxis have to wait.
There was a request from the floor to clarify what is meant by
local buses and taxis. Cllr Jenkins stated that only duly
registered bus services and taxis may use the Bus Gate.
Police have an automatic right to go anywhere as do Ambulance
services. The Council has a list of other people who are
authorised.
It was also asked if, now there are cameras in operation at the
Bus Gate, there is any need for transponders.
Adrian Clarke stated that this now has to be reviewed. He
had noted that there seems to be a long phase for vehicles going
past Guildhall and he will also look into this.
Illegal Parking
Cllr Jenkins and Dorothy Miley are doing everything possible to
resolve these issues.
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Items Raised by the Trade
Cost of cleaning - the Council has set the maximum charge
allowable for this. It is then up to the individual to follow
it up to reclaim the money.
Darth Jarrett, representing the Bath Spa Taxi Drivers
Association brought up the problem that drivers face with parking
tickets being issued on a Taxi Rank where the signage is
missing. This complaint was made to Dorothy Miley who has not
responded to his many calls. Adrian Clarke said that he
thought this had now been dealt with.
It was also stated that this was a problem for drivers visiting
Bath Street to visit the Licensing offices. They must leave
their vehicles outside when they renew licences, or require metre
seals, and parking tickets are still issued. John Dowding
stated that he now does Meter Sealing in batches at a specific time
of day, and parking hasn’t been a problem since he started doing
this. It is also a more efficient way to do metre seals.
A request that metres be sealed at installation was made.
John Dowding stated that the legislation requires that the meter is
sealed by an authorised officer of the Council. It is done in
a way that is most cost effective to both the Council and
drivers.
At a recent seminar at the Institute of Licensing John Dowding
enquired about Councils offering 3 year licences. These were
not available generally and the 1 year licence is the norm.
The problem with badges falling apart was due to the poor
laminating material used previously. This has now been
replaced and the problem should not recur. John Dowding is now
looking into producing a smaller plastic ID badge similar to those
used by Council Officers.
Cllr Pritchard stated that the problem with the default setting
on CCTV cameras at Orange Grove has now been resolved and it has
been re-directed to the Taxi Rank.
Darth Jarrett was concerned that the quality of roof signs,
considering the cost, is very poor and that S. Glos have much
better quality signs. John Dowding said that he would look
into this to see what other signs are available.
Darth Jarrett raised the question of signage at Pulteney Bridge
as it has been moved and is now not clearly visible as you approach
it. Cllr Jenkins stated that unnecessary signs had been moved
in order to make the area look better. He will take another
look at this sign.
He will also look at a sign for a right turn from Grove Street
where the traffic comes across from the left without stopping.
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Any Other Business
Darth Jarrett stated that having a Taxi Marshalling Scheme in
operation is fantastic, but that he had been hearing reports that
are too co-incidental, that some Marshals are taking money to bring
people from the back of the queue to the front.
Silas Freeman of Safe and Sound who operate both the Taxi
Marshalling Scheme and the Street Marshalling Scheme said that
these allegations are being looked into and that they try to keep
an eye on situations like this. The particular incident
mentioned has been investigated and the individual concerned has
been stood down. They had heard a slightly different version
that the taxi driver had paid the money and not the customer.
He said that at the end of the day the Marshals are there for
the protection of the drivers and would be happy to hear any
suggestions from drivers and the end of the meeting.
Another incident was quoted where a group of people at the front
of the queue were removed from the taxi and another group given the
ride. Why is this happening?
Silas Freeman said that he was attending this meeting in order
to give contact details. He said that they are happy to get
input from drivers. This is the negative side of the
situation but most people, taxi drivers, customers and local
residents alike do see the positive side.
John Veal stated that he would like to see the Marshals get back
to the way they were when they started out, when they made sure
that the customer was installed in the taxi and sent on the
way.
Safe and Sound made assurances that they would go back to the
basics.
Cllr Vic Pritchard said that this is the first time in several
years of operation that we have been made aware of any
problems. He stated that he would like to have feedback on
how this is resolved. He said that we would like to keep the
high standards we started out with. It was agreed that Safe
and Sound would report back to Pete Anderson, Community Safety
Officer.
