Professional Driver Magazine May 2022

VOLUME 16 ISSUE 04 £4.95

Magnificent i7 BMW’s new luxury EV revealed

ADAM SMITH REPORT

p16-18 – The Curve Ball: Free-market think tank pitches into taxi and PH reform debate

FORWARDISM E V E R Y M O V E M E N T C R E A T E S I T S O W N

#bornelectric

I C O N .

THE NEW

i7

contents

22

26

22

COVER STORY Magnificent i7 – BMW’s new luxury EV revealed

6-13

B usiness News The latest from around the UK private hire sector

14

P rofile How taxi broker Splend is gearing up for growth

16

N ews Analysis The Adam Smith Institute’s radical call for change

26

F irst Look Mercedes-Benz EQS SUV

28

R oad Test Citroen Grand C4 Space Tourer

28

14 VOLUME 16 ISSUE 04 £4.95

Magnificent i7 BMW’s new luxury EV revealed

p16-18 –The Curve Ball: Free-market think tank pitches into taxi and PH reform debate

4

30 The Last Mile 32 The Knowledge 34 The Negotiator

EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Mark Bursa 07813 320044 markbursa@prodrivermags.com

Kevin Willis, Peter Panayiotou, Iain Dooley, Mike Stone, Dennot Nyack, Adam Bernstein, Dr Mike Galvin, Tim Scrafton

COMMERCIAL DIRECTOR Paul Webb 07807 133527 paulwebb@prodrivermags.com

WEBSITE Martin Coombes 01959 547000

ART DIRECTOR Alan Booth 07817 671973 alan.booth@calixa.biz

ADAM SMITH REPORT

REGULARS

CONTRIBUTORS Ian Robertson, Glen Holder, Phil Rule, John Coombes, Phil Huff, Tim Barnes-Clay, Gary Jacobs, David Wilkins, Craig Thomas,

COMPANY ADDRESS 50 Beechcroft Manor, Oatlands, Weybridge, KT13 9NZ SUBSCRIBE Curwood CMS Ltd, The Barn, Abbey Mews, Robertsbridge, TN32 5AD 01580 883844 subs@prodrivermags.com

31 Current Affairs 33 The Advisor 35 The Insider

news analysis

Mark Bursa

A new and timely report by free market think-tank the Adam Smith Institute proposes a regulatory bonfire for the taxi and private hire sector – with national licensing, knowledge tests scrapped and PHVs able to be hailed. Mark Bursa explains...

The curve ball F

REE-MARKET ECONOMICS THINK TANK THE ADAM SMITH INSTITUTE has pitched into the debate over taxi and private hire reform with a controversial new report.

The document, entitled ‘A Fare Shake – Reforming taxis for the 21st century’ calls for the abolition of the knowledge test for London cabbies, and suggests all taxis, PHVs and ride-hailing cars should operate under a standardised, single-tier structure.

The report takes a very different approach to the problems than the Consultation document issued by the Government last month (see Professional Driver’s April edition). The Government report, by transport minister Baroness Vere, takes a granular look at details such as tinted windows and signage, but proposes nothing as radical as the Adam Smith Institute.

The Adam Smith report’s author Maxwell Marlow proposes the replacement of the current local authority licensing regimes with a single, nationally run body – a demand that is likely to be welcomed by many in the industry.

The Adam Smith Institute describes itself as a “neoliberal think tank” and is widely credited for the thinking behind rail privatisation under the Thatcher government in the 1980s.

In the report, Marlow outlines the increasing cost of running a private car, and states that “professional drivers and mobility services are perfectly placed to relieve this burden on families across the UK. However, in part due to old and burdensome regulation, this market is not being filled. Instead, it is creating problems for drivers and consumers across the UK”.

In particular, he states that regulation hampers the growth of ride-hailing operators such as Uber. “In an increasingly mobile world, especially after the Covid-19 pandemic, it is crucial that licensing

16

authorities and the Government provide a flexible but substantial framework that permits easy, safe, and affordable travel for everyone in the UK. Ride-sharing operators are a growing market, as demand for car ownership falls among the younger urban population, yet our legislation frustrates this expansion,” the report says.

CENTRALISED LICENSING Marlow calls for a complete overhaul of the way licensing is carried out in the UK including scrapping the current decentralised system of 316 licensing authorities, each with differing rules, regulations, and requirements for licence attainment and maintenance.

“While there are myriad arguments for retaining decentralised regulatory frameworks, due to the current restrictions on licensure’s geography and the nature of

Scrapped?

The Knowledge

the taxi trade, the current arrangements lead to inequitable conditions for drivers and customers,” Marlow states.

Licensing rules are “opaque” and confusing, especially with regard to crossborder hires. Marlow’s view is total change.

“The Department for Transport should eliminate these regressive and confusing licensing rules by creating a single, standard licensing regime, enforced by a national licensing authority.”

“A singular national licensing authority would reduce regulatory burdens for incumbents and new entrants, creating a freer and fairer market.”

The Department for Transport should create a single application document which is easily accessible on the gov.uk website, Marlow adds.

“All submitted documentation, from DBS checks, medical certification, driving licences, and MOTs should be made available to the public. Not only would this substantially decrease costs for licensees but it would also accelerate the licence process, removing burdens for local authorities and delivering certainty for operators.”

Marlow says UK licensing should seek to emulate the Australian model on the national level, where a ‘Point-to-Point Commissioner’ is solely responsible for taxi, PHV, and ride-sourced mobility policy – ensuring a competitive but fair environment.

REDUCING THE COST OF ENTRY FOR DRIVERS Marlow argues that the UK’s licensure regime is inherently exclusionary to potential market entrants. “Licences act to exclude otherwise qualified professionals from fulfilling work; this can only be overcome by payment to the authority and the fulfilment of many of the criteria.

While necessary safety concerns can be

MAY 2022

Registered in England No.: 7086172 © 2022 All contents copyright of ProDriver Media Ltd.

MAY 2022

comment

A radical route to the right result?

W

E’VE CALLED IT A CURVE BALL IN OUR coverage, but the Adam Smith Institute’s unexpected report into taxi and private hire licensing is more like a hand grenade, indiscriminately taking out many features of our industry.

The report proposes the scrapping of knowledge tests, language tests, vehicle age limits and, most radically of all, the distinction between hailable taxi and pre-booked private hire vehicle.

It’s exactly the sort of thing you’d expect to read from a notoriously free-market think tank. And its libertarian ideas don’t always work. The Adam Smith Institute is credited with coming up with the framework for rail privatisation under the Thatcher and Major governments, and that has resulted in soaring fares and patchy service, while introducing virtually no competition to the sector.

So it’s easy for those who have worked for many years in this industry to dismiss the report as idealistic, pie-in-theblue-sky thinking. And for sure, hard-won improvements in service quality and customer safety have not been achieved by deregulation – quite the opposite, in fact.

Tighter licensing has brought about cleaner, safer and more professional operators.

But the Adam Smith report does seem to make some valid points. It’s interesting that our correspondent Dennot Nyack, a man with plenty of experience in this sector, believes “The Knowledge” may have run its course, as satnavs are now so advanced and reliable. Dennot’s column on page 34 makes an interesting read.

While the threat to the Knowledge has inevitably been the tabloid headline, the real meat of the report is elsewhere.

The Adam Smith Institute makes one very clear and wellexpressed point: We need a national licensing standard, administered by a central body, not left to the whims of petty bureaucrats in local authorities.

