Professional Driver Magazine December 2022

Chabé’s electric BMW i7 is a UK chauffeur first

Help for heroes

After the trials of 2020 and 2021, the year that’s drawing to a close had to be better for our industry, right?

Well, yes – and we certainly celebrated the best of the best in style at last month’s Professional Driver QSi Awards. Once again, congratulations to all our champions.

But the end of the pandemic has brought about new problems. Drivers remain in short supply, and so do cars –especially much-needed electric models.

This means the supply curve is now well behind demand –not so good if you’re a passenger needing an urgent pick-up, but not entirely bad for the operator and driver, as it means a long-overdue uplift in fares is now happening. And with fewer drivers on the road, there’s plenty of work for those prepared to put in the hours.

But this can’t continue. So long as national and local governments pursue their war against the private car (step forward, Sadiq Khan) the taxi and private hire sector is in many circumstances the only viable alternative.

A late-shift worker in a bar, or an NHS nurse on nights, cannot rely on shonky public transport, especially in the suburbs, where the buses seem to finish at about 9pm. And for all the cycling evangelism of the 20-somethings at TfL, an 50-year-old office worker is not going to cycle home 10 miles to the suburbs after a long day at work.

The taxi and private hire industry needs help from regulators. Especially in London, it needs a more flexible approach. The sad truth is this: Transport for London is not fit for purpose. Under-funded, under-staffed and inflexible, it acts as a boat anchor on this industry.

Yes, safety is important. Yes, applicants need to pass DBS checks before being allowed behind the wheel of a cab. But there is no reason why the process has to take so long – 10 months at present – to carry out. Wolverhampton Council can process a licence in a couple of weeks – why can’t TfL?

Then there are the punitive rules on vehicles. Back in 2015, TfL decreed – after being bullied by the black cab lobby – that every new private hire car should be “zero-emissions capable”. This idiotic rule means that clean petrol-electric hybrids such as the Toyota Prius were banned, though it was OK to license a

PHEV. You didn’t need to plug it in – it just had to be “capable” of operating for a few miles on battery alone.

It doesn’t take a genius to work out what happened. Nobody plugged in the PHEVs (as there was nowhere to plug them in), and instead the drivers lugged a dead battery, weighing as much as two passengers, around all day. Well done, TfL. You made people buy a less efficient car.

Now we’re heading to a point where you can only register an EV. There are 100,000 PHVs in London. Most of the drivers do not have off-street charging facilities. See where we’re heading here? Where’s the incentive to go electric when it presents so many problems? Find a charger. Wait for it to become free. Wait up to an hour for it to charge the car. Precious earning time gone. You might as well keep your old diesel and pay the C-charge. Again, a negative effect.

It’s particularly bad for chauffeurs. Only now, with the launch of the BMW i7 and Genesis G80 Electrified, are genuine all-electric chauffeur cars coming on stream. If you want a seven-seater, you have the choice of Mercedes or Mercedes. Yet TfL refuses to grant a short extension to allow new, non-EV seven-seaters to be registered to replace increasingly worn-out diesels. Common sense is extinct at TfL.

As the government looks to draw up new rules for the sector, it’s important that issues such as EV infrastructure are addressed and common sense rules about upgrading vehicles are applied. In Glasgow, drivers with older cars will have to replace them by next June – a reasonable request for a 12-month extension was refused. The result is likely to be that those who cannot afford a new car will simply quit. And this at a time when the city is desperately short of cabbies.

We need help, and we’re not getting it. And frankly, given the efforts of the past two years that this industry has made to keep Britain moving through the Covid years, we deserve better.

Meanwhile, have a prosperous festive season and let’s hope for a better new year.

Mark Bursa Editor markbursa@prodrivermags.com

On a charge!

On a personal note my own year had a nice bonus at the recent Guld of Motoring Writers’ Awards, where I won the prize for EV Writer of the Year, thanks to our coverage of the ongoing struggles to match charging infrastructure with electric vehicle demand.

I’m becoming an EV fan, but I’m no evangelist for them – instead I believe they’ll only provide a viable alternative if the

infrastructure is significantly more extensive than at present.

Right now, the Government’s wayward policy on energy prices, and a dwindling interest in incentivising EVs, could result in the market slowing down quite significantly, now all the early adopters have adopted.

In many ways the taxi sector, along with home deliveries, could be the engine for growth for EVs. But as I said, to make this happen, we need help.

Rochford reverses driver decline with ‘earn as you learn’ scheme for new taxi drivers

Mark Bursa

An Essex local authority has implemented an innovative “earn as you learn” scheme for new taxi drivers which has successfully increased the number of drivers in the Rochford district.

The scheme has helped reverse a sharp decline in driver numbers in the area during the pandemic.

Rochford District Council has worked with the main four local operators to develop a scheme encouraging new drivers into the business while still ensuring safety for all passengers.

Under the traditional route into the profession, new drivers had to undergo a lengthy training process and pass the knowledge test before they were issued with a Hackney

Carriage driver’s badge.

Under the ‘earn as you learn’ scheme, new drivers can operate as a driver while they complete their course. Each driver is assigned a mentor and closely monitored throughout the training process.

Drivers have nine months to complete this process. Failure to pass within this time period will result in their badge expiring.

As of the start of December 2022, 27 drivers are enrolled on the scheme, with five drivers having successfully completed the course.

Cllr Arthur Williams, portfolio holder for communities & health said: “It’s great to hear this scheme helping drivers get the necessary training, but also earning a wage they need while studying, especially in the current cost-of-living crisis.”

TfL grants four-month licence extensions as NSL centres are overwhelmed

Mark Bursa

Transport for London has granted a four-month extension to taxi and private hire vehicle licences that are due to expire in December, as the NSL-run inspection centres cannot cope with demand.

Any vehicle due for a licence renewal in December will remain licensed until April 2023, providing it has passed a regular MOT test. The driver or operator must then book the car for a full test at an NSL centre before it expires - as well as another MOT test prior to the NSL test.

The four-month period will begin on the day the current vehicle licence is due to expire. For

InstaVolt to double size of Banbury charging hub

Mark Bursa

InstaVolt is expanding its ultra-rapid EV charging hub in Banbury, Oxfordshire, doubling the number of chargers that currently exist on-site in response to continued consumer demand.

The expansion will see 16 new 120kW rapid chargers installed alongside the existing 16 rapid chargers. Instavolt says minimal disruption will be experienced on site during the installation and no chargers will be unavailable during construction of the project. The additional chargers will be switched on from spring 2023.

example, if a vehicle licence is due to expire on December 20, 2022, it will remain licensed until April 20, 2023.

This applies to any taxi or PHV licence that expires during this period, regardless of whether an inspection has been booked or not. Any booking that has been made will be cancelled with immediate effect and the vehicle is not required to attend a vehicle inspection site.

The proposed change will not apply to taxis and PHVs that have already been inspected in December and licensed for a 12-month period. Vehicles that failed an inspection in December will not be exempt, and must be retested before they can be used.

InstaVolt CEO Adrian Keen said: “The number of EVs on the road is up year on year, with recent figures showing the ratio of EVs to charge points now sits at 15:1. While this figure

is impressive and shows that EV uptake is far from stalling, it also demonstrates that work still needs to be done to ensure the charging infrastructure keeps up with demand.”

Glasgow Council refuses 12-month delay in LEZ enforcement for taxis and PHVs

Mark Bursa

Glasgow Council has refused a request to push back by 12 months the start of enforcement of Glasgow’s Low Emissions Zone for taxis and private hire cars.

The move would have brought Glasgow in line with other Scottish cities, but the refusal means enforcement will begin from July 2023. Private cars will be allowed a further 12 months until June 2024, however.

The Scottish Private Hire Association had asked for the delay as it argued the LEZ would have a serious impact on the taxi trade, with drivers having to buy new cars in order to avoid CAZ charges. According to council figures, 26% of the private hire fleet would require replacement by the enforcement date.

SPHA general secretary Eddie Grice said: “Retrofitting options are not available to the private hire trade. Only the hackney taxi has been given retrofit options.

All private hire cars need to be replaced for compliant vehicles by the LEZ enforcement date.”

“The SPHA and the private hire trade have accepted that the LEZ is coming, but we have been campaigning for an increase to the upper age limit on private hire cars. This was set at seven years.

