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07
Sept 2023
A petition has been launched calling on North Yorkshire Council (NYC) to bring back local taxi zones, reversing a policy introduced earlier this year that local drivers have branded a "massive mistake".
Under the old system, each local authority in the county had its own taxi licensing zone, and drivers could only work within that area.
But county councillors decided on February 21 that North Yorkshire would introduce a single zone for the whole of the county, meaning that drivers can now work across the region. The move was in line with “best practice” advice from the government, which advocates the policy to “allow economic forces to determine supply levels and generate cost savings for the council”.
The policy came into effect on April 1.
But Liberal Democrat Councillor Barbara Brodigan, who represents the Ripon Ure Bank & Spa division, says the single county-wide zone is failing customers and damaging the livelihoods of local drivers. She said:
She said local drivers had traditionally serviced the whole area – towns and villages – but are now having a lot of the lucrative town business taken away from them by competitors who have no interest in servicing the rural areas.
She added:
One of the people affected is Richard Fieldman, who owns A1 Cars in Ripon. He said:
He added that he believes that NYC has not even followed correct procedures to create the single taxi zone, so any taxis operating outside their ‘home’ zones are technically breaking the law.
According to Cllr Brodigan, the decision was flawed from the outset, as councillors didn’t take into account the response to a question asked in a NYC survey prior to the council vote, which asked: “Do you agree or disagree with the proposal for a single zone for North Yorkshire?”. Fifty-two per cent of respondents – a clear majority – disagreed.
Mr Fieldman said:
The Stray Ferret approached NYC for comment, but has yet to receive a reply.
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