It’s something we believe is right for the industry – after all, central licensing works perfectly well for buses, heavy trucks and their drivers, so why not taxis and minicabs?

At the moment, we are facing a chronic driver shortage, but a combination of bureaucracy, staff shortages and general intransigence means some councils take up to 12 months – a whole year – to process a driver’s license application. This is totally unacceptable, and it’s the reason why some switched-on councils such as Wolverhampton have streamlined the process so they can process applications in days, not months.

There’s no point moaning about drivers who get licensed in Wolverhampton when the likes of Bradford and Manchester are so painfully slow to process applications.

Drivers are needed now, not in 12 months’ time.

This month’s news pages are, as usual, peppered with

MAY 2022

stories about licensing disputes. Local decisions that impact drivers’ lives unnecessarily, where the opposite result can often be found somewhere else. A proper national standard would stop that.

You could allow the local authorities to process the applications, but unified standards and fees would mean councils would have to sharpen up their act and get the job done – otherwise, hello, Wolverhampton.

Have a good read of our full analysis of the Adam Smith report. There is much to commend it (and just as much to ignore). But there’s plenty that could – and should – be factored in to your input to the Government’s consultation into the taxi sector.

We covered this in depth in our April edition, and there’s quite a contrast between transport minister Baroness Vere’s view and that of Maxwell Marlow, the Adam Smith report’s author.

Vere’s proposals call for a subtle but effective sortingout of some of the more anomalous rules and regulations – granular stuff such as CCTV, tinted windows and signage.

These things undoubtedly need fixing, but the best way to bring that about would be not through piecemeal rule changes but by incorporating them into a proper national set of standards.

Hackney licence? Fit a taxi light. PHV? No light. There’s your distinction sorted. If licensing officers need to look in the back of the car, ask the driver to open the window, instead of demanding that factory-fitted tints are replaced by non-existent clear alternatives. Just take any jurisdiction over such trivial matters as window tint density away from the council jobsworths.

Please make sure you have your say on the consultation.

We believe the government is prepared to listen, and if enough people make the case for proper national standards, someone might pay attention. Remember the Adam Smith Institute is taken seriously by the Tories. Marlow’s words will be taken into account. So national standards might just have moved up the agenda somewhat.

The e consultation is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/taxiand-private-hire-vehicle-best-practice-guidance/ taxi-and-private-hire-vehicle-best-practice-guidanceto-assist-local-authorities And you can download the Adam Smith Institute report here: https://www.adamsmith.org/research/a-fareshake-reforming-taxis-for-the-21st-century Mark Bursa Editor markbursa@prodrivermags.com

5

news

Addison Lee back in the black as post-pandemic recovery kicks in inherited in 2020, all while launching new initiatives to support Londoners and keep the capital moving during the pandemic. And with travel now returning Addison Lee has returned to profitability in the to levels seen in 2019, we are confident that this is financial year to the end of August, 2021, recording the start of a return to significant growth for the pre-tax profits of £7.9 million on a turnover of business.” £164m.

The acquisition of ComCab London gives Addison Lee acquired London black cab operator Addison Lee’s London customers access to a range ComCab in the period, and started the programme of ground transport services under one platform, of fleet electrification, and the business is now including black taxi, courier, minicab and chauffeur. poised for significant growth this new financial year.

In the financial period, the firm’s number of Recent figures show a 47% year-on-year growth professional partner drivers and vehicle fleet has in passenger revenue and a 53% year-on-year risen to more than 6,500. growth in pre-tax earnings (EBITDA) between Last year it announced its plans for a rapid February 2021 and February 2022, with Addison Lee transition to electric vehicles for its core London firm’s home and key market in London. It also attributing the rise to rapid post-Covid growth.

The positive results come just two years after the worked to prioritise the relationship with its partner fleet, to be completed by the end of 2023. Addison Lee has already invested £18m to roll out its first drivers, providing support during the pandemic, Griffin family and Cheyne Capital’s Strategic Value 450 Volkswagen ID.4 EVs. These vehicles will increasing rates and giving them access to holiday Credit business led a buyout of the group from remove 11,000 tonnes of CO2 over their three-year venture capitalist Carlyle Group on March 23, 2020 pay, sick leave, and the option of a pension. lifecycle.

Addison Lee now guarantees the London Living – the takeover was announced on the same day Griffin continued: “Since we’ve come back Wage, and new drivers are guaranteed £5,000 gross as the first UK national Covid-19 lockdown. into the business, we’ve doubled down on our In the past two years, Addison Lee’s management for the first month of work. The company says commitment to our drivers, and with the continuing its top-earning drivers currently make more than team, led by CEO Liam Griffin (pictured), had support from our investors and several new £2,000 per week. to make tough decisions to address issues posed Liam Griffin said: “As London returns to business ventures underway, there’s much more to come. We by the pandemic and “legacy issues left by the as usual, we know that this is just the beginning for know first-hand the role that the transport sector previous management team”, the company said in must play in tackling climate change, and we’re us. By focussing on our core strengths, our expert a statement. extremely proud of the work we’ve done to become management team have successfully managed Addison Lee reduced losses by exiting lossan industry leader in the transition.” to offset the difficult financial situation that we making international operations to focus on the

Mark Bursa

Newcastle introduces new private hire signage policy Mark Bursa Newcastle-upon-Tyne private hire operators have welcomed a new policy which aims to make their vehicles more recognisable to passengers.

Private hire vehicles must now display rear passenger door signage with the name, number and/or app of the company the taxi driver works for. The intention is to help passengers identify the car they have booked and ensure drivers only respond to one job at a time.

Private hire operators across the city supported the new policy, which is now in place, following an eight-week consultation held last year.

The move is in response to concerns that some self-employed drivers, who were working for multiple operators, had abandoned jobs they had previously accepted after being offered a higher-paid fare from another firm.

The drivers then failed to turn up for the

6

original bookings, it is claimed, leaving customers stranded and vulnerable.

Cllr Linda Hobson, Newcastle City Council cabinet member for housing and regulatory services, said: “The safety of everybody is of

the utmost importance so these signs will help passengers further identify the private hire car they have booked and in turn ensure that drivers only respond to one booking at a time.”

Ian Shanks, managing director of leading local operator Blueline Taxis (pictured), said: “We support Newcastle City Council’s positive approach to make private hire vehicles more recognisable and believe this will provide assurances that customers will be collected and transported to their destination safely.”

David Singh, customer care manager at Noda and Budget Taxis, said: “We unfortunately find ourselves competing with companies that operate high surge charges incentivising drivers to take alternative bookings and leaving our customers behind. The changes will make it safer for people and parents will have the comfort knowing their child is going to be picked up by a licensed driver and they will come home safe.”

MAY 2022

news

Major operators sign up as Uber expands Local Cab into 11 further UK locations Mark Bursa

Radio Taxis Southampton, Apple Central Taxis of Weston-super-Mare and TOA Taxis of Scotland are among big names in the industry that have signed up to Uber’s Local Cab network, the ride-hailing giant has announced.

Local Cab has been extended into eleven new locations across the UK as Uber continues to build a national service in partnership with local private hire and taxi operators by linking them into the Uber system via Autocab’s iGo network.