We have been working to see this increased to ten years.

“Last month, the Council’s licensing committee revisited this. A motion was passed requesting a report be published from the Council’s Executive with a view to increasing the age limit so that an evidence led decision

can be made on the matter.”

“An increase to the age limit will help drivers and operators by allowing more time with the vehicles before having to retire them, which will help in the long term with the costs involved in becoming LEZ compliant. It would also help encourage the fleet move towards more environmentally friendly vehicles.”

The LEZ will come into force from June 1, 2023, and will require all vehicles entering the city centre zone area to meet lesspolluting emission standards or face a penalty charge. The LEZ will operate 24 hours a day, all year round. It will affect 226 streets throughout the city centre bounded by the M8 motorway to the north and west and the River Clyde to the south.

It has emerged that more than half off Glasgow City Council’s own vehicles are not compliant with LEZ regulations. A total of 820 council vehicles will need to be either upgraded or replaced by June 2023.

Drivers slam Canterbury council EV incentives as ‘a drop in the ocean’

Canterbury City Council has launched an incentive scheme to encourage taxi and private-hire firms to go electric – but the plan has been dismissed as “a drop in the ocean” by local drivers.

The incentives for drivers who switch to zero-emission vehicles include a £100-a-year overnight parking permit – available for five years – and the ability to advertise on their cars, subject to council approval.

Drivers will also be offered a 20% discount lasting five years to their licensing fee, amounting to about £30 per annum.

But drivers say these are inadequate compared to the cost of an electric vehicle. Even the cheapest suitable car, such as the MG5, costs in excess of £33,000.

But the authority has since been accused of “paying lip service to the green lobby”, as one businessman believes the benefits are “never going to persuade drivers to go electric”.

Whitstable-based private hire driver Richard Stebbing told local media: “The outlay would be prohibitively expensive for an electric vehicle, even if the range was sufficient. “On my busiest day last week I did well over 400 miles, and I was driving continuously, virtually non-stop for 10 and a half hours. You can’t do that in an electric vehicle. Unless they double the battery life and halve the cost, they’re never going to work.”

“It’s all a drop in the ocean,” Stebbing said. “The council are paying lip service to the public and the green lobby.”

Canterbury City council has voted through plans to only allow new taxi and private hire applications to be given to drivers using battery-electric vehicles from April 2030. Euro 5 emissions standard vehicles will have to be replaced by the August 2024, under the new rules

—Mark Bursa

A council spokesman said: “Councillors agreed a range of incentives to encourage battery-electric vehicle uptake with the aim of encouraging the fleet of taxi and private-hire vehicles to move to cleaner, more environmentally friendly vehicles. Providing these incentives to our drivers will help us meet our commitment to be net zero carbon by 2030.”

Uber accelerates Local Car roll-out, with DG, Royal Cars and Take Me among new recruits

Mark Bursa

Uber is accelerating the roll-out of its Local Cab service, which offers Uber jobs to private hire operators that use the Autocab iGo platform.

Among big names coming on stream in the past few weeks is Nottingham’s DG Cars, Professional Driver’s 2021 Private Hire operator of the year, along with its subsidiary Arrow Cars, which has signed up to take Local Cab jobs in Leeds.

Toby Metcalf, Marketing Manager at DG Cars, said: “We feel that now, more than ever, a product like Local Cab is needed – with demand for taxis continuing to rise and passengers in need of more options.”

Most of the major players in Nottingham are now on the platform, with DG Cars joining Ideal Cars, Central Cars, Southside Cars and Nottingham Cars. Arrow Cars is the second Local Cab operator in Leeds, following SJK Private Hire.

Local Cab is also expanding in Derby with an additional operator, Western Cars, joining PJ Cars, while in Leicester A&B Cabs is the latest operator to be able to sign up, alongside Fosse Taxis. Elswewhere in Leicestershire, Coalville Yellow Cabs and Birstall Cabs have joined four other taxi firms in the county to be part of the Local Cab network.

In Stoke, Take Me Group’s Intercity Private Hire has become the third Local Cab operator

in the town alongside Autocab Private Hire and Lucky Seven Private Hire, both of which joined in the Summer.

Further Midlands expansion has arrived in Sutton Coldfield, where Hotline Cars has joined Local Cab, and in Milton Keynes and Buckingham, where 001 Royal Cabs has signed up.

Meanwhile in Banbury, Royal Cars, which already takes on Local Cab work in its main base of Oxford, has signed up its local subsidiary, formerly known as Cherwell Cars but now carrying the Royal Cars brand. It is the second Local Cab operator

in Banbury, joining Carriage Company.

Manchester remains the most active Local Cab market, where Middleton Cars has signed up, following on from previous launches across the city with a number of operators such as Intime Taxis, Street Cars, Cresta Cars and Kingsway Cars.

Further South, Gloucester and Cheltenham now has a third Local Cab provider, with Five Star Taxis joining Starline Taxis and A2B Taxis.

And in Surrey, two operators have signed up. Reigate-based The RoadRunners Group and Guildford’s Ryde Taxis are both now on the network.

Slough-based Cabpro is now handling Local Cab jobs across Slough, Windsor and Maidenhead, while in High Wycombe two companies, Tiger Taxis and Budget Cars, have joined.

Finally, Local Car is also growing in Scotland, with Domino Private Hire now taking on Uber jobs in in Rutherglen and Cambuslang. This follows previous launches with Kalvin Kabs and Hastie Cars in nearby Hamilton and East Kilbride during October 2021.

Uber UK general manager Andrew Brem (pictured) said: “The success of Local Cab in towns and cities across the country has been great to see. Delivering the best transport options to passengers remains our top priority, as well as boosting local economies and creating new earning opportunities for drivers.”

ACDU holds anti-Uber protests in drivers’ pay protest

Mark Bursa

While Uber is continuing to grow its Local Cab service, drivers signed up directly to Uber have staged a number of protests across the country, in protest at pay and working conditions.

Strikes and drive-slow protests were organised by the App Drivers and Couriers Union (ADCU), which argues that Uber has failed to comply with a Supreme Court ruling to pay drivers at least the minimum wage for all working time from log on to log off. Uber only pays drivers from dispatch to drop off, excluding waiting time. ACDU is not recognised by Uber, which has a deal with the GMB Union to represent its drivers.

On December 14, drivers in Bristol held a protest outside Uber’s local HQ before holding a mass drive of around 100 cars through the streets of Bristol. Similar protests also took place in

ACDU is also upset about a new ‘smart pricing’ system that Uber introduced in the Summer. ADCU boss Yaseen Aslam said: “With the current

crisis including cost of living, fuel hike, and at a time when traditionally it should be a busy month for our members, it is disappointing that drivers have no choice but to do strike in order to make their voices heard.”

ACDU argues that the minimum wage pay does not reflect 36% fuel inflation since last year. The union is demanding that fares are increased to £2.50 per mile and 20p per minute and that Uber commission be capped at 15%.

In response, an Uber spokesperson said: “Uber’s pricing can vary by trip in order to improve reliability at certain times, but drivers are always shown how much they’ll be paid before accepting a trip, and they receive 100% of this amount.”

Manchester and Leicester.

Northern Ireland faces driver crisis as operators leave the taxi industry

Mark Bursa

Northern Ireland taxi operators are struggling to recover from the effects of the Covid pandemic, with 61 operators and almost 2,000 drivers leaving the industry in the past three years.

Latest figures indicate that the number of taxi licences has fallen 1,290 to 8,077. There are now 1,260 taxi operators, 61 fewer than in 2020, and 1,895 fewer licenced taxis, with the total now standing at 6,828.

The crisis means operators are struggling to meet demand in the province, especially during the festive season. With 30% fewer taxis on the roads, many people are struggling to get home after a night out.

The NI Licensed Taxi Operators

Association (LTOA) blames “two years of inaction” by the Department for Infrastructure (DfI) for forcing more taxi operators to cease trading. The LTOA adds that the industry is finding it difficult to recruit more because of the licence testing regime.

A LTOA spokesperson said: “This results in passengers being unable to

book, delays for passengers who have booked, and a free for all for those passengers trying to hail taxis at peak times with the price bartering that occurs when taxis are in such short supply.”

