Agenda item

The Principal Officer (Licensing), Worcestershire Regulatory Services (WRS), explained that the Council had responsibility under the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976, for setting the maximum fares that could be charged by hackney carriage vehicles licensed to operate within the district.

The Council had responsibility under the Local Government (Miscellaneous

Provisions) Act 1976, for setting the maximum fares that could be charged by

hackney carriage vehicles licensed to operate within the district.

Hackney Carriage (“Taxi”) fares were made up of an initial hiring charge and a

“mileage” rate, both of which were expressed in terms of distance and / or

time per unit cost. This was because when a hired taxi was stationary or

moving slowly in traffic the meter continued charging, but by time, instead of

distance.

The table of fares applied only to hackney carriage vehicles. Private hire

operators were free to agree their hiring charges in advance with their

customers, normally at the time of booking the journey.

Members were reminded that at the Licensing Committee held on 21^st March

2022, the Committee approved the advertisement of a proposed variation to

the existing table of fares for hackney carriages, as detailed at Appendix 1 to

the report.

An objection to the proposed table of fares was received from a member of

the public. The individual concerned had objected on the basis that they

believed that the Council’s table of fares should only display metric units

(metres and kilometres).

Members were asked to note that the objector had not raised any objection in

respect of the variations being proposed to the maximum cost of journeys

undertaken in hackney carriages, only to the table of fares, which had

included reference to imperial units of measurement (yards and miles). A

copy of the objection was attached at Appendix 2 to the report.

Members were further informed that the proposed varied table of fares

showed distances expressed in both metric (metres) and imperial units of

measurement (yards and miles). This was also true of the current table of

fares that had been approved for implementation by the Licensing Committee

in November 2018.

Officers believed that the current format of the table of fares was compliant

with current legislation and was clear and understandable for passengers and

licence holders. It was also believed to be consistent with the vast majority of

fare tables that were published by other local authorities across England and

Wales.

Members were being asked to consider the objection received to the proposed table of fares and to resolve to bring the revised table of fares, as detailed at Appendix to the report, into force (with or without modifications) on 7^th May 2022.

The Chair thanked the Officer for his detailed report.

In response to Councillor M. Chalk, the Council’s Legal Advisor stated that the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976, detailed ways in which Local Authorities (LA) dealt with taxi fares and that it was within the gift of each LA as to how they detailed those rates of fares; either in metric units, imperial units or both. LA could determine how a member of the public would easily understand the table of fares.

The Chair further stated that the objection received was not an objection to the actual table of fares, but an objection to the use of imperial measurements. In his opinion drivers and the travelling public may well understand miles more than kilometres, however officers had reached a good compromise and had detailed both metric and imperial units in the table of fares, as detailed at Appendix 1 to the report.

On being put to the vote, and having considered the objection received it was

RESOLVED that the table of fares, as detailed at Appendix 1 to the report, be brought into force (without modification) with effect from 7^th May 2022.