COVENTRY MESSAGE BOARD

A designated space on the city's ranks for adapted vehicles would benefit both drivers and passengers



A Coventry councillor has called for designated spaces to be allocated at taxi ranks across the city for vehicles able to take wheelchairs.

Cllr Christine Thomas, who chairs the Disability Equality Action Partnership, said the extra space would help drivers of vehicles fitted with rear ramps and would also benefit taxi users.

Speaking at today’s (Tuesday) Coventry City Council licensing and regulatory committee, she praised the work being done by officers.

She said: “I’m really pleased to see that the officers are trying to increase the number of vehicles that are suitable for people with disabilities – we seem to have a problem at the moment with a lot of drivers refusing to take wheelchairs.

"I was made aware the other day of a gentleman in a wheelchair at a rank and the first four taxis said they all had exemption certificates, but not all had a sticker in the window.”

Her comments followed a report by Debbie Cahalin-Heath, the council’s strategic manager for regulation and communities, which outlined changes to the licensing policy for taxis, including the removal of the London Conditions of Fitness, which restricts the type of vehicle that can be used in Coventry.

Increasing the variety of vehicles available will mean more cars will be wheelchair accessible.

Cllr Thomas added: “I think the removal of this is absolutely brilliant.

"We all know why it was there – the vehicle had to be able to turn around in the space outside the Savoy Hotel. We have moved on.

“One thing you might want to look at in the future is having a space on the ranks for a vehicle that is specifically wheelchair accessible, because we have so many drivers who are saying they are not and it can be quite humiliating for a person with a disability who is constantly being told by drivers that they cannot take them.

"If we get vehicles like those currently operating in Spain where the back of the vehicle opens and a ramp comes out, then those vehicles will need extra space, and when the taxis stack up in the ranks, they tend to be closer together.”

Councillors were told that, while it was something that could be looked into, the council’s legal experts might need to be consulted in case it was seen as being discriminatory.

The updated policy, which also included changes to emissions rules and the permitted age of vehicles, was approved by councillors and will now go before the council’s cabinet later this month.