“Most taxi drivers are self-employed in Northern Ireland and many of them, have looked at their work life balance

during the pandemic. Drivers have decided it is not worth their while driving the extra hours, especially evenings and weekends on the current DfI fare structure, when there are additional challenges for working these hours.”

The LTOA spokesperson added: “Operators are continually recruiting for more drivers and there is no lack of interest in the roles, rather a DfI blockage in getting new drivers through the licencing process.”

In particular, the LTOA blames a bespoke taxi theory and practical test, introduced in 2014, for making it harder to recruit new drivers.

Currently only around 22% on average are passing the theory element, which the LTOA says “remains unacceptably low compared to other licence types”.

South Ribble Council considers compulsory CCTV cab cameras

Mark Bursa

South Ribble Borough Council is exploring the possibility of making CCTV cameras mandatory in all local taxis. A consultation with members of the public has been launched asking whether people think it will have a positive or negative affect on journeys. This follows requests from trade representatives asking for the policy on CCTV to be reconsidered, with the

possibility of a mandatory policy investigated.

In 2018, the idea was rejected on the basis that the cost of implementation in every vehicle could not be justified because of low crime rates involving taxis.

A council spokesman said: “There are many factors that need to be considered to ensure that the design, specification and operation of any CCTV system is proportionate, justified and pragmatic so, any decision to mandate CCTV

in licensed vehicles cannot be made lightly or quickly.”

CCTV units range in price between £390-£450, which includes professional installation by an approved supplier. Officers are looking into the possibility of grants or funding towards the cost of CCTV, but if this is not possible and a mandatory policy were to be implemented, the cost would fall to the vehicle owner to pay for the installation.

Hyundai prepares larger Ioniq 6 EV for UK launch

Mark Bursa

The new car – larger than the Ioniq 5 – comes in two trim levels. Premium and Ultimate, and with a choice of rear-wheel drive or all-wheel drive. All versions have a 77.4kWh battery, and prices start at £46,745 for the RWD Premium, rising to £53,745 for AWD Ultimate.

Ioniq 6’s streamlined design gives an ultra-low drag coefficient of just 0.21, while the body is designed to

give maximised rear legroom. Green credentials are further reinforced by the use of recycled materials in the build, including recycled fishing nets and

pigments from old tyres.

The battery uses an 800v charging system, which means the car is compatible with the fastest 350kW

ultra-fast chargers, allowing recharging in less than 20 minutes from 20-80%.

Hyundai claims range of 338 miles (WLTP) on a full charge.

New partnership to give Addison Lee drivers access to affordable EV charging

Mark Bursa

Addison Lee has announced a new partnership with independent electric vehicle charging aggregator Bonnet, designed to provide partner drivers with discounted EV charging.

The deal will give Addison Lee drivers access to more than 20 charging networks, including more than 1,000 rapid charge points across the capital. And drivers will also see the price of charging reduced, receiving a £5 charging credit each month for the first four months of the partnership.

Bonnet’s ‘Turbo Boost’ scheme,

which costs £8 per month, will give Addison Lee partner drivers a 15% discount on the standard network tariff for all charges.

Addison Lee wants to transition its standard fleet to fully electric by the end of 2023, and the company said it would have 1,000 Volkswagen ID.4 EVs on London’s streets by the end of this year. However, research carried out earlier this year by the firm revealed clear barriers to the uptake of EVs in the capital – most notably, issues with the city’s charging network.

According to Addison Lee data, almost four in 10 (39%) of its partner

drivers spent over half an hour trying to find a rapid charger, with almost half (49%) reporting that they found chargers not working or damaged, and 65% drove to a charger to find it already in use.

With real-time data easily located all under one app, Bonnet will provide Addison Lee’s partner drivers with useful information on the closest, available charge points to them –helping them to charge their vehicles and be back on the road in as little time as possible.

Patrick Reich, co-founder and CEO of Bonnet, said: “Taxi and private hire

drivers are among our most popular users, and we’re pleased to be able to reduce their costs plus ensure they have the most convenient, flexible experience possible.”

Liam Griffin, CEO of Addison Lee, said: “Since we announced our transition to electric, we have formed several important partnerships to ensure we can provide the drivers that work with us with seamless access to EV charging. Partnering with an innovative brands like Bonnet, means our partner drivers will no longer be at risk of taking wasted journeys to busy and broken charge points.”

Take Me adds Premier Cars of Oldbury as West Midlands fleet reaches 900 cars

Mark Bursa

Take Me Group has made a further acquisition in the West Midlands, pushing its combined fleet in the region to 900 cars.

The deal sees Premier Cars of Oldbury join the Take Me group, adding a further 80 cars to the combined fleet of existing Birminghambased Take Me subsidiaries T C Cars and Heritage Cars.

As part of Take Me’s national rebranding policy, the three companies will gradually adopt Take Me branding. Premier Cars was founded 13 years ago by husband-andwife team John and Clare Davis, and they will be remaining with the business. Meanwhile Take Me directors David Hunter

and John Gardner have been appointed as directors of Premier Cars, along with Heritage Cars directors Suky and Hardip Sangha.

“Joining Take Me will take Premier to the next level – it’s going to have a big impact on the business,” said John Davis.

The Premier deal is Take Me’s second West Midlands deal in the past two months. Nuneaton-based Direct Taxis merged with the company’s existing TC Cars operation in October, adding a further 70 cars.

Take Me group now has a substantial presence across the midlands, including Bounds Group, Intercity, Lee Cabs and the former ADT business in Leicester, now rebranded Take Me.

Ford reveals all-electric E-Tourneo Custom alongside new PHEV and diesel models

Mark Bursa

Operators looking for an electric sevenseater will receive a boost in the second half of 2023 with the launch of the new Ford Pro E-Tourneo Custom, offering a practical people-mover with a pure electric range of 230 miles.

E-Tourneo Custom is one of four new allelectric Ford Pro models being launched in Europe by 2024. It is aimed at both private and business customers, offering spacious accommodation for up to eight occupants.

Tourneo Custom customers can also choose a plug-in hybrid version, along with an EcoBlue diesel in three power outputs with new high-efficiency eight-speed automatic

gearbox, and, for the first time, an intelligent all-wheel drive system.

The EV version uses the same high-density battery cell technology as the Ford F-150 Lightning

pick-up, combining a 74kWh battery with a 160kW electric motor. An onboard 11kW AC three-phase charger is capable of fully recharging the battery in less than 8 hours, and a 15-80% recharge will take around 41 minutes using a 125kW DC fast charger.

The PHEV uses a parallel hybrid system to combine a 2.5-litre Atkinson cycle petrol engine with an electric motor and 11.8kWh battery pack, giving pure-electric driving range of 31 miles. Tourneo Custom is available in standard and long wheelbases, each offering three rows of seating, with up to eight seats in E-Tourneo Custom and a maximum of nine seats in Tourneo Custom PHEV and diesel models. The rear can also be configured in six-person conference layout.

premier league: Take Me’s West Midlands team (l-r) Steve Gee of TC Cars, Hardip Sangha of Heritage Cars, Clare Davis of Premier Cars, Henry Trasler of TC, Suky Sangha of Heritage and John Davis of Premier.

ULEZ expansion could face legal challenge as 60% of outer London residents object

Mark Bursa

London Mayor Sadiq Khan has decided to expand the London ultra-low emission zone (ULEZ) across all London boroughs from next August, despite massive objections to the move.

But the move could face a legal challenge from Conservatives in the Greater London Assembly, who claimed that 60% of respondents to the consultation opposed to the expansion, which was voted through in the GLA last month by 14 votes to 9.

From August 29, 2023, drivers of older cars that do not comply with either Euro 5 (diesel) or Euro 4 (petrol) emissions standards will have to pay £12.50 a day to use their vehicle in any Greater London borough

Mayor Khan said the move would bring cleaner air to 5 million more residents – but many believe the decision will impose a tax upon poorer residents at a time of immense financial pressure.

The proposals include exemptions for taxis, specialist vehicles, private hire vehicles carrying

wheelchair users and NHS patient transport. The daily charge would apply to residents living within the ULEZ, but only on days they drive a noncompliant vehicle.

Khan said a £110m scrappage scheme would be introduced to help vulnerable people and small businesses, as well as improved bus services in the suburbs. Grants will be offered to owners of noncompliant vehicles to upgrade to new cars or to purchase bicycles or join a car club.

