Crackdown on illegal taxis catches more than 20 drivers in Nottingham
MORE than 20 drivers have been caught picking people up for illegal taxi journeys in the city in the last six months.
Taxi licensing officers warned people against using illegal cabs after issuing fines to all those caught.
Cabs in Nottingham are licensed by the city council and fall in to two categories - those pre-booked through calling a private hire firm or Hackney carriages that can be picked up without a booking.
In the last six months 21 drivers have been caught ‘illegally plying for hire’, also known as ‘flying’ - where drivers have picked up passengers from the side of the road without having been pre-booked.
Angela Rawson, who heads up the taxi licensing function for the police and council partnership, Community Protection, said: “Getting into an unlicensed cab is like getting into a car with a complete stranger, and you wouldn’t dream of doing that.
“We have no record of the driver or the company and no way of tracing them.”
Fines and costs handed out were £10,752, and 118 penalty points were issued across the 21 drivers.
Two drivers were also disqualified from driving for six months.
Councillor Jane Urquhart, the council’s portfolio holder for transport, said: “We would urge every one of our visitors and citizens to make sure they’re only using licensed taxis.”
Meanwhile, in the capital: Since September 2012, published results from TfL show just 17 revocations of PH drivers convicted of criminal offences, including touting.