Contact numbers are:
-
Tony:
07795 508853 (On 24/7)
-
Silas:
07786 396571
Silas Freeman stated that the reason Safe and Sound attended
this meeting is to put things right. Cllr Jenkins then
thanked them for coming.
Darth Jarrett then moved on to the Abbey Taxi Rank: He
stated that he fully promotes the aesthetics of the City and
understands that the rank is on the corner of the Abbey, but said
there must be some way of building a suitable shelter on the back
corner of the Abbey which would be aesthetically pleasing and
acceptable and at the same time provide a degree of shelter for
customers waiting for taxis. He stated that his information
is that Bath Taxis expect to open a booking office at Bog
Island. This would provide customers looking to book a
private hire taxi with a warm, dry place to wait, whereas if they
are queuing for a hackney cab they will have to wait outside with
no shelter.
John Dowding stated that Bath Taxis would not be able to rank up
there but that customers would be able to book a taxi from
there.
Cllr Jenkins said that is really is difficult to think where a
shelter could be put in that area but that he would talk to David
Trigwell who is in charge of planning.
John Dowding stated that in order to use this premises as a taxi
office, Bath Taxis would have to apply for an Operators
Licence. An Operators Licence is issued for the premises not
the individual. This would have to go to Planning for
consultation. To date, no such application has come in.
It was suggested that Taxi drivers should not have to wait for
appointments and that it should be possible for their problems to
be dealt with more quickly. Andrew Jones stated that there
are sometimes problems with staffing and that only John Dowding is
qualified to deal with the more complex issues of Hackney
Carriage/Private Hire legislation. Because John Dowding
handles taxi matters on his own, it is by far the best way to have
an appointments system in place.
There was a suggestion from the floor that Polish drivers were
getting taxi licences but were not familiar with Bath or the
surrounding area. John Dowding stated that he is making
regular changes to the Knowledge Test, in an effort to avoid
cheating. He is also doing a driving test as well as the
written test. To date all the Polish drivers have passed the
written test and all bar one had passed the driving test with
flying colours. He asked each of them to drive to four
different destinations and they had no problem. He stated
that he will continue to change the knowledge test so that no one
can pass the test on to a colleague.
Darth Jarrett asked if the Taxi Stand on New Bond Street is
about to be moved back to Milsom Street. Cllr Jenkins said
that this information would be available from Dorothy Miley and
that he did not have this information himself.
Darth Jarrett said that it is well documented that Bath has
traffic and pollution problem and that taxis being held at traffic
lights unnecessarily with their engines running are adding to this
problem. This is a particular problem on Lower Bristol Road
at the junction with Windsor Bridge . He said
that these lights used to work on demand and requested that these
be changed back.
With regard to the one way system at Combe Down – buses can come
back through this system, and it is understood that taxis will be
able to do this as well. Can this be confirmed?
Southgate
A short presentation was made by Don Reed of Bureau 4 who gave a
general overview of events planned on the Southgate development and
an overview of vehicular access.
At the end of June 2007 Dorchester Street will become one way,
westbound and Railway Street and Newark Street will be closed.
On 13 November 2007 Dorchester street will open to two way
traffic.
In January 2009 the New Bus Station opens.
Cllr Jenkins said that vehicular traffic flow information would
be sent out to everyone and that it would also be put onto the
Councils Web Site under transport.
Cllr Jenkins thanked everyone for coming and the meeting was
closed.
Next Meeting
The date for the next Taxi Forum is 8 November 2007 (to be
confirmed)
Possible items for the agenda include the Southgate development
– progress report
Guildhall Bath
Chair:
- Councillors Brian Simmons and Charles Gerrish
Present:
- Andrew Jones, Licensing Manager (B&NES)
- Mal O'Hagan, Licensing Enforcement Officer
(B&NES)
- Dorothy Miley, Parking Services Manager (B&NES)
- Adrian Clarke, Transportation Policy Manager
(B&NES)
- Peter Anderson, Community Safety & Drug Action Team
(B&NES)
- Jane Carter, Licensing Team Administrator/Receptionist
(B&NES)
- Representative from Safe and Sound
- Representative from Skills UK
- Stacey Harper, City of Bath College
Apologies:
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The meeting was opened by Cllr Charles Gerrish who thanked
everyone for attending. Cllr Gerrish apologised that he is unable
to stay due to other commitments and he introduced Cllr Brian
Simmons who would be chairing the meeting.
