A private hire driver was filmed appearing to urinate in a front garden in broad daylight.
The Liverpool Echo reports that the driver was caught on camera by a concerned resident of Highfield Street in Liverpool city centre on Thursday March 23 at around 9.30am.
The footage shows the male driver stood next to his private hire vehicle. He appears to urinate into the front garden of a flat building on the road.
He can then be seen getting back into the car and preparing to drive away.
The concerned resident who contacted the Echo described the act as "disgusting."
They added: "Totally unacceptable. Nudity in public. There is now bodily fluids urine on the footpath."
"If you are making a journey you should be planning where and when you are going to stop - in restaurants, in hotels or in petrol stations. Good planning could have prevented this. Very anti social behaviour."
There is no single law dealing with public urination in the UK but there are a number of ways you may get in trouble for urinating in public.
Most penalties for public urination are laid out in the byelaws of individual local authorities under section 235 of the Local Government Act 1972.
If you get caught going for a wee in public you are likely to be hit with a Penalty Notice for Disorder (PND) under Section 5 of the Public Order Act 1986.
People who receive a PND will be fined £50 or £80, which they will have to pay within 21 days of receiving the notice.
Source: https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/furious-resident-films-taxi-driver-26550414
The Low Emissions Zone in Glasgow city centre will have a “devastating impact” on the taxi trade, an MSP has said in a debate in the Scottish Parliament.
According to the Glasgow Times, Pauline McNeill, Glasgow Labour MSP, led a debate on the taxi industry and told MSPs that hundreds of drivers face a bill of tens of thousands of pounds or be forced out of business.
McNeill said their concerns about the scheme are being “ignored” and they were “neglected” during the pandemic.
The LEZ is due to start in June this year where older vehicles will not be allowed to enter the city centre as they will not be compliant with the emissions rules.
The MSP said: “As we know, around 1,000 cabs out of the fleet of 1,420 are not Euro 6 compliant.
“In other words, there are 1,000 taxi drivers who, at the moment, would not be able to enter the LEZ in Glasgow.
“One can already begin to see the extent of the problem.
“Although 200 cabs have been given an extra 12 months, people in the rest of the taxi sector have been left to find thousands of pounds that they simply do not have during a cost of living crisis.”
McNeill highlighted the importance of taxis to Glasgow’s transport system and economy.
She explained how late night workers rely on taxis to get home after a shift and women, people with disabilities and vulnerable people at night get an “important service” from the drivers.
The MSP added: “It’s time we recognised the importance of the taxi industry and give it the support it needs and deserves, we need to stop the exodus of drivers leaving the profession because of cost of staying in business and impending regulation that is pushing them out of the sector.
"The world we live in now requires a strong taxi service.”
Jenny Gilruth, Transport Minister said she agreed taxi drivers are “vital to the economy” and accepted that the pandemic was “challenging” for them.
On extensions and exemptions for the LEZ the minister added: “It is, of course, for Glasgow City Council to outline its position, but I recognise that taxi operators and the unions have been engaging with the local authority.
“Very recently, Glasgow has confirmed that there will be an additional year for drivers whose taxis cannot be retrofitted, and the position for others is simply a requirement to demonstrate that they have signed up to the process of applying for funding.”
LEVC is celebrating producing its 10,000th vehicle.
Car Dealer Magazine reports that the company’s first TX electric taxi rolled off the production line at its state-of-the-art Ansty factory in 2018 and was delivered in London.
Since then, 10,000 of them have been built and sold across the world from Paris to Madrid and Cairo to Tokyo.
The milestone achievement also continues the momentum of a record-breaking year for LEVC, with 2,508 TX vehicles sold in 2022, making it the manufacturer’s best annual sales performer to date.
The TX electric taxi has now overtaken the diesel-powered TX4 as the most common black cab in London. There are more than 6,000 TX taxis on the streets of the capital – more than 40 per cent of all the black cabs there.
LEVC chief executive Alex Nan said: "This year will see LEVC hit many milestones. As well as producing our 10,000th vehicle, we will celebrate ten years of being part of the Geely Holding Group family.
"The past decade has seen significant change for the business, including a new manufacturing facility, a complete rebrand and the launch of both the TX electric taxi and the VN5 van.’
He added: "Since the first TX rolled off the production line at Antsy in 2018, we have seen demand continue to grow for our purpose-built, advanced, zero-emission-capable vehicles.
"We are proud to have reached the incredible milestone of 10,000 units and we would like to thank all our stakeholders – from our loyal customers to valued employees – for their support in helping us to achieve this impressive milestone.
"Looking ahead, LEVC has outlined a new strategy that will see the business transform into a leading zero-carbon mobility technology company.
"We will build on LEVC’s unrivalled heritage and grow beyond high-end taxi manufacturing, delivering on our mission to offer smart, green, safe and accessible mobility to more customers than ever before."
City of Wolverhampton Council is set to reduce licence fees for black cabs and private hire vehicles.
According to the Express and Star, the local authority said it had seen a huge increase in the number of drivers applying for licences during 2021/22.
This has resulted in surplus income which licensing guidelines stipulate must be used within the service, so it has been decided that the additional income generated will be used to reduce the fees for applicants.
Changes to renewal fees include hackney carriage/private hire one-year driver renewal fees reducing from £64 to £49, three-year renewal fees reducing from £120 to £98 and black cab and private hire fees reducing from £40 to £39 for one year and £100 to £78 for three years.
