Two Harrogate taxi drivers delivered a letter signed by 154 cabbies to Harrogate Borough Council’s Civic Centre this morning protesting against a raft of new licence conditions they believe are unfair.

The changes, which were approved by the council in April, include potentially revoking a driver’s licence if they receive seven penalty points.

They also stipulate drivers must keep taxi plates on their vehicles even when they are not working, attend mandatory training courses and adhere to stricter rules around scuffs and scratches on vehicles.

Following the Stray Ferret’s article on the new conditions last week, the taxi drivers received some criticism on social media for opposing the seven penalty points rule.

Blueline driver David Goodall wanted to stress that drivers are “not asking for permission” to speed but that the points ban was only one aspect of the changes that he believes will irreparably hurt the trade.

He added:

“What we want is for the council to understand within our occupation you can inadvertently go over the speed limit such as when we have a difficult customer in the car or if someone has a medical emergency and there’s a need to get to hospital quickly.”

Taxi driver Musa Ebzao believes making drivers display their taxi plates at all times could put their security at risk and make their cars or their homes a target for thieves.

“I’ve been threatened by somebody who wanted to burn down my house. The plates are telling people where we live.

“Also so many times, people break in thinking there’s money in the taxi and steal what’s in the meter or sat nav. That has happened many times.”

Read more:

• ‘We just want to make a living’: Harrogate cabbies hit out at new rules

• Harrogate district taxi drivers hit out at ‘unfair’ penalty points proposal

He added that sending experienced drivers on four days of compulsory training was “really insulting”.

“Send me on a course to teach manners and honesty? We already have that. I find it really insulting. I have been taxi driving for 30 years on and off.”

Legal action

Mr Ebzao and Mr Goodall said they will be awaiting a response from the council licensing team but hadn’t ruled out future legal action or protests.

Mr Goodall said:

“An increasing concern is the manner the council is using these conditions as a way of antagonising and persecuting licensed drivers.

“The council should abandon this policy, start from scratch, and consult all the licensed drivers. What we want is common sense, that’s all we ask.”

A council spokesperson said it would not be issuing a response to the letter and that its position has not changed from last week’s statement, which said:

“The safety of customers using taxis is paramount.

“Seven penalty points issued for motoring offences is consistent with proposals for City of York and the West Yorkshire authorities and is recommended in national guidance.

“Taxi drivers’ licences are reviewed on an individual basis when points accumulate. And while the policy specifies seven points, an opportunity is given to the driver to put their side and reasons why their licence should not be revoked.

“Once a vehicle is licensed it is always a licensed vehicle and the law does not permit drivers to take licence plates off. It cannot sometimes be a private vehicle and sometimes be a licensed vehicle at the driver’s choice. And by ensuring a valid licence plate is secured and displayed at all times it allows the public to identify the vehicle as licenced by the local authority, and prevents it being stolen and used by others.”

Wetherby Services on the A1 has the joint highest petrol price in England — costing an eye-watering 202.9p per litre to fill up.

Prices at the pump have risen yet again this week due to increases in the cost of crude oil, which is used to make petrol and diesel.

The website PetrolPrices publishes up-to-date fuel prices at sites across the country.

It shows the BP station at Wetherby Services has passed the £2 per litre threshold and is now the joint highest petrol price in the country.

It’s the same price as other BP motorway petrol stations in Cumbria, Sunderland and Wiltshire.

It was announced today that it now costs over £100 to fill up a 55-litre family car, which the motoring body RAC called a “truly dark day” for motorists.

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In Harrogate, PetrolPrices says the most expensive place to fill up is Texaco on Skipton Road where it costs 197.9p a litre for petrol and 194.9p for diesel.

The cheapest place for petrol is Morrisons in Starbeck, where it’s 170.4p.

For diesel, it’s Asda where it currently costs 181.7p

In Ripon’s three petrol stations, the most expensive is BP where it costs 183.9p for petrol. The cheapest is Morrisons at 180.9p.

In Knaresborough, the Co-op on Manse Road has the most expensive petrol at 184.9p.

West Yorkshire Police has said it has serious concerns for the welfare of a missing Leeds man who may have travelled to Harrogate.