Under the scheme, people who dispose of non-

compliant cars will be offered two free annual bus and tram passes in addition to a grant.

The charge would affect 15% of vehicles in outer London boroughs, according to TfL, with– 160,000 cars and 42,000 vans liable for the charge. Most petrol cars registered after 2005 or diesel cars from 2015 are exempt.

Objectors to the scheme said a consultation earlier in the year showed that most people in outer boroughs do not want it, and claimed the impact on air quality in the outer boroughs would be minimal.

Nick Rogers, the GLA Conservatives’ transport spokesperson, said: “Now is not the time to hammer Londoners with a £12.50 daily cost of living charge. Residents have made their views very clear to the mayor: they do not want the ULEZ expansion.”

Announcing the decision, Khan said: “The latest evidence shows that air pollution is making us sick from cradle to the grave. Londoners are developing life-changing illnesses such as cancer, lung disease, dementia and asthma. And it’s especially dangerous for children.”

Hunt puts the brakes on EV sales by removing VED exemption from 2025

Mark Bursa

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s decision to remove the Vehicle Excise Duty exemption from electric vehicles has been badly received by the industry, with the AA accusing him of “dimming the incentive” to switch to electric cars.

Hunt told the Commons in his autumn statement: “Because the Office of Budget Responsibility forecast half of all new vehicles will be electric by 2025, to make our motoring tax system fairer I’ve decided that from then electric vehicles will no longer be exempt from vehicle excise duty.”

Currently EVs pay no VED, but the Chancellor announced that the introduction of excise duty for electric cars will take effect from 2025. The move follows Treasury warnings that “new sources of revenue” would be needed to replace fuel duty as the country switches to EVs.

Fuel duty and VED raise about £35 billion a year for the exchequer, but the Office for Budget

Responsibility has forecast that the growing share of electric car sales would cut motoring tax revenues by £2.1bn by 2026-27.

Drivers of petrol and diesel cars could also see a rise in running costs increasing from next year, with a planned rise in fuel duty in March 2023 potentially adding 12p a litre to current fuel costs. The one-year 5p cut from Rishi Sunak’s budget in March is due to end next March, though Hunt may soften the blow by announcing a further fuel duty freeze in the Spring as successive

Lack of demand sees Shell close its three UK hydrogen filling stations

Shell has closed its hydrogen filling stations at Gatwick airport and at Cobham (pictured) and Beaconsfield motorway services, citing a lack of demand for the service.

In a statement, the oil giant said sites had “not performed satisfactorily” and had “reached an end of life”.

The move will come as a disappointment to those who believe hydrogen to have more potential than batteries as a convenient, clean fuel. But only Toyota and Hyundai produced hydrogen cars in any volume, and fewer than 500 cars are on UK roads.

One of the main users of the Cobham services site was Green Tomato Cars, which operated 50 Toyota Mirais as part of a European test scheme. However last month managing director Jonny Goldstone said the cars had now been replaced in the fleet by electric Volkswagen ID.3s.

Conservative chancellors have done since 2011.

SMMT chief executive Mike Hawes said: “We recognise that all vehicle owners should pay their fair share of tax, however, the measures announced today mean electric car and van buyers – and current owners - will face a significant uplift in VED. The sting in the tail is the VED supplement which will unduly penalise these new, more expensive vehicle technologies.”

The expensive car supplement, which will apply to all EVs costing

more than £40,000, will add £355 to the annual VED bill.

Hawes added: “The introduction of taxes should support road transport decarbonisation, and the delivery of net zero, rather than threaten both the new and secondhand EV markets.”

“With a ZEV mandate on the way for car and van manufacturers, we need a framework that encourages consumers and businesses to buy electric vehicles.”

Edmund King, AA president, said: “While we understand that EVs will need to be taxed, we stress that the road to electrification must not be stalled by excessive taxation. There is no doubt the introduction of vehicle excise duty on EVs and making EV company cars less attractive by increasing tax rates, will slow the road to electrification.”

“This may delay the environmental benefits and stall the introduction of EVs onto the secondhand car market. Unfortunately the Chancellor’s EV taxation actions will dim the incentive to switch to electric vehicles.”

We have invested over £2million per year to sustain our small stations but have taken the decision that it is not sustainable to continue to make this investment.”

Shell said it would now look to provide larger sites to fuel hydrogen HGVs, as the fuel has a clear advantage in weight for trucks and buses compared with the large battery packs that would be needed for a bigger vehicle.

Shell opened its first UK hydrogen fuelling station in 2017 with its hydrogen partner Motive, a subsidiary of the UK electrolyser manufacturer ITM Power.

In a statement, Motive said: “The sites are not performing satisfactorily and the footprint available is too small to accommodate upgrade for larger vehicles and future technology which has led us to taking a decision to close the sites.

The three sites were opened between 2017 and 2019 and coincided with the launch of the Toyota Mirai hydrogen fuel cell electric car. However, just 158 first-generation Mirais were sold in Britain between 2015 and 2020, with 50 going to Green Tomato Cars, and only 51 second-gen Mirais are believed to be registered in the UK.

Hyundai has also produced FCEVs – the iX35 and the Nexo – but the Nexo’s £70,000 price tag and the poor availability of hydrogen refuelling stations means just 275 have been registered.

The loss of the Shell sites means there are now just 11 hydrogen filling stations available in Great Britain and one in Northern Ireland - in contrast to over 36,000 public charging points for batteryelectric cars.

Three of Britain’s remaining hydrogen stations are in London and there are others in in Sheffield, Teesside International Airport, Aberdeen and Edinburgh.

Chabé is the first UK chauffeur to receive the new electric BMW i7, and the company is keen to get the car in front of its clients. Mark Bursa comes along for the ride

The revolution starts here

Mark Bursa

My day begins in familiar surroundings – in a bmW 745le. i ran one of these cars for several months last year, and I know how comfortable it is. Even so, the dashboard is starting to look a little dated, with its modest satnav screen.

Today I’m not driving. Instead I’m being chauffeured by our newly crowned QSi Chauffeur Company of the Year, Chabé, and I’m on a journey into the future.

It’s a future that starts, it appears, in Farnborough. Arriving at BMW’s head office,

we’re met by a familiar face – Lee Connolly, BMW’s head of corporate sales – and a less familiar shape. Parked outside the front door is the car that could transform the chauffeur market, and give BMW a much bigger say in the sector – the i7.

Today, I’m along for the ride with Chabé, as the company’s managing director David Bruce is spending the day in London, showing the i7 to some of Chabé’s most prestigious hotel clients.

Chabé is a launch customer for the i7 in the chauffeur sector. Six cars are on order, and with a price tag of above £110,000, that’s a substantial investment, and commitment to the BMW brand.

This is not without risks – in the market in which Chabé operates, many of the customers – especially those from the Middle East and Asia – are extremely

Mercedes-centric. Perhaps with some justification, the S-Class, and the threepointed star on its grille, was always perceived as carrying a slight premium over other premium brands.

However, there is evidence that is changing – and part of that is down to Mercedes’ own product strategy.

Mercedes launched its large electric car earlier this year – but the EQS has met with a lukewarm reaction from chauffeurs. It’s a brilliant drive, for sure – but there’s no long-wheelbase option; the coupe-like roof line offers restricted headroom in the rear, and it inexplicably has a hatchback tailgate, not a conventional boot. It’s a technical tour de force – but from a chauffeur’s perspective, it’s not an S-Class.

It appears BMW has done a better job of reading the room as far as chauffeurs’ needs are concerned. The imminent arrival of the i7 will most likely give Munich a crucial advantage over Stuttgart in the EV sector. Unlike the EQS, i7 is not a separate product. It’s an electric 7-series – complete with long wheelbase and everything you’d expect from a luxury saloon.

The arrival of the car is the culmination of a BMW strategy to address the chauffeur market that started several years ago, says Lee Connolly.

“A few years ago we were constantly faced with opposition to the 7-series from chauffeurs. It was very much the underdog compared to market leader.” Analysis of the problem boiled down to a perception that the 7 was not as luxurious as the S-Class. And part of that was caused by chauffeurs wanting to save money by specifying the most basic model to save money, rather than spending more on features.