In addition, the council has identified ways to make savings based on a reduction in the administration costs involved in licensing vehicles over ten years of age.
The savings will help the council recruit further staff to process applications and expand compliance operations across the country.
The council said it aims to help address the national shortage of private hire drivers, while continuing to maintain high levels of public safety.
Councillor Steve Evans, cabinet member for city environment and climate change, said: “Wolverhampton leads the way in private hire licensing and as the cost of living crisis continues, the council is pleased to be able to offer drivers these reduced fees.
“As a licensing authority, we are committed to continuing to maintain our high levels of public safety. We’ve invested heavily in digital technology which enables us to thoroughly check driver and vehicle details.
“We are believed to be the first in the country to have introduced daily enhanced DBS checks on all of our drivers.
"We have also introduced technology that checks applicants right to work and we check every new applicant against the National Register for Revocations, Refusals and Suspensions (NR3S).
“We have always been at the forefront of implementing stringent taxi licensing standards and we will continue to use the latest technology to ensure both public and passenger safety as well as passing savings back to our drivers.”
The proposals for new fees and charges are recommended for approval at the next meeting of the council’s regulatory committee on March 29.
A drunk man head-butted a taxi driver who tried to stop him fleeing from paying his fare.
DerbyshireLive reports that Southern Derbyshire Magistrates' Court heard how Lee Insley then smashed up part of his parent's home with a kettle after "going off on one" due to the booze.
The 49-year-old told the hearing he did so because someone "was slagging my ex-missus off calling her 'a fat monster'."
Now he will have time to reflect on his inebriated actions after being put behind bars. Jailing the defendant for 12 weeks, District Judge Jonathan Taaffe said: "You have assaulted a taxi driver who was simply doing his duty, he tried to reason with you and you head-butted him."
Lynn Bickley, prosecuting said both incidents took place on Monday March 20. She said the cabbie was working in Ashby, over the border in Leicestershire, and at around 4pm he accepted a fare to take the defendant back to his Swadlincote home.
The prosecutor said: "The defendant asked to be dropped off at a store so he could take the money out to pay for the fare, which was £11, but when he got out of the taxi he started to walk away. The taxi driver got out and held him by the arm to prevent him from walking away and going any further and told the defendant he was going to call the police.
"The defendant said he had no money and then head-butted the driver to the right side of the head. He let go of the defendant fearing he was going to be assaulted further.
"A group of children on bikes (seeing what had happened) followed the defendant back to his address and told the taxi driver where he had gone. He knocked on the door and the defendant's mother answered."
Miss Bickley said the mother started to become upset and advised the cabbie to call the police. In a later statement, she said her son had been sleeping at their address in the living room and that his drunken behaviour was causing them stress and anxiety.
The prosecutor said: "She described the defendant as 'going off on one' inside the house, picking up a kettle and using it to smash a mirror and the TV which no longer works.
"She says she is sick of his behaviour when he's drunk and that she does not want him to contact her or to return to her home.
"In his interview he made full admissions saying he was in drink at the time."
Insley pleaded guilty to common assault and criminal damage.
As well as the jail sentence, Judge Taaffe ordered the defendant to pay the cabbie £100 compensation and to pay his parents £280 compensation for the damage he caused using the kettle.
Source: https://www.derbytelegraph.co.uk/news/local-news/man-drunk-smashed-up-parents-8279210
A former paratrooper turned pet taxi driver is in the running for an Animal Star Award for his work in Wakefield and Pontefract.
Tariq Rehman, 75, from Stechford, had his licence removed by Solihull Council in November last year following a complaint from a passenger.
A taxi firm boss has branded the criminal justice system "broken" after new figures revealed almost a third of offenders in the town reoffended within a year.
Dramatic CCTV footage has captured the moment a hooded figure set a taxi alight on a residential driveway.
A Drongan taxi driver has been convicted of sexually assaulting a female passenger after offering to waive her fare in exchange for sex.
Artur Nowostawski has been jailed for six years and nine months after he attacked a taxi driver earlier this year.
Taxi drivers in the city are facing significant financial losses after a series of electric vehicle charging point failures left them unable to operate.
Police are appealing for help to trace a man who disappeared after getting into a taxi bound for the Otley area of Leeds.
The company’s operator licence includes a condition ordering all drivers to undergo the same training as those from other companies.
Police have stopped a private hire driver who was driving the wrong way on the M1 close to Junction 8 at Hemel Hempstead.
Newcastle City Council is set to introduce strict new measures to tackle illegal and inconsiderate parking near Newcastle International Airport.
West Mercia Police is appealing for information following a rape that took place in Malvern's Priory Park early on Sunday, August 4th.
Glasgow taxi users could be facing a near-10% fare increase and extended night-time charges.
At least 14 cars have been damaged since June, with drivers suffering financial loss and emotional distress.
The attack happened at around 12.45pm on Etruria Vale Road, Stoke, when the victim, driving a Toyota Avensis, was punched in the face by one of the men.
Cumberland Council has taken decisive action to protect public safety by revoking the licence of a taxi driver charged last week with a serious racially aggravated offence.
A historic bridge has been closed indefinitely after an Uber car became wedged on Saturday morning.
A local councillor has sparked a debate on passenger safety after claiming that using locally licensed taxis is safer than hailing an Uber.
A taxi driver was attacked and subjected to racist abuse after two brothers refused to pay him up front.
Christopher Hilling, 64, admitted to engaging a child in sexual activity at Chelmsford Crown Court on Thursday 8 August.