Bede Chapman, 32, from Armley in Leeds, is described as being slim and 6 ft tall. He was wearing a chequered jacket, blue jeans and black boots.

It’s possible he may have made or is currently making his way to Harrogate in a black Renault Twingo with a registration plate beginning LG58.

Anyone who can assist is asked to contact police in Leeds on 101 or by using the LiveChat facility on the West Yorkshire Police website.

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North Yorkshire Police identified more than 200 driving offences in Harrogate in five hours during a blitz to coincide with new mobile phone legislation.

The force revealed today it undertook the operation between 11am and 4pm on Friday, when the new laws come into force.

Officers from the police’s roads policing group and local neighbourhood policing teams targeted drivers in Harrogate.

Among the offences recorded were speeding and using a mobile phone while driving. It is not known how many resulted in further action.

Mark Hutchings, from the force’s road safety team, said the aim was to reduce deaths and make the roads safer. He added:

“Officers targeted drivers on Friday, the day when the new mobile phone legislation came into effect, in an effort to make sure motorists take note of these important changes and abide by the new law.

“We will continue to undertake targeted activity such as this across the county as part of Operation Boundary – North Yorkshire Police’s dedicated road safety and enforcement operation.

“We’ll be on the look-out for road users across the county who take risks – risks that can, and do, cost lives.”

Police guidance on the new legislation is available here.

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An elderly couple were driving for 15 hours yesterday after getting lost on a 40-minute route from Knaresborough to Thirsk.

The couple, a 96-year-old driver and his 90-year-old partner, were trying to drive to a caravan dealer in Thirsk – a route they had driven many times before.

They set off at 2pm on Sunday and were found by North Yorkshire Police officers at 4.40am on Monday morning near Roecliffe.

The officers were initially called to a suspected drink driver on the A168 near Thirsk. The car was reported to be driving all over the road at 20-25mph.

Police caught up with the car just before the Roecliffe industrial estate roundabout. It was confirmed the “lost and confused” couple had not been anywhere else but had been trying to get home.

Officers took the couple home and have submitted forms to the DVLA over medical concerns for the driver. The driver was also strongly advised to stop driving. A North Yorkshire Police spokesman said:

“It’s a difficult conversation to have, but be honest with your relatives and friends you have medical concerns over. Tell them to stop and report them to the DVLA.

“This driver was nearly 15 hours into a 40-minute journey. The ending could have been much worse.”

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Harrogate driving instructors are worried about the health risks of returning to work after struggling financially during lockdown.

Tam Gallagher, chairman of the Harrogate Association of Approved Driving Instructors (HAADI), said that instructors have been told to expect to go back to work on July 6. That’s alongside other professions that can’t work with the two-metre social distancing rule, such as hairdressers. But they are aware of the ongoing risks involved with working in an enclosed space.

He said:

“Some instructors who have underlying health issues are fearful of going back. They are going to go back to work with the hope that they don’t catch anything, but if they don’t work then they don’t make money.”

A handful of instructors of Harrogate have been teaching key workers how to drive during the lockdown but most have had to cancel or postpone lessons.

Mr Gallagher estimated that each instructor will miss out on £15,000 to £20,000 this year, even after the government’s self-employment grant of £6,000 is paid out.

All instructors in Harrogate are self-employed but some are attached to franchises, such as Bill Plant, which provides instructors with pupils and a car.

However, some instructors didn’t qualify for the grant because last year they were employed and only recently qualified recently to be an instructor.

Mr Gallagher said one instructor in the town has had to take drastic measures to balance the books.

He said:

“I know one who said he had to sell his caravan in Harrogate. He can’t afford to pay his rent so had to sell the caravan to offset the losses. He doesn’t get anything.”

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On Monday, the government issued guidance on driving tests which ended three months of uncertainty for HAADI’s 28 driving instructors. This included how instructors can protect themselves and their students with PPE.

Mr Gallagher said:

“It was a long time coming. We just didn’t know what was happening. The government wouldn’t even say all tests were cancelled. We were sitting and waiting. They didn’t tell us soon enough.”