“We worked with chauffeurs and promoted our available options to them – and that has taken current car up to the benchmark level,” says Connolly. “We specified the most impactful features design-wise – so when the rear door opens, the customer thinks ‘that looks good’. And

now we’re finding that chauffeur clients are starting to request the 7-series.”

It helped that BMW had an affordable PHEV version of the 7-series, the 745Le, in its range since 2018, while Mercedes didn’t bring in the S580eL PHEV until more than a year after the launch of the new S-Class in 2020. It’s clear that some chauffeurs –Chabé included – went for the BMW purely because it was a PHEV, and thus capable of being registered in London in 2020.

Going forward, there will be no more pure ICE 7-series in the UK, says Connolly. “The UK won’t take the petrol or diesel versions. Our focus is mainly on electric, as the car has a 387 mile range. But there will be a plug-in hybrid in mid-2023.”

[top, from left] Lee Connolly and David Bruce of BMW

This is likely to be more popular outside London, where the rules are not nearly as stringent in terms of what chauffeurs can or cannot register. Only London is restricting registrations to zero-emissions capable vehicles – and from 2025, pure ZEVs. Elsewhere, Euro 6 diesel and Euro 4 petrol still applies – as per the Department for the Environment guidelines.

The focus on high specification will continue. BMW has been clever here in that all initial i7 supplies will come with one specification – loaded with many of the most impressive options of the car, including a fold-flat rear seat, a 32in drop-down wide screen in the rear and a “blackout” facility that turns the rear cabin completely dark should the passenger want to sleep.

By doing so, the supply pipeline has been freed. All UK cars will be the same spec, so there will be no delays associated with bespoke manufacturing. “I defy anyone to say it’s not the benchmark for luxury,” says a confident Connolly.

Most of the speccing-up is aimed at the rear passenger, says Connolly. “Compared to the current 7-series the environment is far more modern and luxurious. We’re also giving the rear seat passenger more control of the luxury – for example via a fixed tablet screen in the door, which can control everything including the heated and air-conditioned seats, massage seats, telephone calls, dimming the lights and changing music, which can be done without asking the driver.”

Early supplies of the i7 will be allocated to gain maximum impact. Rather than

giving every dealer a demonstrator, 30 cars will be placed with leading London chauffeurs and hotels. Thee initial cars will be followed by a bigger supply during March and April, which is when Chabé expects to get its other 5 cars.

Chabé UK managing director David Bruce believes the BMW i7 is the car the market has been demanding. “There has certainly been a gap for a fully electric saloon, and we’ve seen increasing client demand for it. Clients have asked us if we have Teslas. I say no, because it’s not a chauffeur product. Tesla is not a luxury guest experience. The i7 is the first product that meets that need, and today is the first opportunity for us to showcase it.”

Chabé may be a newcomer to the UK, but it is well established in France, and the company has the funding to increase its fleet. From a standing start in 2020, the company now has almost 20 cars on strength, and Bruce says this will reach 30 by the end of 2023 – with all the growth coming from EVs. Indeed, with the i7s and an increasing number of Mercedes-Benz EQV electric people-movers coming on stream, around half the Chabé fleet will be electric by the middle of 2023.

“Chabé has the capital to invest in the product, and ultimately it will replace the hybrid technology-in our fleet. As we grow we’ll buy the i7 and as we replace the fleet, we’ll buy more of them. We may well extend our purchase beyond 5 cars next year,” says Bruce.

Today’s activity involves a tour of a number of top-grade London hotels, including the Dorchester and the recently-

opened boutique hotel on the West End’s rapidly gentrifying “Tin Pan Alley”, the Chateau Denmark, as well as a couple of high-end managed residences, where super-rich residents own eight-figure London flats.

Interest is clearly there – concierges and hotel managers are extremely keen to view the car and sit in the back – and especially to have a look in the boot. For a concierge, making sure the luggage can be accommodated is a part of the job, and many EVs and hybrids make that more difficult thanks to intrusive battery packs that take up boot space.

However, BMW has designed the i7’s loadspace in such a way as to leave a deep space that could allow large cases to be stacked – and the concierges are impressed. After all, the last thing they, or Chabé, want to do is to send for a second car, just for the luggage.

Bruce is delighted with the response. “The feedback has been amazing. It’s great to see clients wanting to have their photos taken with the car – really different. The appetite for this vehicle is clearly therethey want it on the account now,” he says.

The i7’s zero-emissions ability has other advantages too, says Bruce, as it is likely to have great appeal to corporate clients.

“We’re getting clients increasingly asking for CO2 reporting – so having a ZEV gives us another advantage in the marketplace –the need is there but this is the first time such a car has been available.”

Supplies are not restricted at present, Connolly says. “If you went to a retailer now and ordered a car, you would get it in Q2.”

Back-up looks likely to be extensive too, with a 5-year, unlimited mileage warranty and free servicing. There will also be free subscription to a BMW charging service, offering reduced rates at a number of networks, including a 20% discount at any BP Pulse charge point. Even better, the service gives free use of the super-fast (and partially BMW-owned) Ionity network for any i7 owner for 12 months, with reduced rates thereafter.

And in London, BMW is working with its dealers to offer priority booking for servicing and repair for chauffeurs. “You won’t jump the queue but will get priority – we recognise that your car is a work tool,” Connolly says. In addition, BMW will have two PCO registered back-up cars in London for chauffeurs whose i7 is off the road. These will be based at Heathrow and Chiswick.

[above] Looking good in London’s Denmark Street

Chauffeur’s verdict

I’ve only had the briefest of drives of the i7 –the media drives don’t happen until the new year – but the back seat is certainly a step up in comfort, with considerable adjustment capability and a very agreeable massage facility. It feels a little more enclosed than the outgoing 7-series, but that’s no bad thing.

The chauffeur’s view is very positive, though. Our chauffeur today has been Dan Stener (pictured, left), Chabé’s operations director and a driver with decades of experience. His first impressions are positive. “It’s very, very smooth, and acceleration is very linear. Ride quality is exceptional a step up from the 7-series. As much as I like the 7-series, this is better,” he says.

How dies it compare to 7-series and S-Class? “Good question. It feels like neither. It does feel big, but no more so than a 7-series. And it is surprisingly nimble. There’s no gearbox so acceleration is exceptionally smooth.”

“Also you don’t feel motorway surface joins and potholes as much. And that’s just on auto setting – we could soften the ride even more with comfort mode.”

“The regenerative braking is quite noticeable, and the steering is light – some might think it’s too light but I like it. And the satnav screen is just that bit nicer than the one in the 7-series.”

The car comes into its own around London’s congested street, Stener says. “In London I can really feel the rear-wheel steering. It felt easier than it should have to manoeuvre in a tight space. It’s a while since I’ve been so impressed with a new car coming to market – it’s a bit different – I love it and I want one!”

The choice of electric vehicles is growing, but private hire operators looking for a zero-emissions sevenseater are rather more limited in what’s available.

Local hero

Mark Bursa

continued from previous page

At the top of the market, there’s the MercedesBenz EQV, but its hefty price tag means only top-line chauffeurs are likely to buy. Ford and Volkswagen are readying new EVs for launch in 2023.

But Stellantis – the automotive conglomerate that includes Vauxhall, Fiat, Peugeot, Citroën and others – might provide the solution for some operators – depending on the sort of work you do.

Stellantis’ mid-sized panel van is available under a variety of brands, most notably as the Vauxhall Vivaro, which is built in the UK at the Luton factory. There are passenger versions too, including Peugeot Traveller, Fiat Ulysse and, via a licence deal, Toyota ProAce. And the same vehicle also comes in Citroën flavour, as the e-Space Tourer. Badge engineering that British Leyland of the 60s and 70s would be proud of!

We’re testing the Citroën ë-SpaceTourer Business Edition. This version is not a luxury MPV – though there is the option to specify Business Lounge trim, which gives the option of individual second row seats, conference seating and leather trim.

Instead, the Business Edition has a basic and robust trim level, with fabric-covered seats in three rows, offering a total of nine seats. The seats are built for durability rather than opulence – this is

not a car for long-distance travel – for a variety of reasons that we’ll come on to.

It’s finished in metallic paint, but with 16in steel wheels rather than fancy, kerbable alloys.

