A new league table has revealed which police forces have been issuing the most speeding tickets in Britain.
Drivers in West Yorkshire are most likely to be caught speeding, according to the league table put together by road safety experts at Road Angel.
Police there issued almost a quarter of a million fines for speeding during 2021 and 2022, far more than any other force which provided its data.
However the experts were keen to stress that only 23 out of 44 police forces provided figures.
Number of speeding tickets issued by Police forces in Britain from (Jan 21 to Jan 23).
The police forces who responded to a Freedom of Information request showed huge differences in the number of speeding tickets issued.
Some of these differences may be accountable by varying population within the regions but it also suggests that some forces are targeting drivers more than others.
For example a driver is three times more likely to be caught speeding in West Yorkshire than he or she would be just over the border in South Yorkshire.
Collectively, 224,160 speeding tickets were issued to drivers in West Yorkshire during the two year period with almost all offenders caught on speed cameras.
Around 98% of the speeding drivers in West Yorkshire were caught on fixed speed cameras, while the rest were fined directly by police officers.
Police in Avon and Somerset issued 173,428 tickets, the Thames Valley force fined 151,501 drivers while their police colleagues in the West Midlands issued 95,093 tickets
Even rural counties such Hampshire and Lincolnshire appear in the table with police there issuing 62,514 and 59,525 tickets respectively.
Gary Digva, founder of Road Angel said: “There are major discrepancies around the UK in how the police target speeding drivers.
“These figures reveal that motorists are much more likely to fall foul of speeding limits in some police force areas than they are even in neighbouring authorities.
“We doubt the motorists in these regions are worse drivers than those in other parts of the country so we feel the differences are more likely to be explained by a variation in use of cameras around the country and other policing issues.
“While all sensible drivers condemn speeding we would call on the police to adopt a more uniformed approach so that drivers can be confident of being treated the same way around the UK.”
A project to create a blueprint for the future of driverless vehicles in UK cities - including “robotaxi” services - has been backed by Nissan.
According to businessLive, the ServCity scheme, led by a consortium of industry players, has completed 1,600 test miles in a bid to help autonomous vehicles integrate with city infrastructure.
A Nissan Leaf was fitted with specialist technology allowing the vehicle to detect an object not within the line of sight of the vehicle, for trials on London roads. Trials took place in Greenwich where the Smart Mobility Living Lab scheme allows for testing of emerging technologies, safely in a real urban environment. The Lab’s network of roadside sensors and data processing capabilities helped the ServCity vehicle improve its situational awareness and manoeuvre through traffic.
David Moss, senior vice president, region research and development for Nissan AMIEO (Africa, Middle East, India, Europe, and Oceania) said: “We are extremely proud to be a part of the ServCity project and our 100% electric Nissan LEAF has proven to be the ideal test vehicle.
“Through our Nissan Ambition 2030 long-term vision, we are committed to supporting greater access to safe and exciting mobility. Advancing our autonomous drive capability and expertise is critical to this effort and research projects such as ServCity are vital to the evolution of technology.
“Through our world-class R&D base in Cranfield in the UK, Nissan is continuously innovating to bring cutting-edge, purpose-driven technologies that benefit our customers. ServCity’s achievements contribute to our efforts to usher in a future where we hope to see zero fatalities on the road while providing customers with the added comfort and convenience that come from advanced autonomous drive technologies.”
ServCity is a connected and autonomous vehicle project backed by the Government and akin to the projects taking place in Sunderland and involving Nissan’s factory there. During the three year scheme, the consortium of Nissan, Connected Places Catapult, TRL, Hitachi Europe, the University of Nottingham and SBD Automotive has created a blueprint to help manufacturers, transport providers and city planners to prepare for driverless vehicles.
Robert Bateman, manager, Nissan Technical Centre Europe and Nissan project manager for ServCity said: “Not only has Nissan provided the 100% electric Nissan LEAF as a test vehicle, our talented group of engineers have also contributed to the research and development of cutting-edge autonomous drive technology for use within the project. This has enabled the development of a test vehicle that is able to autonomously navigate the busy streets of London alongside other road users – both stationery and moving – while connected with city infrastructure.
“With more than 115 people involved and almost 16,000 working days clocked up across the consortia during the lifetime of the project, ServCity represents an important step towards future deployment of autonomous mobility.”
Source: https://www.business-live.co.uk/technology/nissans-role-three-year-autonomous-26358585
A new sustainable taxi shelter which is set to accommodate passing bees and butterflies, as well as waiting passengers, has been installed in Worthing town centre.
The Argus reports that the structure has replaced the old shelter at Worthing’s main taxi rank in Chapel Road.
Fitted with a “living roof” full of wildflowers and sedum plants, the shelter is rich in nectar to support birds, insects and animals on their travels.
Worthing Borough Council said the living roof will also positively contribute towards climate resilience by absorbing falling rainwater, capturing polluting air particles.
As well as supporting biodiversity, the council said the lighting and visibility of the structure has also been improved, to further the council’s work to ensure that vulnerable members of the community get home safely.
The shelter in Chapel Road has been installed by Clear Channel UK and adds to the two living roof bus stops which were upgraded on South Street last year.
The new shelter has been paid for by the council and also features the colours, logo and website address of the borough’s place brand, Time for Worthing.
Councillor Vicki Wells, Worthing’s cabinet member for the environment, said: “It’s fantastic that this taxi shelter has been improved to help support biodiversity.