A representative from Skills UK was introduced who explained a
training course which combines NVQ and BTEC and which are going to
be piloted by B&NES Licensing Department in conjunction with
The City of Bath College.
The training is free if certain criteria are met by candidates.
The training on offer is loosely equivalent to 5 GCSEs and would
take between 10 and 12 weeks to complete. Assessment is by multiple
choice and observations by a trained assessor.
The pilot project is anticipated to be for 20 drivers in the
area and will begin once 20 drivers have signed up. If you are
interested, contact Andrew Jones (AJ).
A question was taken from the floor regarding whether this
course would become mandatory and the costs involved if you didn’t
qualify for a free place?
AJ responded saying that it is a pilot scheme and it would be
evaluated after the event, he went on to say that no decisions have
been made yet and won’t be until after the pilot scheme has been
completed and it can be assessed whether it is worthwhile. On
completion of the pilot Elected members would then have a
discussion and it is council policy that these discussions are open
to the public.
The representative from Skills UK stated that the cost is
between £600 and £1200 but there may be grants available and he has
never known anyone to have to pay for the course.
Some discussion followed regarding mandatory offering of the
course to new drivers and this will be considered following the
pilot.
The City of Bath College and Skills UK representatives were
thanked for their presentation.
Actions from the previous meeting
There were none.
Items received from the trade
This discussion was led by Darth Jarrett (DJ), who introduced
himself as the Secretary of the Bath Spa Taxi Drivers
Association.
DJ asked if John Dowding (JD) was on holiday. When confirmed
that he was, it was stated that it saddens and dismays the
association that they are deemed unimportant especially as this
meeting was organised a very long time ago.
DJ then introduced a number of issues from the trade.
Ranks
The numbers and lack of rank space was discussed, and
suggestions for possible locations of more ranks made.
Requests for repainting of existing ranks and also of the London
Road Bus Lane were made.
Dorothy Miley (DM) asked for a taxi driver to be nominated to
take a tour with her to point out problems and make suggestions –
DJ put himself forward for this role.
It was commented, from the floor, that a tour had occurred on
15/11/2005 and nothing had happened since.
A request was made for the tour to include Midsomer Norton as
issues occurred with illegal parking on the rank.
DM said that recruitment would shortly be happening for a
parking enforcement team to cover the Midsomer Norton and Radstock
areas.
Bath City Centre Rank Issues
Abbey - Not enough spaces and tempers fray. Coach drop offs/pick
ups cause problems.
New Bond St - Rank disappeared with no consultation.
Adjacent to O’Neill’s - Rank disappeared with no
consultation.
South Parade - Confused signage regarding use as a taxi
rank/disabled parking.
North Parade - Rank disappeared with no consultation.
DM commented that a coach bay was put into South Parade as a
possible solution to coach drop off/pick up issues and that she
would look into the signage issues at South Parade.
Open top bus spaces were discussed.
Adrian Clarke (AC) explained how Orange Grove was going to be
completely reviewed and changes made over the next 2 years as they
were aware of the issues. The situation should change and
discussion will be had over the changes planned.
DJ requested a rank at Bath Bus Station.
DJ requested a rest rank located, for example, in Westgate
Buildings. This would help for comfort breaks, visiting the
Licensing offices etc.
DM said it would be added to the ‘wish list’ and that she
welcomed examples from outside of London, where a similar rest rank
is provided. However it was pointed out that the
question or rest ranks had been raised before and it had been
explained to the trade why they could not be provided.
Fees
DJ requested a breakdown of fees so we can see what it being
paid for. He provided a breakdown that York does.
AJ said he would take the example and look at providing
something similar.
Unmet Demand Survey
DJ requested that future unmet demand surveys must take into
account the severe delays caused by the Southgate project.
AJ said a professional company would be used to carry out the
survey and that the issue of Southgate would be brought to their
attention.
Separate PH and Hackney Badges
DJ stated that in a letter they were told that PH and HC badges
would become separate. This hasn’t happened but it is strongly felt
that it is necessary, including a ‘knowledge’ type test, holder of
UK DVLA licence for 1 year etc as used by other councils.