Our test car is the shorter (M) of two available wheelbases, and we’d recommend that you look to the XL version if your work involves a lot of luggage-lugging. The XL version has an extended body aft of the rear axle, which means a lot more loadspace. On our test van, our standard cases fitted side-on, but not flat.

Inside, it’s clear that we’re dealing with a vanderived vehicle. There’s acres of dark grey plastic on doors and dash – sturdy, hard stuff, not padded soft-touch materials. The driver’s seat is comfortable, though, and the driving position is good, without too much of a clamber to get in.

The features are basic but well laid-out, with a decent satnav system a small but clear 7in touch screen. This offers Apple/Android compatibility as well as with DAB and Bluetooth. There are USB and 12v sockets, including one in the boot.

The rear cabin is accessed via wide, square doors with no rear wheel arch intrusion. The floor is low, and there is a step to help less agile passengers get in without difficulty. The second row seats tip forward by operating a lever at the rear base of the seat, giving easy access to the third row.

On the road, the vehicle feels as solid and secure

as you’d expect from a vehicle with a gross weight of more than 3 tonnes. The electric powertrain is smooth, and acceleration is sprightlier than you’d get from a diesel version of the same vehicle, and a lot quieter too.

It’s manoeuvrable in town, and the relatively low roof should get you into multi-storey car parks if necessary. Switch to ‘B’ mode and you have almost one-pedal driving, with much more braking regeneration.

So far so good. This is a decent private hire seven-seater, perfect for local work, taxi rank jobs, or picking up groups of people heading into town for a night out. So what’s not to like?

In short, the range. At a time when 300-mile

verdict

EVs are becoming commonplace, it’s somewhat disappointing to find that the ë-SpaceTourer – and the passenger versions of its brand-engineered siblings – comes with a 50kW battery. This gives a quoted WLTP combined range of 135 miles, which improves to just under 200 miles in city mode.

This does limit the usability of the vehicle, and whether it works for an operator will depend on a number of factors. Firstly, what kind of jobs are you doing? If it’s all urban pick-ups and drop-offs, careful driving should allow drivers to complete a shift on a charge. London traffic moves at an average speed of 11mph, and it’s not a lot better in most other cities these days.

So an 8-hour shift should only use around 80

miles of juice. Providing you can access a rapid charger (100kW), you can be back up to 80% charge in just over 30 minutes. Ideal if you have a charger at your depot or base – but more of a problem if you’ve got to hunt for a free charger in your town.

Of course, overnight charging is an option too, providing your driver has access to a standard charger. On a 7.4kW charger, it’ll take about 7 hours 30 minutes to recharge fully. Once again, if you know you have regular working patterns and you’re not going to be doing much above 100 miles a day, then it’ll work OK.

The Citroën ë-SpaceTourer is a well-made, well thought-out people-mover that, on the face of it, should be an ideal urban taxi, flexible enough for local groups and family airport runs – especially in XL guise. But it does highlight many of the problems with this generation of electric vehicle. Range is not as good as it might be, and any operator choosing this car really should have some experience of running EVs – especially in terms of having a charging strategy. If you have your own rapid chargers, and if your drivers have overnight charging facilities, then this vehicle could do a job for you. Citroën has a deal with PodPoint to install home or workplace chargers, which is worth factoring in to your purchase decision.

On the plus side, it’s affordable – our test car costs £33,170 on the road, which is a lot less than many much smaller EVs, and even cheaper than an MG5 estate. But don’t expect this to be ideal for long-haul work. Range is nowhere near what you’d need for inter-city work, and even airport pick-ups and drop-offs might need to be scheduled so as to include top-up charging en route to the pick-up. What’s really frustrating is the van version of the ë-SpaceTourer, the Citroën Dispatch, does come with a bigger 75kW battery. This takes range beyond 200 miles in general use, and well above that in city conditions. Addition of this pack would be most welcome – though it would probably bump the price up closer to £40,000.

We tested the ë-SpaceTourer during December’s very cold weather, and that does have an effect on performance (though without a warm weather test for comparison it’s hard to measure the impact). But we did find a significant boost in range when switching from Normal to Eco mode, though this brings other issues – including limiting the use of the heater. Having the heater on constantly could knock 20 miles off your range, which is a problem when you’re starting with a relatively low range.

In an afternoon’s driving around Surrey suburbs, with a stretch of A3 from Tolworth to Cobham thrown in for good measure, we saw the range drop 33 miles from 69 miles at the start to 36 miles by the end. In that test, we covered a total of 25 miles, so in real-world use the battery depletion rate was faster than the miles covered.

Had we stayed in Eco mode throughout, I suspect the rate would have been on the money. But I wouldn’t bank on that quoted 136 miles as a safe range. Work on 85-90 miles between charges and you’ll be anxiety-free.

Five trends for 2023 – and how fleets can make the most of them

2022 has been an interesting year for the trade, throwing up both challenges and opportunities never before seen. A number of trends across business travel will shape how the industry interacts with, and services, business travellers beyond the next 12 months. Here I lay out those trends and how fleets can put themselves in pole position to win in this market.

1. DUTY OF CARE

Travellers and travel buyers are putting an increased importance on the use of business travel agencies. One of the drivers behind this behaviour is the increased focus on safety and security as companies look to address concerns about the duty of care to their passengers.

Daniel Price CEO and founder of Jyrney

The most exposed section of any business trip has always been the ground segments, where passengers often book their own transfer with a provider unknown to the company.

Linking the trip to the passenger’s travel management company is one way businesses can reduce the risk of ground transport trips. Travel management companies who integrate aggregator technologies can provide their business travel buyers with tracking and data on each trip. Working with companies like Jyrney give the fleets an opportunity to win business they have not previously had access to.

2. INCREASING POPULARITY OF RIDE HAILING

One trend that is likely to continue is the increasing popularity of ride hailing services for business travel. Ride-hailing companies are expanding their networks and looking to build better products for business travellers.

However, traditional taxi and private hire both still have advantages; they have a much better product for business travel, with closer driver relationships, little or no surge pricing (a big put off for business travel buyers) and a better waiting time policy, a must for business travel.

One way traditional taxi and private hire companies can compete with ride-hail is to be available where they are. Due to their scale, marketing budget and sales approach, ride hail companies can win national and international business with travel and transport companies.

However, the private hire trade in the UK has four times as many drivers in 10 times as many locations as the biggest ridehail company. Working together, and being available through the industry’s aggregators, gives the operator the opportunity to be part of a bigger network more focused on business travel.

3. VEHICLE ELECTRIFICATION

While still challenged by limited infrastructure and higher costs, another trend is the increased demand for electric and hybrid vehicles for taxi travel.

Concern about climate change will continue to grow in 2023 and there is going to be an increased push towards more sustainable

modes of transport. Look to many countries banning internal flights as a sign of things to come.

While having a full fleet of electric vehicles may be beyond many operators in the UK due to the aforementioned challenges, many fleets can still optimise bookings from carbon-conscious travellers by ensuring they list all their low emission options among their available vehicles.

At Jyrney, we often identify operators that have hybrids on fleet but list them in their standard vehicle category, and not in their own hybrid group. To win more bookings, make sure you break hybrid and electric vehicles out.

4. TECHNOLOGY

The use of technology is also likely to continue to play a key role in the taxi industry, with ride-hailing and traditional taxi companies offering mobile apps and other digital tools to improve the customer experience.

As an operator, your choice for a dispatch system has now moved beyond the ability for them to provide technology for you and your drivers into how they can also connect your fleet to more jobs coming from new markets.

Making sure your settings are optimised on your dispatch system will increase the number of bookings you can receive. Settings can include out of area pick up premiums, correct vehicle groups and pricing, and having the correct coverage areas.

5. THE RISE OF INTERMEDIARIES

Intermediaries, such as online travel agencies, automotive businesses, and travel management companies are increasingly looking to the mobility markets to offer new solutions to their customers. These intermediaries offer a convenient way for customers to book and pay for taxi trips, wherever they are.

Intermediaries often have relationships with aggregators, as growing mobility is still an ancillary product for them, and working with an aggregator gives them all the content through a single technical integration. The use of intermediaries has made it easier and more convenient for customers to get around, but it also provides a valuable demand channel for taxi companies.

Overall, the future for traditional taxi and private hire companies looks positive, with a number of trends shaping how the industry interacts with business travellers.

