Taxi drivers are to be asked their views on plans to raise fares by as much as 14 per cent.
Stirling Council’s planning and regulation panel has agreed to seek the views of drivers and others in the trade on the proposed rise in fares, which is said to reflect recent inflationary pressures and other costs.
Stirling Council commissioned a Taxi Fare Review from independent traffic consultants, Licensed Vehicles Survey and Assessment (LVSA), which was undertaken in March this year.
LVSA has reported back to the council, with the findings discussed at a panel meeting yesterday (Tuesday).
Proposals in the consultation include:
- An increase in distance based charges of 13.9 per cent (10 pence for every 86 yards);
- A minimum fare increase from £3 to £3.40 for Tariff 1 (7am-11pm) and £3.50 to £4 for Tariff 2 (11pm-7am plus Sundays and public holidays);
- A wait time increase by 50 per cent to 30p per minute after the first three minutes;
- A new tariff for five or more passengers based on distance, rather than a fixed cost per additional passenger.
Under the proposed new fares, the minimum fare for Tariff 1 would rise by 13.3 per cent from £3 to £3.40, a five mile journey would increase 14.4 per cent from £11.10 to £12.70 and a 10 mile journey would rise 13.9 per cent from £20.10 to £22.90.
Officers said: “The fare review considers changes in costs associated with operating a taxi, including the price of a vehicle, servicing, fuel, insurance, vehicle excise duty, licensing cost and average national earnings.”
Council officers are expected to report back to the planning and regulation panel around June/July - with the outcome of the taxi trade consultation and next steps for consideration.
Click here for more news and sport from the Stirling area.
The taxi fares were last fixed and came into effect in December 2019 and a subsequent change set by the council was later successfully challenged in an appeal to the Traffic Commissioner.
Karen Ferguson, owner of A1bion Taxis, based in Fallin,said: “We haven’t had a proper tariff increase in quite a few years. It’s about time – everyone else is getting pay rises. The increase would encourage more drivers to want to work and get more folk driving taxis because recruiting drivers has been a real problem.
“The tariff would make a big difference to drivers and businesses with the costs of cars, fuel, the cost of living and that’s before you factor in the cost of repairs to the cars as well.”
The LVSA report has been published on the Stirling Council website.
