Taxi drivers have raised concerns at the costs they could face to meet new minimum emission targets set for their cars.
CambridgeshireLive reports that Huntingdonshire District Council has agreed to set a minimum emission standard that the taxis it licenses have to meet.
The district council will require any new driver applying for a taxi licence to have a car that meets a minimum Euro 6 emission standard, or is a hybrid or fully electric car.
For taxi drivers looking to renew their licence their car should meet a minimum of Euro 5 emission standard.
The district council said restricting the relicensing of Euro 4 cars would mean more taxis would have to be replaced with lower polluting vehicles. However, some taxi drivers raised concerns that this change could place a “sudden financial burden” on them to change their car.
One driver said: “As a taxi driver predominantly stationed at the Huntingdon Station rank, the sustainability of my seven seater wheelchair accessible vehicle directly impacts my financial stability.
“This vehicle not only serves as my primary income source, but also affords me the flexibility to attend to my young family’s needs, including school engagements and appointments.
"The potential loss of my taxi due to the proposed regulations would not only pose a financial setback, but also impose exploring alternative avenues of support, potentially through government benefits.
“Additionally, the current economic downturn, compounded by the existing recession in the UK, increases the challenges faced by self-employed individuals like myself.
"Abrupt implementations of these regulations would render my vehicle unsuitable for licensing elsewhere or for private sale due to its age and mileage, consequently depreciating its value significantly.”
At a meeting of the district council’s licensing and protection committee on 15 May, officers said they understood the cost concerns being raised by some of the taxi drivers. They said in recognition of this they were proposing to push back the date for existing drivers to meet the new minimum emission standard to 2025, rather than this year.
Councillor Jeff Clarke raised concerns that by moving to a minimum emission standard the authority could be ‘setting some drivers up to fail’. The licensing officers highlighted that the Euro 5 emission standard was the requirement set for all new cars made in 2011, with Euro 6 becoming mandatory standard in 2016.
They said the change from the existing five year rule to the minimum emission standard would actually “widen the scope” of cars available for drivers.
Councillor Stephen Ferguson said he thought the change was a “sensible measure” and highlighted Euro 5 cars could still be up to 13 years old.
He also highlighted that the authority was not proposing to mandate taxi drivers to switch to a hybrid or fully electric car, as he said he did not think that was yet sustainable for taxi drivers in rural areas.
The district council has also agreed a change requiring a taxi driver running a car that is eight years or older to get it checked at a garage every six months.
Some taxi operators in the area had opposed this change arguing it would add “unnecessary costs”.
However, licensing officers said they were seeing a “significant number” of taxis failing their compliance checks, and that a lot of the taxis failing were older cars.
Councillor Simon Bywater said it was a “shame” the requirement would add an additional cost to some taxi drivers, but said it was a “sensible approach” to make sure the cars are safe.
Source: https://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/news/local-news/taxi-drivers-raise-cost-concerns-29183851
An Epsom cabbie has been jailed for four months and banned from driving for six months after failing to stop when he hit a pedestrian who died after the crash.
News Shopper reports that in the early hours of Sunday, May 21, 2023, Farid Cheheb was driving his taxi when he struck 44-year-old Shane Scannell on South Street, Epsom.
Shane suffered serious injuries, including a traumatic head injury and later died in hospital.
Cheheb, 66, did not stop at the scene and he later claimed he had hit a fox, not a person.
A Forensic Collision Investigator who reconstructed the accident using all the available evidence determined Cheheb should have realised he had struck a person, not an animal.
The damage to his car was consistent with him hitting a pedestrian and Shane would have been visible to him from more than 10 metres away.
Detective Inspector Ben Grilli said: “This was a challenging investigation where there were no witnesses to the actual collision and the vehicle did not stop at the scene.
“It is a testament to the effort put into this investigation that the vehicle was located and a person prosecuted.
“Although the CPS were not satisfied that we could suitably evidence the manner of driving that led to the collision, it is a sign of the amount of evidence secured that the driver received a custodial sentence for a minor summary offence.
“We know that the sentence will provide little comfort to the family, but we hope the sentence will provide an element of closure.”
In June last year the family of Shane Scannell paid tribute to a “son, brother, and uncle, who was loved by so many.”
Source: https://www.newsshopper.co.uk/news/24319865.epsom-south-street-taxi-driver-jailed-fatal-hit-run/
A private hire driver is more than £200 out of pocket after refusing to let an assistance dogs ride in his cab.
The MK Citizen reports that two passengers, each accompanied by their dogs, had booked his PHV, but Sayid Ahmed Dahir turned them away.
As a result the people were left stranded, the court was told.
They complained to Milton Keynes City Council, whose officers promptly launched a prosecution.
Mr Dahir, from New Bradwell, pleaded guilty at Milton Keynes Magistrates’ Court to refusing to take the assistance dogs.
The incident happened in September 2023, the court heard.
The driver was fined £67 and must pay £350 costs plus a £27 victim surcharge.
Mr Dahir’s licence will also be reviewed by Buckinghamshire Council in accordance with its policies.
Cllr Mick Legg, Milton Keynes City Council Cabinet member responsible for Regulatory Services, said: “This licensed driver left two customers with their Assistance Dogs stranded and has therefore had to face the full weight of the law.”
He added: “ Milton Keynes City Council takes it obligations under the Equality Act very seriously and will not allow any driver to risk the safety of the travelling public.
“We will continue to fully investigate all complaints and put drivers before the court when appropriate to do so.”
