Over 100 taxi drivers recently protested outside council offices in Bristol, forcing the local authority to take action against unlicensed and ‘out of town’ taxi cabs. While the drivers’ livelihoods are under threat from taxis that come to the city from as far as Birmingham, Cardiff and Taunton to tout for trade, the protestors also argue that the spate of unlicensed cabbies is putting their own lives at risk.
The peaceful protest was staged outside the Temple Street offices of Bristol County Council where licensed taxi drivers from the city aired their grievances. Among their list of complaints, they claimed that the council was “allowing out of town taxis to work” in Bristol and that local cabbies “go out every day to build up the skills to become a qualified driver but Bristol City Council allows some drivers to come from outside Bristol, with no knowledge at all.”
“SARI has been working hard to tackle the hate crime, general crime and abuse that taxi drivers face on a too-frequent basis.”
Taxi Enforcement Officer
It seems that this is one of the contributing factors in the rising number of hate crimes against taxi drivers in the city. With unqualified, out of town drivers charging above-average fares and taking longer to get their passengers from A to B, some members of the public are taking their frustrations out on local cabbies.
In response, the council has ordered a crackdown on illegal taxis, taking inspiration from a scheme launched in Birmingham earlier this year. Birmingham Council has introduced a Taxi Enforcement Officer initiative, aimed specifically at tackling a similar problem. Bristol Councillor, Asher Craig, announced through social media that “we’re going to be pursuing unlicensed taxi drivers, following in the footsteps of Birmingham”.
In a follow-up statement, a spokesperson for the council said that “we have secured funding for a dedicated police officer to begin work this week. Their role will be to ensure that a fair and competitive service is maintained by enforcing the rules and regulations.”
Standing Against Hate Crime
Bristol’s new ‘taxi cop’, PC Quinton, not only hopes to “ensure residents and visitors receive an excellent service” but to “ensure the safety of passengers, the public and taxi drivers to help deliver an effective and quality transport system for Bristol and South Gloucestershire.” PC Quinton’s aims were settled on after a discussion between Bristol City Council, Birmingham City Council, representatives from the licensed taxi community and the charity Stand Against Racism and Inequality (SARI).
Further to PC Quinton’s announcements, SARI released a statement saying: “SARI has been working hard to tackle the hate crime, general crime and abuse that taxi drivers face on a too-frequent basis.” Directly referencing the protestors’ complaints, the charity also stated that “We’re keen to ensure that any rogue drivers who are not abiding by the rules and regulations are tackled effectively as they impact on the reputation of all drivers and compromise the livelihoods of local trade too.”