“The green roof is full of goodness for passing pollinators. Sedum flowers are especially accessible for honey bees and I can’t wait to see it in a few months time when the flowers begin to bloom - it will look fantastic.”
Will Ramage, Clear Channel UK’s managing director, said: “The installation of a living roof on top of a taxi shelter is a fantastic example of the numerous possibilities these structures can provide.
“We enjoy seeing how local authorities utilise living roofs to showcase how we can be creative in making space for wildlife, even in our most urban areas, and we look forward to our continued work with Worthing Borough Council in the future.”
A blind student says a taxi driver refused to stop to pick up his guide dog, leaving them both stranded by the side of the road. Kelsey Trevett, 21, said it left a feeling of being “vulnerable” and “powerless” and was one of several incidents in a year.
The Express reports that politics and philosophy student at Oxford University booked the cab from a friend’s house back home one Saturday night.
But when the taxi arrived, the driver refused to stop.
Speaking to the Express, Kelsey said: “I hate to say that I almost expect to be refused access when I order a taxi. It happens regularly enough that it affects me. It’s something that stays with you after it happens.”
Kelsey said: “It was cold, it was dark, I was vulnerable, yet I was left on the kerb.” Kelsey called for another although that one let the dog travel, albeit reluctantly.
Kelsey, who has been blind since the age of six, says reluctant cabbies usually say they are “scared of” or “allergic to” dogs.
It comes as three-quarters of assistance dog owners surveyed by Guide Dogs charity say they are regularly refused access to restaurants, shops, or public transport.
Under the Equality Act, guide dog owners have the right to enter the majority of services, premises and vehicles with their dog.
A Guide Dogs spokesman said: “The law is clear, and yet guide dog owners such as Kelsey continue to experience access refusals, which…can put people at risk.”
Kelsey added: “We need to ensure all workers – whether in a restaurant, taxi, theatre, pub, wherever – are trained in dealing with service dog users and are aware of the Act.”
Source: https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/1742647/blind-student-stranded-taxi-driver-refuses-to-stop
Cabbies in South Tyneside have complained that they “can’t afford” to journey into Newcastle after being excluded from financial help from the new Clean Air Zone.
The new city centre charging zone has been in operation for more than a month, putting tolls on some high-polluting vehicles in a bid to slash illegal levels of emissions. Older taxis that do not meet the CAZ’s environmental standards face daily £12.50 fees to come into or through Newcastle city centre.
But ChronicleLive reports that while drivers licensed in Newcastle, Gateshead, and North Tyneside have been offered the chance to apply for grants to help upgrade to a cleaner vehicle and to get a discounted £50-a-week charge instead, there is no such support for taxi companies outside those three areas. That has become a major source of frustration for drivers in places like South Shields, Jarrow, and Hebburn, who are finding it far more costly to take passengers into the city.
Del Thoburn, owner of South Shields-based Del’s Taxis, said: “We are getting no help at all and I am taking the hit because I don’t want to pass the cost on to the customers.
"I used to have six big buses but now I have gone down to just two and this is one of the reasons. There is no help with the CAZ if you don’t live in Newcastle, Gateshead, or North Tyneside. We should be treated the same as them.”
Council bosses in charge of the CAZ say they only have “limited” funding from the Government and have had to target the financial support at people likely to be most heavily affected by the new restrictions – but have not ruled out widening their offers to other areas in future.
After concerns about the impact on South Tyneside were raised at the North East Joint Transport Committee recently, a spokesperson for South Tyneside Taxis Ltd told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “We have drivers here who don’t want to take a job in Newcastle now. They can’t afford to pay the £12.50 and you can’t charge the customer for it because, at the end of the day, they just won’t want to go to Newcastle if it costs them £12.50 extra.
“If you’re picking them up around midnight, it can be £25 extra because it goes over two days. To me, it is all wrong and it is going to have an impact on the centre of Newcastle. The other boroughs are getting help, but we aren’t.”
A spokesperson for the Newcastle and Gateshead Clean Air Zone said: “The funding for financial support for those affected by CAZ charges is provided by government and it is limited. We are therefore targeting this funding towards those who are more likely to be affected – in particular those who have no choice but to operate within the zone and those who are more likely to make regular journeys into the zone.
“This is aimed at ensuring support is given to those who need it most but, once these applications have been dealt with and subject to funding availability, we will look at inviting grant applications from other areas.”
The introduction of the CAZ, which has been in the works for years, means that drivers of older buses, taxis, lorries, and coaches that do not meet certain environmental standards must pay daily tolls of either £50 or £12.50 to come into or through the city centre. There are also £12.50 charges planned for older vans from this July, but all private cars are exempt.
The charging zone has been imposed in response to a Government order to cut emissions levels in certain hotspots, with poor air quality having been linked to more than 300 deaths on Tyneside every year.
Source: https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/clean-air-zone-taxi-drivers-26386499#
Reading Council licensing officers recently partnered with The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association for a special test purchasing exercise.
Up to eleven taxi drivers could have their licences suspended after failing to attend mandatory disability awareness training, a council report has revealed.
A council report proposes increasing charges to keep up with soaring vehicle expenses, including fuel, maintenance, and purchase prices.
Police targeting anti-social behaviour made a significant drug bust after stopping a taxi in the city.
A week-long trial of new AI cameras on the A1(M) near Newton Aycliffe has exposed a shocking scale of phone use and seatbelt offences.
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.