Coventry taxi drivers furious at rising fees as they face 'darkest period'

[dutchman]

Licence fees for the city's black cabs will go up - but some warned the council they won't be able to afford it



Coventry cabbies have said they are "struggling" as bills soar and they face rising competition for work in the city. One hackney cab driver said the trade is "on its last legs" and this is "the darkest period we have ever faced."

The claims were made in response to council plans to increase licence fees for cabs in the city, including the traditional hackney carriages - known as London taxis or black cabs. The move was agreed by a council committee today (12 March.)

But papers for the meeting show the proposals were met with an outcry among drivers consulted on the move. More than 50 wrote to the authority opposing the scheme, with just two comments in support.

Many said they can't afford the rise as they are already coping with high inflation and the soaring cost of living. One driver claimed they are struggling to make ends meet despite working a seven-day week, and another said their income is too small to support themselves and their family.

The drivers also raised concern over rising competition with out-of-own cabbies and those with app-based services such as Uber. One said there are "not enough jobs" and most customers are hardly using black cabs.

Another painted a gloomy picture of the traditional cabbie's prospects. They wrote: "I do not believe that it would be justifiable in the current circumstances that we as taxi drivers are having to face, what with rising costs across the board, with rising fuel and insurance costs and ever increasing costs for repairs and maintenance.

"Along with diminishing revenues due to Uber, the taxi Hackney trade is on its
last legs. It appears to me, having been in the trade for over 30 years, that this is the darkest period we have ever faced."

Several letters also called on councillors and the council's licensing office to do something about the situation. But a council report said the fees had to go up to make sure the service breaks even.

The report warned of the consequences of not doing so, stating: "Failure to increase fees in line with costs and to keep pace with inflation will result in
a financial loss to the council and an increase in the council’s subsidy of the Taxi and Private Hire Licensing Service."

Under the changes the cost of new driver licences will rise by £35-40, while renewing the licence - which has to be done by drivers every three years - will cost an extra £20. Other fees will rise by between £2 and £17, the highest one being the driver licence re-grant and licence fees for vehicles.

Operator costs will also rise by £100-£110. The changes will be brought in from the start of next month (1 April.)