Out-of-town taxi drives undermine public safety - Manchester mayor

Private hire drivers outside of London can operate anywhere in England and Wales under current laws

Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham is urging locals not to use taxis licensed by a council in the West Midlands.

He made the plea amid concern from city cabbies, after figures showed a third of the region's taxis were private hire cars registered 80 miles away in Wolverhampton.

Mr Burnham said drivers registered out of town "undermined public safety".

Wolverhampton Council says operators undergo "strict and rigorous'" vetting.

Data obtained by the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) showed almost 9,000 drivers registered with Wolverhampton Council resided in Greater Manchester.

It prompted calls by Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) for a change in the law because local councils "can not guarantee a high standard" from drivers registered elsewhere.

'Don't charge as much'

The government said it had recently brought in tighter checks for drivers but current legislation allows private hire drivers outside London to operate anywhere in England and Wales.

Mr Burnham told BBC Radio Manchester: "I think the reason people go there [Wolverhampton] is because they don't charge as much to license taxis.

"The checks they do aren't as stringent and it is not right. They are undermining public safety in Greater Manchester."

A Wolverhampton Council spokesperson says licence applicants are "usually local to the area they drive in", but added many chose to be licensed there due to their "efficient, yet rigorous licensing process."

"Public safety is of paramount importance to us," they said. "Partnership working with our Licensing colleagues and other agencies shows our commitment to upholding our responsibilities; we expect drivers and vehicles licensed by us to always maintain the highest standards."

"This is irrespective of the administrative boundary within which they are operating at any particular time."

Plea to residents

There are just over 36,000 private hire drivers with a Wolverhampton plate, about 13% of the city's population of about 262,000, the data obtained by LDRS showed.

By comparison, 16,300 private hires have a Greater Manchester licence plate.

Mr Burnham added: "If we can't resolve this by a requirement that if you are working in a place you've got to be licensed there, then I would be very disappointed - but we'd have to go down a different route.

"I appeal to the government and to the council in Wolverhampton to change what they are doing as it does not build public safety.

"I would say to any Greater Manchester resident, only use taxi firms that are registered in one of our 10 boroughs."

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