A General Motors autonomous car company has settled a lawsuit for millions with a woman who was hit by one of its self-driving taxis and dragged along a San Francisco street last year.
The Independent reports that the woman was struck by a human hit-and-run driver and propelled into the path of a Cruise robo-taxi.
In a statement posted to X, the company said the vehicle detected a collision and attempted to pull over to avoid more safety issues.
As the car tried to pull over, it continued for about 20 feet before coming to a stop with the pedestrian pinned to the bottom of the car.
The woman sustained “traumatic injuries” and was taken to the hospital for treatment.
Now, the company is set to pay the woman between $8 to $12m in a settlement.
A representative for Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital told Fortune that the woman had been discharged but declined to state additional information about her condition.
Cruise stopped its taxi service in San Francisco following the crash after regulators found the company had not been forthcoming with information.
Later, the company pulled all of its self-driving taxis in the US off the market.
It is now starting to reintroduce them with human drivers that can take over in case of an emergency.
The company will start testing out the cars in Phoenix before moving to other Arizona cities.
Cruise is in the process of getting its permit reinstated in California, where the crash happened. The application is still under review.
Cruise was acquired by General Motors in 2016 and has since reported $9.2bn in losses.
Following the incident, General Motors cut Cruise’s annual budget by $1 billion and replaced the company’s management team.
A thug who attacked a taxi driver in a mistaken case of road rage has been ordered to pay his victim £2,000.
According to the Glasgow Times, Ibraheem Khan, 27, pounced on Abdelella Yousif in Glasgow’s St George’s Cross on November 13, 2022.
The court earlier heard that Khan’s Volkswagen Golf vehicle was stopped at a green light when Mr Yousif pulled in behind him and sounded his horn to indicate to his customer that he had arrived.
Occupants in the Golf took issue with this with one of the passengers shouting at Mr Yousif.
Khan moved off through the lights and came to a stop a short distance ahead of Mr Yousif’s taxi.
The driver pulled further into the road to collect his customer before Khan reversed his vehicle closer to the taxi.
Khan’s passenger shouted and gestured aggressively at Mr Yousif before the pair exited the Golf.
Prosecutor Alasdair Knox said: “Mr Yousif’s driver's side window was open at this time.
"The male passenger punched the victim to the head and face through the window then opened the driver door, whilst continuing to punch Mr Yousif.”
The victim then pushed himself out of the vehicle when Khan approached him.
Mr Knox added: “Khan proceeded to repeatedly punch him to the head.
“This part of the assault lasted between 10 and 14 seconds. Khan then walked back towards the Golf.”
Mr Yousif’s nose was burst and covered in blood due to the attack.
Khan drove off at speed and entered the wrong side of the road before returning to the correct lane.
He also failed to stop and ran two red traffic lights before he collided with a vehicle near St George's Cross subway station.
Police attended and noted "significant damage" to both vehicles.
Mr Yousif was taken to hospital where he was treated for a nasal fracture, swelling to his face, oral cavity damage, a chipped front tooth and a loose tooth.
John Scullion KC, defending, told the sentencing: "He accepts full responsibility for his actions in relation to the charges and doesn't seek to minimise his involvement in any way.
"He bitterly regrets acting as he did - he expresses his remorse for his behaviour and recognises the impact this will have had on the victim as well as the wider community."
Khan pleaded guilty at Glasgow Sheriff Court to assaulting Mr Yousif to his severe injury and permanent disfigurement.
Khan, of the city's Kelvinside, also admitted a separate charge of dangerous driving.
Sheriff Andrew Cubie said: "This was an incomprehensible offence.
"The custodial threshold has been passed and I have considered the matter carefully.
"The tendering of your plea, a positive background report, remorse and work record, a difficult childhood, as well as a lack of analogous offending and being at a low risk of re-offending, saves you from custody."
The sheriff imposed a £2,000 compensation order which Khan will pay his victim. Khan was also fined £800 and ordered to do 250 hours of unpaid work.
He was further tagged for eight months and will be kept indoors between 8pm and 6am as well as put under supervision for 12 months.
Khan was disqualified from driving for 12 months and must sit the extended test when the term is over.
Taxi drivers shared concerns at the cost of buying new cars as Huntingdonshire District Council sets new minimum emission standards
In the early hours of Sunday, May 21, 2023, Farid Cheheb was driving his taxi when he struck 44-year-old Shane Scannell on South Street, Epsom.
A private hire driver is more than £200 out of pocket after refusing to let an assistance dogs ride in his cab.
A General Motors autonomous car company has settled a lawsuit for millions with a woman who was hit by one of its self-driving taxis and dragged along a San Francisco street last year.
Ibraheem Khan, 27, pounced on Abdelella Yousif in Glasgow’s St George’s Cross on November 13, 2022.
Edinburgh taxi drivers will no longer be charged by the council to use The Royal Mile on their annual outing.
The mother of a boy chased by a cabbie after being in collision with his PHV on a bicycle has told how her son required surgery for a broken arm.
A taxi firm fed up with the number of roadworks in a town centre has sent a formal complaint to the Government - branding the county council 'totally and utterly incompetent'.
Warrington BC has launched two surveys – one for the public, and one for cabbies - both drivers licensed by Warrington BC, and drivers who are licensed by other local authorities.
A taxi driver who completed deliveries for the NHS during the height of the Covid pandemic has been jailed for his role in a major heroin and cocaine ring.