A number of local authorities are beginning to turn to the idea of making CCTV compulsory in cabs.
Two major cities – Glasgow and Southampton – recently aired proposals to make CCTV a requirement for all taxis.
Southampton City Council claimed that 100 existing ‘taxi cams’ have proved effective in providing a deterrent to would-be trouble makers. It wants all new cabs fitted with CCTV and the other 700 hackney and private hire vehicles currently operating in the city kitted out “as soon as possible”.
Trade representatives are understood to be opposed to the scheme.
Glasgow Cabs
Meanwhile Glasgow City Council is pushing for the 1,000-strong hackney fleet in Scotland’s largest city to be fully CCTV covered. The move could later be extended to hundreds more private hire cars.
The Council says the aim is to improve safety for both drivers and passengers and quotes government statistics showing that one in three cabbies in Scotland have been assaulted at work. Cabbies’ views on the idea are mixed but the main driver organisation, Glasgow Taxis, is broadly supportive.
Secretary Robert Dunabie commented: “This would improve the overall feeling of security within the cab but it would have to be a system drivers could not tamper with.”