Councillors fear a shortage of taxis could hurt Bathgate’s night-time economy as it struggles back to its feet following the two-year covid lockdown.
There has been a long and steady decline in traditional “rank and hail” taxis across the country.
Faced with surging costs and fewer, customers many have been driven out of business. And regulations on disabled access have left many facing the prospect of spending up to £50,000 on compliant vehicles.
Now as clubs and pubs seek to rebuild customers post pandemic it’s obvious that getting home late at night is not as easy as it used to be.
SNP councillor Willie Boyle told a meeting of the town’s local area committee: “There is a severe shortage of taxis, not just in Bathgate, but across West Lothian and the country. Apparently it’s far more lucrative to go delivering parcels for Amazon than it is to sit in a taxi rank.”
He added: “It could be bigger than competing for private hire. That’s been an issue for years. Every side street there’s a private hire sitting waiting for a message from his controller rather than returning to base.
“It really is an issue, it’s all part of public transport, and it’s failing. What do we do as far as Bathgate centre is concerned to help that?
“This could have a marked effect on the success of local economies”
Labour’s Tony Pearson said: “I think it’s important that the shortage of taxi drivers is looked into and what we can do to help those thinking about entering the trade.
“A lot had to find another way of living. There’s no certainty of any money in it. I was talking to a taxi driver the other night. Wheelchair friendly cabs cost £50,000. Do we need every taxi to do that or do we need a portion of taxis to do that?”
Chairing the meeting, Labour’s Harry Cartmill said he agreed 100 per cent with everything that had been said.
He added that in 10 years of working with the street pastors at night in Bathgate he had never seen someone in a wheelchair waiting at the taxi rank.
He added that when he had been out most recently with the pastors: “I have seen people cannot get taxis. There’s frustration from members of the public. There’s frustration from nightclubs. Everything about The Dreadnought [a club and live music venue] is a model of what we should have in a night time economy but if it is difficult to get home you have a disincentive for people to go out. It is an issue that has to be looked at.”
A taxi operator in the town told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that West Lothian had 183 taxis at its peak.
The lockdowns took that down to around 100 and it’s expected to fall further - possibly below 70.
The operator said: “Some years ago West Lothian Council changed the vehicle conditions for taxis from rear loading to requiring side loading only of wheelchairs.
“The reason given was convenience for wheelchair users NOT safety. There is no history of any accidents to wheelchair users boarding from the rear of the vehicle. Most wheelchair-access vehicles in the UK, including those privately owned, are rear loading.”
Critical of the new hire charges recently agreed he added: “There is little incentive. I, personally, think none for an ordinary person to enter the taxi trade. Sadly the damage is done, even if the condition were reversed it will take years to recover.”
A West Lothian Council spokesperson said: “The decline of the ‘rank and hail sector’ is due to the significant change in the way hires are arranged. Most customers now either call booking offices to book hire car vehicles or use software apps and accordingly the numbers of people using taxi ranks has substantially reduced. One exception to that locally is the night time economy in Bathgate.
“This change in the way hires are arranged has contributed to a decrease in the numbers of licensed taxis across the whole of Scotland. The hire car licensing scheme is governed by the largely unchanged provisions of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982, legislation which many lawyers consider has not kept pace with the significant changes in technology in the hire car sector over the last 30 years.
“In relation to the cost of taxis, it is recognised that this can be a barrier to additional taxis being licensed but as outlined this is not the only issue which has led to a decline in taxi numbers. In addition, the council does not have an age limit on vehicles and the taxi fleet locally has always been predominantly composed of second-hand vehicles.
“West Lothian Council ceased restricting the numbers of taxi licences in 2011 in order that anyone who wished could licence a taxi. The council has no role in regulating when taxis operate as there is no duty to trade.
“In 2009, the council determined that all taxis must meet accessibility standards. This decision was made following consultation with stakeholders including local disability groups.”
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