DJ stated that Bath is the easiest city to become a Hackney
Carriage driver in and Zone 1 is saturated with drivers.
Other comments from the floor stated that other areas of the
county are struggling to find drivers.
AJ stated we are due to review our policy and such matters can
be taken into account. He stated that different councils have
different policies based on each individual authorities needs.
Policing/Enforcement
DJ requested more licensing officers, including John Dowding,
seen out and about, in an official capacity, on Friday and Saturday
nights, enforcing and monitoring. Currently drivers know that
licensing aren’t enforcing so problems are occurring.
Mal O’Hagan (MO) stated that he doesn’t work every weekend and
he is aware of how effective his presence can be.
AJ stated this will be discussed with JD and MO regarding higher
visibility.
A question from the floor asked for clarification on whether the
council officers are able to give out penalty points.
MO stated that he is able to give out penalty points but most of
the time a word in the ear suffices. MO is quite prepared to give
out penalty points to dual licence holders and reminded the drivers
that they had all signed up to the Council’s terms and
conditions.
Safety
DJ described a recent violent incident and requested that the
drivers be allowed to fit video and sound recording equipment in
cabs.
AJ stated that we can look at the conditions and considering the
Data Protection Act, we can discuss it. DJ requested to be involved
in consultation regarding this issue.
A comment from the floor was made that Council CCTV needs to be
recording the Taxi Ranks. AJ said we can make this point back to
the operators.
Roads
DJ reported 3 sections of damaged road 7 months ago which
haven’t been repaired, why? DJ requested someone from Highways
department to be at the meeting today. Pulteney bridge and
Henrietta Street condition is causing damage to their vehicles.
DM-Will pass the comments to the Highways Dept and get them to
contact DJ.
DJ also mentioned Potholes and queried why it seems that work is
not checked. He nominated himself as a taxi driver who is happy to
report road repairs required.
AJ stated this will all be reported onto the Highways
maintenance team.
A question from the floor asked what a single solid while line
does as there is a new line appeared at A36 Rossiter Road,
Approaching the Menzies hotel.
DM said she will check.
DJ asked why BANES has refused to listen to concerns about
traffic lights; specifically Windsor Bridge and the Busgate should
be on demand.
DM said she would pass this comment to Signals & get a
response.
The Busgate is still causing problems and sometimes the signals
take a long time and customers are complaining to drivers. It was
commented that from New Bond St turning right, sometimes the lights
don’t changes for 3 or 4 cycles.
AC said that the busgate signals are slow as they need to allow
for cyclists to pass through and also the give way system from
Upper Borough Walls. At the moment, the timings are safe for
all users.
AC will take the point about the right hand filter not changing
to the engineers. The busgate will be included in the Orange Grove
changes. AC said that he would ensure a process for consultation
with drivers is in place for the Orange Grove changes.
AJ stated that time was almost up so asked for any pressing
issues.
A request from the floor asked for renewals to last for 1 year
from the renewal date.
AJ stated that JD runs the system the ways he thinks is
best.
A request was made from the floor that badges be changed as they
have sharp edges. AJ said that he will look into
this.
A request was made for a solution to the plate exemption/bus
gate fines issue.
AJ and MD are discussing a solution.
The benefits of last year’s tariff increase has gone due to the
recent fuel increases, is there a possibility of an emergency
tariff increase?
AJ said any tariff increase has to go to Public Consultation and
Cabinet so can take a few months, but we shall look into whether we
can speed up the process this year.
A question was asked regarding the licensing appointments system
and how sometimes it can take weeks to see JD and if an appointment
is cancelled this can result in loss of income.
AJ said this is due to the number of drivers and the numbers of
staff and the restrictions this places us under.
Other comments were made that there needs to be at least 1 other
person who can do the same tasks as JD.
AJ said MO can do some, but the point has been noted and we
shall look into it.
AJ noted that representatives from Safe and Sound were present
if anyone had any comments or questions, but DJ stated that they
discuss things regularly and there are normally no problems.
As time had run out, AJ thanked everyone for attending and
stated the next meeting would be scheduled for around October
2008.