From a greater focus on duty of care, an ability to compete with ride hailing through intermediary partnerships combined with the continued use of technology to improve the customer experience and increase demand, the taxi industry is well positioned to meet the needs of business travellers in 2023 and beyond.

n Daniel Price is CEO and founder of Jyrney.

Daniel.price@jyrney.com — www.jyrney.com

We launched our Operator Partnership Programme in January 2022. Since then, we’ve provided operators with free tax workshops and training for their drivers, as well as onboarding and driver status support.

We’ve now helped thousands of drivers with their tax woes, and we aren’t stopping anytime soon.

Would you like us to come to your office and give free tax workshops for your Drivers? You can also get confidential advice on VAT issues, Tax Checks and Making Tax Digital.

Contact David Nagler or visit our website for more information.

eazitax.co.uk/operators

Something must be done!

Hardly an original headline but i jest only slightly. To what do I point my instruction?

To Electric Vehicles. The migration to EVs by the PH industry has not only stalled but gone into a sharp reverse. The surprisingly small number of innovators have innovated, the early adopters had as late as the summer, adopted.

The early majority are nowhere to be seen and we as an industry are quickly moving to become a community of laggards. So why is this the case rather than the policy makers’ theory of continuing gradual adoption. Well, I have it from the horses’ mouths.

There are three issues that are preventing and dissuading drivers from migrating from ICE to EV: range, charging infrastructure and cost. There are also some concerns among drivers as to how much replacement batteries might cost should they need replacing once the guarantee expires.

Dr Michael Galvin https://mobility serviceslimited .com

different connectors and despite the regulations, a lack of interoperability requiring multiple payment/ account facilities. People trying to run businesses need to have access to the charging infrastructure and it has to work.

Perhaps in time, the early forays by some companies into providing hubs where drivers can charge their cars, buy a coffee and use the facilities will become common. But we appear a long way from that at the moment.

COST

If Government, Councils and for goodness sake the public really want cleaner air what possible benefit is there in a driver selling on his/her diesel or petrol vehicle to another PH driver or member of the public and have it chugging around polluting for many years?

However, it does appear that all three of the main issues listed above are resolvable with goodwill and some money, and like most issues the goodwill may be in plentiful supply – but once the M-word is raised…its goodnight Vienna!

RANGE

We are very good in Britain in fitting pretty awful experiences into tidy little meaningless words and phrases; miscarriage, bereavement etc. Range anxiety is just such term. It trivialises and understates what is a serious issue.

Having to charge a vehicle a few times during a shift makes the job almost unviable. It is not anxiety – it is financially crippling and mentally frustrating. Who wants to waste their working day looking for a charging point that works only to find a queue to charge? Or on a long journey, previously seen as a good thing, who needs to worry about where to charge/recharge en route? Answer – no one!

So, what is the solution? Drivers need good information on which cars actually could work as a PHV (we do our best – Ed!). Cars that can pick up 3/4 passengers and some luggage and can manage a shift comfortably on one charge. They don’t need manufacturers claiming ranges of hundreds of miles that turns into tens of miles or to swap a four-door saloon/estate for a biscuit tin on wheels.

CHARGING INFRASTRUCTURE

My research has found that between 2530% of drivers have off street parking and therefore more importantly 70-75% do not. Unless councils and OLEV and the rest of the civil service can wake up to the fact that drivers need on-street infrastructure to make a move to EVs, no-one is going to rush anywhere to get an EV.

Likewise, it is inexcusable that around 25% of the network is out of action at any one time. And let’s not even discuss

Surely it is time, perhaps even past time to operate a proper scrappage scheme where when a person buys an EV their ICE vehicle is crushed and the EV buyer suitably rewarded in fact over-rewarded for moving from the convenience of ICE to the environmentally and public-spirited EV.

The previous business case of EVs being more expensive to buy than ICE vehicles but then being a lot cheaper to run has pretty much evaporated as electric prices have gone up so much and many charging points are price gouging (55p per KwH has been reported). So what is the incentive to move?

With some 200,000 vehicles on strength, the private hire industry is in a good place to make a substantial difference to air quality. PHVs often cover 40,000 miles per annum in city centres. How much better would it be for the environment if they were all converted to EVs?

Our government of whichever colour has no concept of crossdepartmental budgeting. Therefore, expenditure from, say, the Department for Transport in a scrappage scheme that would save lives and improve health and thereby save the NHS resources would never see the light of day.

Instead, policymakers fall back on regulation and at a push legislation to force the issue. Meanwhile private hire drivers work out how to game the system to enable then to maximise ICE for as long as possible. Does any of it make any sense? Not at all.

The last point I would make is that anyone considering buying an EV will seek information from others. This includes drivers who will share their concerns and prejudices with their passengers about EVs, thereby slowing adoption of EVs further. It really could be very different.

n www.mobilityserviceslimited.com

“Having to charge a vehicle a few times during a shift makes the job almost unviable. It is not anxiety – it is financially crippling and mentally frustrating...”

Where did that year go?

It’s that time of reflection again, although as always when we come to this point, most drivers and operators are too busy to worry about anything until things calm down in January.

So, let’s just muse upon our trade, its recent past and future and the rather strange place we are in. No pandemic talks anymore; the big issues are driver shortages and pending legislation. However, welcome to my version of the year. Not all views expressed are mine by the way, just a reflection of the how the trade heard it.

UBER LOSES

Gary Jacobs

Gary Jacobs runs Eazitax, an accountancy firm specialising in the taxi and private hire business eazitax.co.uk

In January Uber had yet another Court date. The App Drivers Union finally got a win for a group of ‘workers’. The ruling made it even clearer that, in the eyes of the press, private hire drivers are workers. I disagreed because the appeal was at the Supreme Court, but the ruling was at tribunal, And that means, despite the win, ‘worker status’ has not been implemented to any great extent anywhere.

In some cases, operators have adopted a ‘Self Employed Plus’ style. This is a compromise, but the court judgment doesn’t specifically outline the way that operators need to act to honour their driver’s status. This doesn’t mean to say it won’t happen in the future.

The case was really testing whether Uber’s operations were compatible with London’s regulations, leading to the now infamous Uber v TFL v ADCU and the recognition of passenger as principal. This led to THE big VAT debate.

UBER AGREES TO PAY £615M TO SETTLE OUTSTANDING VAT CLAIMS

In November, Uber appeared once again in the headlines. The company had agreed to pay HMRC £615m to settle outstanding VAT claims. In reality the sum was much lower than the £1.5bn the taxman had reportedly raised in VAT assessments.

Having previously claimed that it should only pay VAT on the commission it receives from the driver, the tech company had seen its perception of itself turned upside down. The VAT-onfares arguments go a little like this.

The word ‘principal’ means principal for tax, therefore if the Uber judgement with Transport for London also means that, then if Uber wins against another authority (Sefton) it goes countrywide. That case will bleed into 2023, so watch this space.

HMRC LAUNCHES

CONDITIONALITY TAX CHECKS

From April 2022 in England, taxi and private-hire drivers had to undertake tax checks to renew their licenses. If drivers aren’t

registered for tax, they can’t get licensed.

Eazitax of course launched a big campaign, empowering operators to educate and drivers to address this issue and continue earning a living. (C’mon, I’m allowed one plug, please, we did it all for free!). Where did the tax checks lead… 4,000 drivers received an unwelcome letter from HMRC.

From February and for months afterwards, 4,000 taxi and private-hire drivers that use platform apps got a letter asking for full disclosure on earnings. HMRC was urging drivers to make a ‘voluntary disclosure,’ the wording implying that HMRC knows that they have undeclared income. This one is set to run and run, but we have it under control.

THE GOVERNMENT GIVES NEW GUIDANCE ON EMPLOYMENT STATUS

The government presented new guidance to help individuals and businesses understand what employment rights they are entitled to. However, to summarise, after four years of detailed discussions, the government has decided not to legislate clearly on this topic.

Instead, they gave guidance, equating to ‘a suggestion to courts, not a direction to courts.’ This left advisors like me in the same position we were in before the guidance, making educated guesswork in a maze of legislation.

WHAT’S HAPPENING IN 2023?