These companies have now joined the network, and started accepting jobs booked via the Uber app. u Radio Taxis, Southampton u Data Yorkshire, Pontefract u Apple Central Taxis, Weston-super-Mare u ABC Taxis, Newport u TOA Taxis, West Dunbartonshire u Yellow Cars, Bristol u Carriage Company, Banbury u CabCo, Canterbury u ABC Taxis, Benfleet and Canvey Island u Oswestry Cars, Oswestry u Acorn Taxis, Tamworth u Intime Taxis, Manchester u Her Ride, Oxford In Southampton, Pontefract, Weston-superMare, Newport and Bristol, Local Cab will run alongside regular Uber-operated services, including UberX, UberXL and Comfort. In the other locations, people will be able to use

the Uber app to book a car for the first time.

Since the company’s successful pilot of Local Cab last year, the service has launched in more than 40 towns and cities across the UK. Simon May, director at QSi Gold Award-winning operator Radio Taxis Southampton (pictured), said: “We’re hoping that the extra trips Local Cab generates will also encourage more new drivers to join our fleet.”

Sajid Majid, director at Data Yorkshire, said: “Demand for taxis in Pontefract is high and we know there’s a real appetite among passengers for more transport options, so Local Cab has arrived at just the right time.”

Uber has also expanded its coverage in Manchester and Oxford, adding an additional

operator in each city. Intime Taxis of Levenshulme becomes the eleventh operator in the Greater Manchester region to sign up for Local Cab. And in Oxford, Her Ride – a company that recruits mainly female drivers and focuses on providing safe transport for women – has become the second Local Cab operator in the city, joining 001 Taxis.

Jamie Heywood, Uber’s regional general manager for Northern and Eastern Europe: “We’re excited to add nine new areas to our growing list of locations across the UK where riders can access Local Cab. This will help maximise earnings opportunities for drivers while giving passengers more choice, meaning that everyone will benefit.”

Uber appoints former BA and British Gas executive Brem to head UK operations Mark Bursa Uber has chosen a former senior manager at British Airways to head up its UK operations.

Andrew Brem (pictured), who was chief commercial officer at the airline, will oversee all areas of Uber’s mobility business in the UK and report directly to Jamie Heywood, Uber’s regional general manager, northern Europe.

Brem is replacing Ash Kebriti as UK General Manager. Kebriti has taken on another role within Uber, based at Uber’s European headquarters.

Brem has more than 30 years’ experience of leading the operations and digital transformation of major corporations such as Asda, Aviva and British Gas, where he launched Hive. At British Airways, he oversaw the airline’s commercial operations during the pandemic.

He said: “Uber is one of the most exciting

MAY 2022

technology companies in the world as it continues to change the way we move around our cities. The UK has led the way globally in driving forward Uber’s electrification efforts, as well as providing all UK drivers with worker protections such as holiday pay and a pension in what was an industry first.”

Brem joins Uber following the decision

by TfL to grant the company a 30-month operator’s licence in London. Uber also recently announced plans to expand its UK passenger transport offering to include intercity rail and coach services, as well as access to nationwide car rentals, with plans to add flights and hotel bookings to the app at a later date.

Prior to working at British Airways, Aviva and British Gas, Brem served as managing director of multi-channel e-commerce and services at Carphone Warehouse and as director responsible for new business at Asda.

7

news

Sandwell taxi drivers hold go-slow protest over fees and licensing issues Mark Bursa Hundreds of Sandwell taxi drivers took part in a go-slow drive around West Bromwich town centre last week before stopping to protest at Sandwell council’s taxi licence office in Cradley Heath.

The protest, over concerns about licensing issues, caused lengthy traffic delays around West Bromwich and the surrounding towns of Oldbury and Blackheath. It follows protests last August and December.

In particular, the drivers are concerned about the cost of licenses and the time it takes to process them. According to reports, it takes between nine and 12 months for new applications for a private hire licence to be processed. For neighbouring Wolverhampton Council, it takes approximately three weeks.

A one-year taxi plate costs £353 for a vehicle under five years old, and £399 if it is over five years old, if the vehicle is registered with Sandwell Council. Other councils, such as

Dudley and Birmingham City, charge £235 and £185 for any age of vehicle.

The protest was organised by the Sandwell Private Hire Drivers Association (SPHDA). The association claims Sandwell Council was not listening to drivers’ concerns.

SPHDA vice-chair and protest organiser Jaswinder Dhesi said: “I

East Suffolk rejects drivers’ call for 60p fuel surcharge on all trips Mark Bursa Calls by a group of drivers for a 60p surcharge on Hackney cab journeys in East Suffolk to tackle rising fuel costs has been rejected by councillors.

Instead the authority has promised a consultation with the trade over a lower 20p surcharge in the summer if needed.

A group of nine Felixstowe cab drivers put

forward a request that a 60p fuel surcharge be added to all journeys for a temporary period of 12 months, in response to the rising cost of petrol and diesel. They said that would be a reasonable amount for passengers to pay for a temporary period.

But East Suffolk Council’s licensing committee rejected the request, saying cab drivers across the whole district should be consulted over the issue.

Instead, the committee voted to introduce a 20p surcharge on all journeys for a period of three months, but only after the trade has been consulted. The two-week consultation will take place before the committee’s next meeting in July, when it will decide whether

Lancaster taxi fares to rise after consultation with cabbies Lancaster City Council has approved plans for increased fares for hackney drivers to take into account rising costs following an informal consultation with local cabbies.

Shorter journeys will be subject to a minor increase, while

8

think they don’t want to listen to us, and every time they change the council leader, they seem to not know what our problems are.”

He continued: “The problem is about too much red tape from the council licensing and they charge the highest fees in Sandwell for badges, as well as making us wait for up to

a year, meaning that someone who wants to work within a month can’t do so.”

Dhesi apologised to the public for the delays they will have, but added: “We feel we have to do this as our hands are tied by the council, which doesn’t want to listen to us and won’t talk to us.”

to implement the 20p surcharge.

The request was for Hackney Carriage cabs only as private hire cabs can set their own fees already. Cllr Paul Ashdown said: “I think 60p is too much. They are reasonably well paid with the fees they have actually got at this moment in time, and everybody is feeling the pinch.” Concerns were also raised over whether a flat rate of 60p for all journeys regardless of length was appropriate.

According to the council, there are currently 187 Hackney Carriage drivers in East Suffolk. The Felixstowe drivers claimed their fuel costs had increased by around £810 per day, across an average 18 jobs per day.

journeys of more than five miles will be subject to a 10-15% increase. Time-and-a-half/double time rates on this tariff will see fares raised between 10-24%.

The highest increases are for journeys of 20 miles or more, which rise 15.38% to £42.

—Mark Bursa

MAY 2022

news

Gridserve reveals ‘future blueprint’ compact Electric Forecourt in Norwich Mark Bursa Gridserve has opened a new Electric Forecourt EV charging centre in Norwich. The site is Gridserve’s first ‘compact’ Electric Forecourt, occupying a smaller site than its first site in Braintree, which opened last year.

Gridserve has also opened a new ultra-fast charging station at Moto Thurrock services on the M25, near the Dartford Tunnel. Located between junctions 30 and 31, the site features 12 chargers with up to 350kW of power, the fastest currently available.

The new investments are part of a £1 billion UK-wide investment into electric vehicle charging infrastructure by the company.

The Norwich Electric Forecourt is one of the most advanced electric vehicle charging facilities in the world, with 36 chargers.

Of these 22 offer 350kW charging, which can add up to 100 miles of range in only five minutes on compatible cars. There are also eight Tesla Superchargers and six lower-powered chargers. Gridserve said it was “a blueprint for towns and cities across the UK”.

Norwich and the East of England region currently have comparatively low EV charger coverage of just 29 chargers per 100,000 people compared to the UK

average of 42 per 100,000 people, or 102 per 100,000 people in London.

The Norwich Electric Forecourt is designed as an EV experience destination, where visitors without electric cars can find out more about them, and chat with impartial EV experts about charging or vehicle leasing options.

The site includes branches of Costa Coffee, M&S Food and WHSmith, along with super-fast wifi and bookable meeting pods. In the coming weeks, visitors will also be able to test drive the latest

electric cars through Gridserve Car Leasing.

Toddington Harper, CEO of Gridserve, said: “Norwich Electric Forecourt showcases a brand new design, where we have been able to provide both charging and a great customer experience in a smaller footprint than our first site at Braintree. By elevating the facilities above the chargers, we make the best use of the space available and are able to deliver a great EV experience without compromise, even when space is

at a premium and sites are more constrained.”

Norwich Electric Forecourt is located at Broadland Gate Business Park in Postwick, NR13 5HB, next to the A47. Gridserve is building a third Electric Forecourt at Gatwick Airport, and is planning to open further sites in Uckfield, Gateshead, Plymouth and Stevenage. More than 30 additional sites are under development as part of the company’s commitment to build at least another 100 of the charge hubs.

Leicester City Council launches three-year strategy to improve local services Mark Bursa Leicester City Council has drawn up a three-year plan to make taxis safer and more convenient in the city, including new standards on driver and vehicle fitness.

The council says it wants to improve the sharing of driving and vehicle records with police and neighbouring licensing authorities, as well as improving CCTV and GPS tracking.

There are currently almost 2,000 taxi drivers licensed by Leicester City Council and about 1,300 private hire vehicles run by 93 different

10

operators, along with 230 Hackney carriages.

The plan also aims to increase the number of low-emissions vehicles in service, create a better structure for consultation between drivers, unions and the council, and put in place cashless payment options in all private hire and hackney vehicles.

Piara Singh Clair, Leicester’s deputy mayor responsible for regulatory services, said: “This strategy brings together the work which is already ongoing around both private hire and hackney carriage standards, and sets out how we will operate over the coming years to

improve services and meet our environmental commitments around air quality and sustainable travel.”

Singh Clair continued: “We’ve already carried out consultation work with the taxi trade, passengers and other local stakeholders, and while some of the improvements in this strategy can be brought in fairly soon, others are likely to involve further consultation. In particular, we will be looking at working more closely with neighbouring licensing authorities, such as Wolverhampton, to assess the impact of taxis licensed elsewhere operating in the city.”

MAY 2022

Insurance that makes sense

B E I N W I T H A C H A N C E TO W I N A N ELECTRIC CAR WORTH UP TO £35,000* Every week, Zego will also be giving away a £50 voucher to the top-scoring driver.

Purchase your insurance policy and find out how to enter at: zego.com/good-driver-giveaway

*UK only. Must enable Sense app & achieve Driver Score by closing date of 31/05/2022. T&Cs apply.

news

New bill plugs gaps in disability rights for taxi and PHV users Mark Bursa Legislation passed by parliament last month will give disabled people new rights when travelling by taxis or private hire vehicles, although there are already concerns over how well they will be enforced.

The private member’s bill aims to fill gaps in the protection given to disabled people under sections 165 and 167 of the Equality Act 2010.

One of the gaps concerns laws that impose fines of up to £1,000 on drivers of taxis and private hire vehicles who refuse to accept wheelchair-users, try to charge them extra, or fail to provide them with appropriate assistance.

But those laws – finally brought into force in 2017 following delays from successive governments – only apply in those areas of England, Scotland and Wales where a local authority has drawn up a list of all the wheelchair-accessible taxis and private hire vehicles in their area.

The new ‘Taxis and private hire vehicles (disabled persons) bill’, originally introduced by Conservative MP Jeremy Wright, will now force all local authorities to maintain and publish such a list.

But it will also impose new duties on drivers of vehicles that are not wheelchair-accessible to carry a disabled person and their mobility aid and provide “reasonable assistance”, without charging extra, for example if a wheelchair-user wants to transfer to the passenger seat and store their wheelchair in the boot of the vehicle.

The Equality Act already bans operators of private hire vehicles from refusing a booking because the passenger will be accompanied by an assistance dog, but the new legislation will also now prevent them refusing bookings from any disabled person because of their impairment, or from charging them extra for providing them with assistance.

Junior transport minister Baroness Vere said this week that the government had given the bill its “full support” and that it “goes a long way” to reducing the impact of discrimination on disabled people, who “rely on taxis and private hire vehicles more than most”.

Transport access campaigner Doug Paulley, who has fought for years to highlight gaps in the legislation and its enforcement, welcomed the new

bill and the strengthened rights it offered.

But he said the problem with the bill was that it relied on existing enforcement mechanisms. He said: “By making it a criminal offence for taxi drivers to discriminate against us in various ways, parliament clearly intended to make it easier and more effective to enforce. But the number of such prosecutions, compared to the number of such incidents, makes it very clear that this legislation is not enforced and discrimination is rife.

“The postcode lottery is a massive factor, with different taxi licensing authorities having very different competence, policy and energy in this area. Bringing other disabled people up to the same protection wheelchair and assistance dog users currently have is a very low bar indeed!”

It is the second taxi-related blunder to hit the council after it emerged that signs directing the public to new city centre taxi ranks had not been put in place. Drivers said they were losing income because customers didn’t know where to find a taxi while the traditional Old Town Street rank was out of commission due to city centre redevelopment works.

Martin Leaves, secretary of the hackney cabbies’ Plymouth Licensed Taxi Association (PLTA), said: “Some people say not having the knowledge test would make it quicker to recruit drivers, but do we

want them driving around using a satnav? We want drivers to be professional, and to be professional they should do the knowledge test.”

Plymouth councillors approved the Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing Policy 2022 at its March full council meeting. The police has been dogged with controversy because it removes the limit on hackney cab numbers and insists that “black cabs” are painted green and white by 2027.

The council had wanted to remove the necessity of private hire drivers having to pass the Knowledge of Plymouth (KOP) Topographical Test.

But although the policy had been dropped, the document the councillors voted for still contained the wording “Topographical Knowledge of Plymouth (KOP) test (for hackney carriage applications only)”.

A Plymouth City Council spokesperson said: “We are sorry for any confusion caused and will be reviewing this to determine whether to return the policy back to full council.”

Council blunder means Plymouth PH drivers can avoid knowledge test A Plymouth City Council blunder has meant new private hire drivers will not have to take a knowledge test of the city’s streets.

Councillors voted to accept a controversial new taxi licensing policy in March 2022 - but a misprint that wasn’t noticed meant they approved the test only for new hackney drivers.

So from May 1, new private hire drivers do not have to take a knowledge test. Now councillors want to amend the error, but cannot do so until a full council meeting, which can’t be called until after the May local elections.

12

MAY 2022

news

China presses ahead with autonomous taxi development Mark Bursa The Chinese Government has granted the first license to operate fully autonomous taxi services in the country.

The licence was granted to internet giant Baidu, which is now running a fleet of 10 driverless taxis in a 60sq km area of Beijing under its Apollo Go brand – with plans to add a further 30 vehicles.

“This regulatory approval marks a significant milestone for the autonomous ride-hailing industry in China, indicating a regulatory openness to taking a further step toward a fully driverless mobility future,” Baidu said in a statement.

The permit does not allow Baidu to charge for the newly-approved fully driverless rides, but the company says this is not a problem. “Apollo Go is not currently targeting profitability,” Wei Dong, vice president and chief security operation officer at Baidu’s Intelligent Driving Group, told local reporters.

“Instead, the goal is to allow more people to experience and accept this mobility option. When users get used to autonomous driving, the user base will gradually grow and lay the foundation for a good business.”

Wei added: “China is late to autonomous vehicle regulations, but it is moving fast.” He was referring to

APRIL 2022

Apollo Go is now operating 10 autonomous taxis in Beijing – and passengers travel free

the fact that Google-owned Waymo has been running an autonomous taxi pilot scheme in Phoenix, Arizona, since 2020.

Baidu is not the only autonomous taxi start-up in China. Guangzhou-based Pony.ai has also been granted a taxi license that allows it to operate 100 driverless taxis in Guangzhou’s Nansha district, though the cars must have a ‘safety driver’ on board.

The company plans to eventually start charging for rides and gradually expand its service to other areas of Guangzhou, with fares comparable with a regular

Guangzhou cab, accorsing to Mo Luyi, Pony.ai’s vice president.

Recent reports suggest the Chinese public has a favourable opinion about autonomous vehicles. A JD Power report said Chinese consumer confidence in autonomous vehicles reached 50 points on a 100-point scale, much higher than the 36 points of confidence among American consumers.

Chinese authorities are backing the technology too. “China wants to outperform other nations in autonomous intelligence,” said Cui Dongshu, secretary-general of the China Passenger Car Association. “The government is encouraging the development of the autonomous driving business and launching a number of pilot zones.”

This will lead to more widespread adoption from 2025, when rules and regulations allowing commercial driverless taxi operations are expected to be introduced.

“After 2025, more cities will have policy flexibility to allow and scale autonomous driving,” a Baidu spokesperson said. “Once the national standards roll out in 2025, the industry’s supply chain will be standardized, bringing down the cost of the supply chain significantly between 2025 and 2028. We believe the commercialization of robotaxis will reach a peak between 2028 and 2030.”

13

news

Splend raises £75 million credit facility to switch to green mobility Mark Bursa As new electric models start to become more freely available, the drive toward greener mobility is gathering pace.

Everyone, from taxi and private hire operators to the self-sufficient ride-hailing driver, is in the market for an electric car. But the vehicles are not cheap, so an ecosystem of companies has grown up to supply the cars under subscription, either on a rental or a rent-to-buy model.

A “big three” of suppliers in the sector has started to emerge, along with a myriad of smaller brokers that are seeing an opportunity. But alongside Weflex and Ottocar, the most ambitious supplier is Splend, which last month announced a new £75 million credit facility with Pollen Street Capital, a fastgrowing, private capital asset management firm.

The new credit facility accelerates Splend’s growth, and will be focused on helping drivers transition to greener vehicles. Splend was founded in Australia in 2015 by Chris King, where it operates in 10 cities.

Its UK operations are headed by a familiar face in the industry, former Addison Lee director Justin Patterson (pictured).

The investment from Pollen Street Capital is a signal of intent.

The potential in the sector is huge, and Splend has ambitions not to supply 1,000 cars but 10,000 by 2024 via a “scalable, watertight business model”.

That model offers an all-in bundled price for drivers to hire an electric car, with MOT, insurance and PCO licence all included.

Without needing a deposit or a credit check, drivers can rent a practical EV such as an MG5 Estate for an all-in price of £239 per week. For an extra £10 a week, the driver can enter a four-year rent-to-buy agreement, whereby

14

they own the car at the end of the term.

With electric running costs gaining an advantage over spiralling petrol and diesel prices, it makes financial sense, especially when you factor in C-charge exemption of £15 a day. And with a serious lack of used EVs on the market, renting is the most secure way to get hold of a car right now.

Vehicle supply is still a problem.

“It’s the main obstacle to growth at the moment,” said Patterson, “We’ve managed to secure a number of vehicles but it’s a moving target.”

Some manufacturers are harder to pin down than others.

For example, Volkswagen is so constrained that it has been forced to cancel orders for some ID models, and the ID.3 range has been reduced to just one model.

“Even with that, they’re not giving guaranteed delivery dates,” Patterson added.

The supply situation is better with some other brands – especially the Koreans, which have avoided the worst of the

microprocessor supply issues that are dogging the industry.

“We’ve been leaning heavily on Hyundai recently,” Patterson said. “But with manufacturers being reluctant to allocate cars to customers until they arrive at the docks, it’s still a difficult time.”

The other hot ticket electric PHV is the Chinese-made MG range.

As well as the MG5 estate, the ZS electric SUV is starting to win customers. “We’ve had hundreds of MGs come through, and we’ve just received 150 ZS SUVs, which will go down well as they have very good range.”

Patterson doesn’t expect the supply constraints to ease until this September, and “normality” is still 18 months away, when a predictable supply line of cars will be restored. “We’d like to get 5,000 cars on the road in the next 12 months,” he says. “That would make us bigger than Addison Lee!” London is still the core target: “There are 90-100,000 drivers registered with TfL, but 84,000 are still in diesel or petrol cars, and a lot are not in Euro 6.” These

drivers are getting hit with ULEZ zone and C-charge - £25 a day if your car is non-compliant for both.

“It doesn’t stack up, especially at £1.80 a litre,” Patterson says. “You need to plug in!”

Most customers are still individual drivers, but Splend is starting to have discussions with operators. “A lot of operators struggle with asset finance to buy cars, so renting cars is a great win for them, avoiding cost and risk.”

Indeed, Patterson believes there will come a point where the Splend model becomes the biggest game in town for the private hire sector. “There’s room for two, three or four good players, and the smaller companies renting out of backstreet garages will disappear, as they won’t have access to capital.”

And that’s where the £75m asset funding comes in. Splend is now talking to a number of new automakers that are targeting the sector. “It makes it easier to deal with manufacturers – if you’ve got money and you’ve got supply, you’ll win the game,” Patterson says.

MAY 2022

electricbroker.co.uk EXPERTS IN VEHICLE FINANCE

ARE YOU READY TO MAKE THE SWITCH?

THE ELECTRIC BROKER IS HERE TO GUIDE YOU THROUGH THE PROCESS We have access to a wide selection of manufacturers and funders, offering tailored solutions to the professional driver network.

01423 608666

sales@electricbroker.co.uk

Ethos Asset Finance Limited is Authorised and Regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority for Full Permission Credit Broking under FRN 723779. Ethos Asset Finance Limited is a Broker and not a Lender

Powered By

news analysis

Mark Bursa

A new and timely report by free market think-tank the Adam Smith Institute proposes a regulatory bonfire for the taxi and private hire sector – with national licensing, knowledge tests scrapped and PHVs able to be hailed. Mark Bursa explains...

The curve ball F

REE-MARKET ECONOMICS THINK TANK THE ADAM SMITH INSTITUTE has pitched into the debate over taxi and private hire reform with a controversial new report.

The document, entitled ‘A Fare Shake – Reforming taxis for the 21st century’ calls for the abolition of the knowledge test for London cabbies, and suggests all taxis, PHVs and ride-hailing cars should operate under a standardised, single-tier structure.

The report takes a very different approach to the problems than the Consultation document issued by the Government last month (see Professional Driver’s April edition). The Government report, by transport minister Baroness Vere, takes a granular look at details such as tinted windows and signage, but proposes nothing as radical as the Adam Smith Institute.

The Adam Smith report’s author Maxwell Marlow proposes the replacement of the current local authority licensing regimes with a single, nationally run body – a demand that is likely to be welcomed by many in the industry.

The Adam Smith Institute describes itself as a “neoliberal think tank” and is widely credited for the thinking behind rail privatisation under the Thatcher government in the 1980s.

In the report, Marlow outlines the increasing cost of running a private car, and states that “professional drivers and mobility services are perfectly placed to relieve this burden on families across the UK. However, in part due to old and burdensome regulation, this market is not being filled. Instead, it is creating problems for drivers and consumers across the UK”.

In particular, he states that regulation hampers the growth of ride-hailing operators such as Uber. “In an increasingly mobile world, especially after the Covid-19 pandemic, it is crucial that licensing

16

authorities and the Government provide a flexible but substantial framework that permits easy, safe, and affordable travel for everyone in the UK. Ride-sharing operators are a growing market, as demand for car ownership falls among the younger urban population, yet our legislation frustrates this expansion,” the report says.

CENTRALISED LICENSING Marlow calls for a complete overhaul of the way licensing is carried out in the UK including scrapping the current decentralised system of 316 licensing authorities, each with differing rules, regulations, and requirements for licence attainment and maintenance.

“While there are myriad arguments for retaining decentralised regulatory frameworks, due to the current restrictions on licensure’s geography and the nature of

Scrapped?

The Knowledge

the taxi trade, the current arrangements lead to inequitable conditions for drivers and customers,” Marlow states.

Licensing rules are “opaque” and confusing, especially with regard to crossborder hires. Marlow’s view is total change.

“The Department for Transport should eliminate these regressive and confusing licensing rules by creating a single, standard licensing regime, enforced by a national licensing authority.”

“A singular national licensing authority would reduce regulatory burdens for incumbents and new entrants, creating a freer and fairer market.”

The Department for Transport should create a single application document which is easily accessible on the gov.uk website, Marlow adds.

“All submitted documentation, from DBS checks, medical certification, driving licences, and MOTs should be made available to the public. Not only would this substantially decrease costs for licensees but it would also accelerate the licence process, removing burdens for local authorities and delivering certainty for operators.”

Marlow says UK licensing should seek to emulate the Australian model on the national level, where a ‘Point-to-Point Commissioner’ is solely responsible for taxi, PHV, and ride-sourced mobility policy – ensuring a competitive but fair environment.

REDUCING THE COST OF ENTRY FOR DRIVERS Marlow argues that the UK’s licensure regime is inherently exclusionary to potential market entrants. “Licences act to exclude otherwise qualified professionals from fulfilling work; this can only be overcome by payment to the authority and the fulfilment of many of the criteria.

While necessary safety concerns can be

MAY 2022

news analysis

addressed by a rigorous licensing process, licensing remains highly expensive. The cost of a licence for a taxi in London can exceed £10,000 by some estimates, after the Knowledge is taken into account.

Marlow suggests a number of ways to reduce the cost burden of entry. One is allowing older vehicles to be registered – though this is likely to be difficult to achieve given moves toward clean air zones and the inability to licence diesels that are pre-Euro 6 (built before 2015). The report also contradicts itself, as it later argues in favour of a switch to EVs, backed by a Government incentive programme along the lines of those operated by Uber and Bolt.

“The Government should raise capital through a Green Taxis and PHVs Fund, to subsidise drivers for a faster transition away from combustion engines,” the report states.

The driver population is ageing, and the cost and complexity of getting a licence is off-putting to younger drivers.

“By simplifying licensure rules, the Government can make taxi and PHV driving more attractive fixing an ailing labour force and driving up the supply of drivers.”

Marlow writes.

“Cutting the costs of licensure is critical to allowing a fairer and more open people transport market and empowering employment in this market across the country. Nonetheless, public safety should remain a key priority of licensure, so a healthy balance of maintenance checks and an automated system for updating and

MAY 2022

Hailing: To be made available to PHVs?

qualifying for licence renewal should be considered.”

REMOVING RESTRICTIONS AND TESTS The report is brutal in terms of removing restrictions on drivers.

Language tests should be scrapped.

“Due to the nature of their work, only basic English is required. As long as they are qualified to drive in the UK, there is little reason as to why the Government should uphold this exclusionary policy,” Marlow says.

Driving licences should not be restricted to UK/Northern Ireland and EEA. Marlow notes that the UK recognises 15 designated foreign countries’ driving licences to drive on British roads for at least 12 months, but these countries are excluded from PHV and taxi licences.

“The DVLA should consider expanding validity to any country that is a signatory or accessor to the 1968 Vienna Convention on Road Traffic, and thereby further expanding the pool of labour available to drive taxis and PHVs in the UK. This could unleash tens of thousands of potential drivers.”

Extra advanced tests are also a no-no, according to the report. The Government’s suggestion of introducing an Ofqualcertified driving proficiency test for all potential licensees “would be a misstep, adding further regulatory burdens to drivers for no good reason”.

Marlow argues that there is no evidence to suggest that further driving

qualifications make the roads safer, quoting studies by the Royal Automobile Club of Victoria (2001 & 2016) and the Road Safety Observatory (2017).

“As the Government has admitted, the main prevention of accidents is road experience and vehicle maintenance, rather than additional qualifications,” Marlow writes. “This is already effectively dealt by current maintenance rules, ensuring that Britain has some of the safest taxi and PHV services in the world.”

THE END OF KNOWLEDGE TESTS There is no place in the modern environment for topographical “Knowledge” tests either, Marlow argues.

This headline-grabbing part of the report apparently resulted in a heated argument between Marlow and LTDA boss Steve McNamara on a little-watched right-wing TV channel, which can probably be found on Youtube.

Marlow is scathing about the need for ‘knowledge tests’, saying: “The Knowledge and advanced topographical tests should be removed as a requirement for licensure.”

“In an age of constant GPS and digital maps, there is no reason to retain this.

Despite protestations from the Black Cab lobby, the Knowledge does not in fact provide significant additional knowledge above that which may be gained from the constant directional and traffic updates that are fed into navigational systems.

Indeed, this requirement acts as a screen against potential drivers, costing drivers

17

news analysis

thousands of pounds and years of their life for a skill which is largely obsolete.”

McNamara’s response was predictably vocal: “A satnav is no substitute for a professional driver’s knowledge and experience, especially in a busy, everevolving city like London,” he said. “This report seems to advocate for a race to bottom, which would undermine the quality of the important service licensed taxis provide and seriously jeopardise passenger safety.”

SINGLE-TIER LICENSING Marlow is favourably disposed to ridehailing and states that it “must continually be made easier”.

And the most obvious way to do this is by allowing consumers to hail a nonhackney taxi from the pavement. “Indeed, all licence holders should have equal access to services; PHVs should therefore be able to be hailed from the pavement.”

The report continues: “Taxis will be able to differentiate themselves through auxiliary services, such as offering tours, greater comfort in their newer and subsidised vehicles, and by upholding their unique brand.”

Ride-sourced operators should be able to use removable dashboard lights to signal their service, Marlow argues.

18

Parity: No distinction between taxi and PHV?

“A ‘no-sign, no-ride’ policy should be enforced to maintain safety and remove potential fraud. Many licensing authorities require livery to be stuck to the car, but this significantly reduces the number of operators a driver may work for: legally, operators are permitted to work for multiple operators, but given livery restrictions, licensing authorities actively obstruct drivers.”

Marlow also argues that allowing PHVs to be hailed would be a positive public safety move. “By removing the right to be hailed from the pavement, licensing authorities are endangering the public: withdrawing suitable services when they are most needed. By permitting universal hailing, licensing authorities will create more reactive and flexible transport for all licence holders, further ensuring the safety of the public at night.”

TAXI-BUS SERVICES The report also suggests more could be made of so-called “taxi-bus” services, or Paratransit Light Vehicles (PLV). PLVs

are basically minibuses that run regular services along high-demand routes, like a bus, but can be summoned by customers.

As the service would be shared by fellow passengers, it would reduce the costs when compared to regular PHV services.

“PLVs should receive greater focus,” Marlow notes, acknowledging that PLV experiments such as Ford’s Chariot service were poorly subscribed and were abandoned after only a few months.

The report concludes that “Licensing must be reformed to reflect the modern, innovative transport services which have contorted their way around stringent and mismatching regulations.”

“It must have a nationally cohesive, lowered bar of entry to allow for more competition and a new stock of drivers and vehicles. It must be transparent to keep authorities and drivers accountable, and to reduce frustrations for passengers.”

“Old, even ancient, legislation continues to blight the development of transport services and the investment that follows.

Liberating licensing for taxis, PHVs, and ride-source comes at no cost to the Exchequer, and will only generate positive returns in user satisfaction, consumer surplus, and for our environment,” Marlow concludes.

MAY 2022

Enter now for 2022’s

!

S D R A W A I S Q

The 2022 Professional Driver QSi Awards are now open for entries from all operators and drivers in the industry.

Company in the UK. We invite them to submit entries – or nominate other companies.

And we’ll reveal the winners at our We’ve got 10 categories: there’s something famous Professional Driver QSi Awards night on Tuesday, November 29, 2022, at the for everyone – from thousand-car fleets to Celtic Manor Resort in South Wales. It’s the owner-drivers, including special awards for best party in the industry and a great way to environmental achievements, marketing celebrate your achievements. excellence, community service and business diversification.

ENTER THE 2022 QSI AWARDS AT: The Professional Driver QSi Awards are open to every private hire, chauffeur and taxi

https://www.prodrivermags.com/ qsi-awards-home/

Dp

Delivery Point

first roadlook test

BMW i7

Mark Bursa

Magnificent ProDriver Tested 32.8mpg / 30.0mph July 2019

C

hauffeurs will finally be able to specify a fully-

electric large saloon later this year when the new BMW i7 goes on sale. The i7 forms part of an all-new 7-series range, giving BMW a crucial advantage over rival Mercedes-Benz, whose new S-Class does not have a battery-electric option, only a plug-in hybrid.

Mercedes offers the new EQS as its top-line electric option, but the car’s low roofline and hatchback body has perhaps

22

fallen short of chauffeurs’ expectations.

By contrast, BMW has not deviated from the tested formula for its biggest saloon,

and has simply produced an electric version of the 7-series as part of a new range – in which plug-in electrification will be available on all models.

The new 7-series range is available exclusively in long-wheelbase form, with two trim levels, M Sport and Excellence. The all-electric i7 xDrive60 is the launch model, with first deliveries this December, priced from £107,400.

BMW 750e xDrive and M760e xDrive plug-in hybrid models will follow in spring

MAY 2022

first look

i7

2023, with a flagship i7 M70 xDrive model arriving later in 2023. All models have air suspension and active steering, with the rear wheels turning by up to 3.5 degrees.

The 7-series PHEVs will offer 50 miles of electric range when fully charged. They feature high-voltage batteries that can store 18.7 kWh of usable energy, an increase of more than 50% compared with the current 745Le model. Maximum charging capacity has climbed from 3.7 kW to 7.4 kW, enabling the high-voltage battery to be fully

MAY 2022

recharged from empty in less than three hours. Even on a conventional domestic power socket, a full vehicle charge can be completed in 9 hours.

The electric i7 xDrive60 has a claimed range of 367-388 miles (WLTP) on a full charge. The i7 allows AC charging at a rate of up to 11kW, with DC charging at a rate of up to 195kW. This allows 106 miles (WLTP) of range to be added in 10 minutes at a high-power charging station capable of this power.

The i7 includes some considerable upgrades on the old 7-series. The separate satnav screen, criticised for being too small in the previous model, is replaced by a curved, widescreen display similar to that seen on the iX and i4 EVs. The digital screen grouping consists of a 12.3in information display behind the steering wheel and a 14.9in control display screen, both incorporated into a single unit behind a shared glass surface.

Below the curved display screen grouping is an “interaction bar” to control some of the on-screen functions. The rotary controller for the infotainment system is retained on the centre console next to the gear selector.

Rear-seat passengers will be able to watch a huge 31.3in widescreen “theatre screen” that folds down from the roof and spans the rear cabin. This has an 8K display and includes integrated Amazon Fire TV. A digital control unit is integrated into the rear door trim. This 5.5in touchscreen colour display allows passengers to select their choice of entertainment programme, the image display and the volume when

using the Theatre Screen.

Reclining rear seats are also optional, including foot rests that are integrated into the seat base. A panoramic glass sunroof is fitted as standard on all models. This consists of a single fixed glass surface framed by a steel surround. The transparent surface is larger than that of any rival and also much longer than on the outgoing 7-series.

Automatic doors are available as an option. To open or close the front and rear doors, occupants simply touch the handles or the buttons in the interaction bar. The opening and closing sequence can also be activated using the radio-operated key. A collision protection function is fitted when opening the doors.

The new 7-Series is 130mm longer than the current model at 5,391mm. It’s also 48mm wider at 1,950mm and 51mm taller at 1,544mm. The wheelbase is now 5mm longer at 3,215mm, adding to rear legroom.

Headroom has also been noticeably improved, BMW claims.

The optional Executive Lounge rear seating, offered as part of the Executive Pack, includes a reclining function with integrated leg rest for the space behind the front passenger seat, plus an optional quilted and heated armrest with highquality glass insert and integrated smartphone tray for inductive charging.

Coordinated adjustment of the backrest angle and backrest upper section angle, forward/back position and seat surface tilt enable an extremely comfortable reclining CONTINUED ON PAGE 24

23

first look

The front end has been restyled, with narrow LED headlamps replacing round headlamps. and position. A torso angle of 42.5 degrees can be additional LED outlining to the BMW kidney grille, achieved between the seat surface and backrest. giving a very noticeable “rear view mirror” signature Also unique is the design principle for the leg appearance at night. rest, which allows passengers to perfect a relaxed Headlamps are adaptive LEDs including resting position. Here, the calf support fixed directly cornering lights, plus matrix high beam and the to the seat surface without a gap teams up with a selective non-dazzling high beam. The lamps heel rest extending out from the back of the front incorporate Swarovski crystal glass to give a passenger seat.

Boot space looks adequate at 500 litres for i7 and “twinkling” effect, including a distinctive “welcome” light display when the car is unlocked. LED lights 525 litres for 7-series PHEVs. The boot lid also has integrated into the door sills project four graphics, automatic opening and closing, activated by either one after the other, on to the ground, creating a the push of a button or the movement of a foot “light carpet” effect. under the rear apron.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 23

24

BMW i7

One non-metallic and nine metallic colour shades can be ordered. Also available are four BMW Individual paint finishes, with further BMW Individual finishes set to follow at a later stage, including a two-tone paint finish with a choice of two colours above the shoulder line, and five shades for the lower section.

BMW 7-Series models in Excellence trim are fitted as standard with 19in alloy wheels, while M Sport models feature 20in alloy wheels as standard.

A range of alternative design 19-21in alloys are available in the options programme. The BMW M760e xDrive will feature 21in alloy wheels as standard.

MAY 2022

Car of the Year Awards Judging days 2022 Tuesday & Wednesday, August 23-24, 2022 Epsom Racecourse, Epsom Downs, Surrey Join us this Summer for two great days where you can test and evaluate the latest cars for the taxi, private hire and chauffeur industry As a Professional Driver Car of the Year judge, you’ll be able to drive around 50 cars – and score them on 17 points that encompass everything from looks to comfort, driveability, passenger space and even the boot.

Your scores are used to help us choose our six category winners – and we present the awards on November 29, at our legendary Professional Driver QSi Awards event, at Celtic Manor Resort in South Wales.

To register as a judge, please visit the website below.

Why not reward your best drivers with a day out too? Their expertise and knowledge will be very valuable! https://www.prodrivermags.com/ car-of-the-year-home/

first look

Mercedes EQS SUV

Ecosystem

Mark Bursa

W

ITH THE NEW ALL-ELECTRIC EQS SALOON RECEIVING A ‘MARMITE’ reaction from the chauffeur sector, Mercedes-Benz has revealed a second EQS model that may go some way to addressing their concerns.

The EQS SUV is exactly that. It offers an alternative to the four-door coupe lines of the regular EQS for chauffeurs looking for more interior space.

It’s a large seven-seater crossover that mates a completely different bodyshell to the same platform as the top-line electric EQS saloon.

It’s not a tall, GLS-style car – conceptually it’s closer to the old R-Class crossover wagon – no bad thing.

The car is expected to reach showrooms before the end of the year, with a price tag of around £100,000, in a similar area to the EQS saloon and BMW’s new i7.

26

The taller body also gives the option of a threerow six- or seven-seat interior, if buyers specify the extra two third row seats. The second row of seats can be electrically adjusted as standard.

With two rows of seats, there’s a very large luggage area, though like the saloon, don’t expect a Tesla-style “frunk” under the bonnet. In fact, don’t expect an opening bonnet at all – Mercedes doesn’t want owners poking around inside its electrical gubbins.

Mercedes-Benz claims some versions of the car will be capable of 412 miles (WLTP) of range on a charge, and like the EQS saloon, it is capable of DC rapid-charging at 200kW, meaning

a 10-80% charge can be achieved on a suitable charge point in around 30 minutes. Buyers can expect a generous charging package via the Mercedes Me Charge network – including 12 months’ free use of Ionity’s super-fast network.

The EQS SUV is the third ground-up allelectric Mercedes model, following the EQS and EQE. The EQS SUV shares its 3,210mm wheelbase with the EQS Saloon, but is more than 200mm taller at 1,718mm.

All EQS SUVs have an electric drive train on the rear axle, and the versions with 4Matic allwheel drive also have a motor on the front axle, with drive distributed via a torque shift function.

The electric motors are permanently excited synchronous motors.

The chassis of the new EQS SUV has a fourlink axle at the front and an independent multi-link suspension at the rear. Airmatic

MAY 2022

first look

air suspension with continuously adjustable damping is standard.

In addition to Eco, Comfort, Sport and Individual drive modes, the 4Matic versions feature a further Offroad mode, which raises the suspension. Rear-axle steering with a steering angle of up to 4.5 degrees is standard. This can be upgraded via a software download to give up to 10 degrees steering angle.

The interior features the MBUX Hyperscreen as an option. This large, curved screen unit spans almost the entire dashboard. Three screens sit under a common cover glass and merge visually. The 12.3in OLED display for the front passenger gives them their own display and control area.

Alternatively, two separate digital screens – a dashboard and a large central satnav, can be specified instead, as per the EQS saloon.

MAY 2022

27

road test

Grand C4 SpaceTourer Shine PureTech 130 S&S EAT8

Space arranger Mark Bursa HEN WE LAST TESTED THIS CAR’S PREDECESSOR, THE C4 GRAND Picasso, eight years ago, the MPV already felt like an endangered species, replaced in the public’s want list by more aggressively styled SUVs.

W

Now, it really does seem like end of days for the one-box car-based people-mover. The VW Sharan and Touran have gone; the Ford Galaxy and S-Max are hanging on, but only just.

And now the Grand C4 Space Tourer (the Picasso name was dropped in 2018) is reaching the end of the line. Production ends in July, and the replacement will be – you guessed it – an SUV. It’s a shame, because SUVs still make somewhat uncomfortable bedfellows in private hire and taxi fleets. For our kind of work, the C4 Grand Space Tourer makes a lot of sense.

Smaller wheels and a less macho stance makes access a lot easier than a comparable SUV. And it’s very roomy inside – at least when operating as a five-seater. There is a third row of two individual seats, which fold away into the boot floor. But these are pretty small, and really are only child seats. The C4 Grand Space Tourer is primarily designed as a family car – its main

28

rival would be S-Max rather than Galaxy.

Last October Citroen axed the low-selling base model from the range, leaving just two trim choices, Sense and Shine. Range-topping Shine variants are the most popular, accounting for 60% of sales, and that’s what we are testing here.

Sense variants come with 17in alloy wheels, a reversing camera and integrated aluminium roof bars, as well as a 12in HD central display screen and a 7in touch screen satnav, with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay as standard.

Citroen Connect Nav is also included, with three-years of live traffic updates.

Shine adds a panoramic sunroof and Xenon headlights, along with adaptive cruise control, blind spot monitoring and lane departure warning.

A nice touch is a secondary rear-view mirror, allowing a widescreen view of the rear cabin.

So what you’re looking at is a roomy five-seater shuttle with occasional seven-seater capability.

ProDriver TESTED 42.1mpg / 30mph APR 2022

Some councils might be loath to license the car as a seven-seater, though access to the third row is pretty good as the second row seats slide forward and tilt. The third seats are easy enough to extract and stow, and they fold away to leave a nice, flat floor and plenty of luggage space – 793 litres with the seats stowed.

As a seven-seater, you lose nearly all of this – leaving just 165 litres, only enough for a couple of small bags. Because of the foldaway seats, there’s no spare wheel – just an inflator kit.

There’s lots of legroom and headroom in the three-seat second row, but the individual seats are narrow and not particularly comfortable – the bases are firm and lacking in padding. OK for short-range urban work, but less comfortable on a motorway run.

Driving position is good, with the A-pillar split into two slender pillars, giving excellent visibility.

Front seats are comfortable, though there’s no lumbar adjustment. As with previous Citroen MPVs, there’s no conventional instrument cluster.

Instead a configurable digital panel is centrally mounted, with a secondary touch screen below for sat-nav and other functions such as radio and

MAY 2022

road test

heater. Simple to navigate and clear to read.

The main widescreen display is nice and clear, and it contains the trip computer as well as pop-up screens for parking cameras.

As this is a relatively old design, Citroen hasn’t tried to electrify the models range beyond stop/ start. There are only two engines on offer – a 1.6 diesel and a surprisingly peppy and competent 1.2-litre, 3-cylinder petrol, on test here, mated to an 8-speed automatic gearbox.

This is not the fastest-shifting box around, so the car lends itself to gentle driving. A good thing, as the suspension is soft and the car tends to

wallow on acceleration, especially when it changes up. A light right foot will bring rewards in terms of comfort and economy.

There’s a fair amount of body roll too – this is not a car to chuck around. But its surprisingly agile around town, with a good, tight turning circle.

On test we achieved 42.1mpg at 30mph over around 200 miles of mixed driving. