New taxi fares for North Yorkshire revealed

All hackney carriage vehicles in North Yorkshire look set to be allowed to charge a maximum of £7.40 for a standard two-mile journey.

Currently Harrogate Borough Council and the other six district councils in the county set their own fares for hackney carriages.

But the new North Yorkshire Council, which will become the sole licensing authority on April 1, will align the maximum fares when senior councillors meet next week. A report to the councillors is here.

The proposed new county-wide fare structure is based on what customers currently pay in both Harrogate and Selby districts.

Out of 350 local authorities Harrogate and Selby currently stand at number 76 in the national hackney carriage fare table — meaning the taxis will be more expensive than in almost 80% of other places.

Under the proposed tariff, a two-mile journey within North Yorkshire would cost a maximum of £7.40 between 6am and midnight. The price will go up after midnight and at Christmas and new year.

A maximum soiling charge of £100 – should a vehicle need to be cleaned – has also been set to align with the current charges in Richmondshire, Craven and Ryedale. The rate in the Harrogate district is currently £80.

Cllr Derek Bastiman

Cllr Derek Bastiman

North Yorkshire County Council’s executive member for open to business, Cllr Derek Bastiman, said:

“We need to ensure all businesses, residents and visitors across North Yorkshire are subject to the same maximum fare, regardless of where they live, work or visit.

“The setting of taxi fares is a statutory duty for the licensing authority and our aim is to strike a balance between setting a fare that is acceptable to the customer and to the taxi driver, and not create confusion by varied fares in the licensed area.

“The proposed fares are the maximum hackney carriage drivers can charge. They can, of course, charge a lower fare, should they wish to do so.”

If approved by North Yorkshire County Council’s executive on Tuesday next week, the proposed fares will be subject to a statutory 14-day consultation period.

Once a tariff of fares has been set, a driver cannot charge more to passengers than the charge shown on the meter apart from in certain exceptional circumstance, such as where a journey ends outside of the council area and a fee has been agreed in advance.

Private hire vehicles set their own fares and cannot be regulated by the licensing authority, so customers should agree the fare before the journey commences.

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Councillors back calls for 5% increase in Harrogate district taxi fares

Councillors have backed calls for a 5% increase in taxi fares to help cover soaring fuel prices and a drop in earnings for drivers during the covid pandemic.

The rise request was made to Harrogate Borough Council whose cabinet member for housing and safer communities, Cllr Mike Chambers, will now make a final decision whether prices should go up.

If approved, the increase would make the Harrogate district the 14th most expensive council area in the UK for taxi fares, according to national trade newspaper Private Hire and Taxi Monthly.

However, local taxi drivers have argued the district’s position is not as high for journeys above two miles.

Speaking at a meeting of the council’s licensing committee on Wednesday, Cllr John Mann, a Conservative who represents Harrogate Pannal, said he appreciated that prices may be higher than some areas but taxi drivers needed support.

He said: 

“We seem to be in the middle of a cost of living crisis at the moment and we are all aware prices are going up rapidly.

“If you are a taxi driver all of this is not good because it eats into your profit. I do have sympathy with the trade.”

Cllr Sue Lumby, a Conservative who represents Harrogate Coppice Valley, added: 

“If the trade is not profitable, no one is going to do it.

“It may help the public to have the rise if it means we keep the taxi drivers.”

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The 5% rise would be on the running mile and waiting times of journeys, and there would also be an increase in starting prices from £3.40 to £3.60 if approved.

The request comes after warnings that as many as 50 taxi drivers in the Harrogate district quit during the previous lockdowns and many have now found new jobs with little desire to return to the trade.

Last year also saw record costs for both petrol and diesel in the UK, with diesel hitting prices of over £1.50 per litre for the first time in history.

Driver shortages

During a consultation held in September, drivers said the trade had been “badly affected” by rising costs, not just on fuel but also vehicle prices and parts.

One driver told the council:

“Needless to say we are trading in difficult circumstances due to increasing costs, driver shortages and backlogs at DVLA and other agencies which is hindering the testing of new drivers.

“Although fuel prices seem to be rising on a daily basis one has to accept this trend cannot continue indefinitely.”

The consultation was held with 500 taxi drivers, although only 30 responses were received.

Speaking at Wednesday’s meeting, Gareth Bentley, licensing manager at the council, said this was a “fairly normal” response rate for consultations held with the trade.

He added: 

“Clearly the trade is finding running vehicles considerably more expensive now.

“We do start from quite a high point in terms of our fares at the moment – and we have got to balance the needs of the travelling public with the trade’s ability to make a reasonable living.”