Is Making Tax Digital on the horizon? Definitely Maybe. The treasury is set to announce another delay to rolling out its MTD scheme again. The scheme was for self-employed individuals. That’s a big relief for the 4.2 million who feared being forced to file their taxes quarterly for the April 2024 deadline. That being said, it is still coming, eventually.

PRIVATE-HIRE FARES RISING?

If the government takes too much of an interest, the Sefton Council case could move in that direction. This could mean fares rising by a fifth across the UK. Its still unclear where the trade is on VAT on fares:

n The Government won’t comment properly yet n We have some early adopters of this (non-existent) VAT regime

n HMRC taking it on a ‘case by case’ basis. The one thing that is obvious is that that company based in Silicon Valley is now seeking to force its competition in UK to adopt this regime. We will see.

Finally, if you haven’t already done it, please complete your tax return for January 31 deadline. You know it makes sense. Merry Christmas and a busy new year!

Surge pricing – in support of Uber

Arather disappointed passenger wrote a letter complaining about a driver, a GMB trade union member, to one of the newish minicab companies. It went something like this:

“The high cost was horrible. Because there is a train and bus dispute, you should not raise your prices fivefold. It’s !£%@?*$ awful! Thieving $?!&%s!”

I have changed the wording to avoid the driver getting into trouble with his company but I can assure readers that the original complaint was worse. What was this person complaining about? Surge pricing, of course.

Dennot Nyack

union view from our GMB representative

What is surge pricing? It is a time when the price of journeys with some minicab companies are increased to reflect a higher demand from passengers or a shortage of drivers in a particular area.

The rationale for this, according to these companies, is to encourage drivers to head to or remain in that location. Surge pricing takes effect when the algorithm used by these firms detects high demand or low driver numbers. The increase price can range from fare +50% to 500% in rare cases.

I agree with surge pricing. Yes, I know that I am, for once, aligning with Uber and the other ride-hailing companies. But here is my rationale. Drivers working with legacy minicab companies work shifts. So, they would agree to a specific or implied term in their contract to undertake a certain amount of hours per day or per week irrespective of traffic conditions.

This means they could, on occasions, be locked into heavy traffic and as a consequently earn very little on that day. With these new companies one of the few advantages is that the drivers can decide when and where, in their licencing area, to work. With surge pricing they can be encouraged to remain active and/or move to an area of driver shortage.

I have experienced both environments. It was no fun doing short jobs during a train strike or huge traffic jam. You ran

down your fuel, took longer per journey and, consequently, earned much less for greater stress. I have picked up in surge areas, by accident, and when I saw the money I made on that trip I was a very happy bunny. On one occasion I informed my company that the app may have made a mistake. No, it hasn’t, I was told.

When I said “accident” above I never chased surge pricing although I knew colleagues who would go “ape” for surge pricing and would head for an area where it was in operation. I suspect that many would have purchased Marty McFly’s DeLorean so that they could get to their pick up sooner.

I didn’t chase surge because of the effort required to get to the location. Also, like a phantasmagoria, surge areas would appear one minute then disappear the next - a strategy, I suspect, that was used by the operators to shift drivers from location to location. Finally, unless the surge price was very high it was not worth it to be stuck in traffic.

I don’t understand punters who accept surge fares then whinge about it. If they do not want a minicab at five times the regular price they should not accept the quote or take the journey. Do they not understand how supply and demand works? Do they not believe in capitalism? If their driver was not attracted by the surge price they would not be out on the road picking up fares.

Finally, don’t complain to the company about the driver and surge pricing. It’s the company that sets the surge pricing, not the driver!

—Kwabena

Dennot Nyack

n Dennot is an AGM trade union member and was a former representative of the GMB’s professional drivers. He is also an author and broadcaster with a strong knowledge of the private hire industry and an equality and diversity specialist. email: dennotnyack@yahoo.com mobile: +44 0740 625 276

Kwabena

The

“What is surge pricing? It is a time when the price of journeys with some minicab companies are increased to reflect a higher demand from passengers or a shortage of drivers in a particular area...”

A dreadful year, but great for us!

So, what of 2022? a war in europe saw a collective holding of breath while we waited to see how far Russia’s psychotic President Putin would push things. This was closely followed by the exhaling of a contented sigh once Ukraine started kicking Russian arse.

Which had me wondering: “Why doesn’t the Kremlin give its soldiers the same drugs they pumped into their Olympic athletes? This way they will be unstoppable.” I am not seeking consideration as some kind of special advisor to despot dictators but I’ve often pondered as to why Hitler didn’t wait for the snow to hit Britain before invading our shores. Going by our recent, and normal, reaction to a flurry of the ‘white stuff’ the Fuhrerwith-the-single-gonad would have witnessed us waving the white flag in surrender as long as he granted us a snow day.

Everyday problems from the operator’s point of view...

Three Prime Ministers in one year (at the time of going to press), a cost of living crisis and more strikes than a Swan Vesta testing centre sees the country stumble from one crisis to the next. The present incumbent promises to “fix the economy” – an economy whose decline he presided over as Chancellor of the Exchequer.

Sunak triumphantly strutted into Downing Street to take over from the hapless Liz Truss, a woman who needed Waze to find her way out of her own press conference yet still managed to beat Sunak soundly in the first race to be leader.

Mind boggling!

If 2022 was a (another) year to forget on the global spectrum, closer to home and within our own professional driver world, it has been a phenomenal year. The upturn in trade has been unprecedented and responsible for forcing up prices and subsequently the wages of drivers.

The past 12 months have seen us lose our beloved Queen to be succeeded by her forever grumpy son. A man who holds the general public, his subjects, in more contempt than his younger brother did the American judicial system. Mourning the Queen’s passing must have had a double whammy effect once royalists realised that, under King Charles III, they are probably seeing the beginning of the end of the House of Windsor.

In my view the World Cup in Qatar never really got going. Obviously it should never be held in winter because there was little to no appetite for rocking down to a beer garden or fan zone to slop most of our lager while shivering with hypothermia.

On the plus side, we also couldn’t be bothered to fly those little flags from our car. The crown jewel of football should never have been awarded to a country that refuses to acknowledge that the letter ‘U’ should always come after ‘Q’.

Also, when was it decided that players could spend ten minutes celebrating a goal by congregating at the corner flag for chat? They did everything but serve tea…

Qataris have rightly been condemned for their archaic views on same-sex relationships. However, at least they are honest and open on their objection to homosexuality and probably had to double any bribe paid to FIFA executives for them to clear this thorny hurdle.

While it was reassuring to see players and FAs from around the world come together to condemn Qatar’s homophobic views, the ‘Football Family’ are completely hypocritical given that of the 130,000 professional male footballers in the world, only two have come out as homosexual. Not very inclusive or accepting is it?

Admittedly a price rise had to happen just to meet the increased cost of fuel and other related services that have been rising faster than the Toon Army under Eddie Howe. UK drivers are, at last, fast approaching the point when we are getting the rates we should have demanded ten years back.

Some good news among the gloom of an icy winter is that early signs point toward 2023 continuing to be as busy as this year, if not better.

So, is it time for growth within our industry? Dare we start to put the enforced covid shut-down behind us and look at planning expansion to our business. I believe so!

We need vehicles to come back on stream again and we will need new drivers to support the established pool. People are desperate to travel along with business men and women being finished with Zoom meetings and yearning to get back to pressing the flesh.

Let’s not forget that the UK is (still) the major financial hub of Europe, perhaps the world (not sure about that – Ed). The UK possesses an enviable treasure chest of history, historic sites, culture, food and drink that are top of most travellers’ bucket list. It matters not that they ‘have done London’ because we’ll take them to Oxford, Liverpool, Edinburgh and Bath or the Cotswolds, Cornwall, Snowdonia in Wales and Glencoe in Scotland.

We have already built it and they will come.

Hoping you all get the chance to recharge over the festive period I wish you a Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas and, especially, a Healthy, Happy and Prosperous 2023.

n Kevin Willis runs Chirton Grange, contact@chirtongrange.co.uk – 07725467263

Kevin Willis

Through our iGo technology, we are working with Uber on the pilot of ‘Local Cab’connecting riders who use the Uber app directly with local taxi and private hire operators - helping generate incremental trips, creating additional revenue for your existing drivers and enabling recruitment of new drivers to handle the ever-increasing demand.

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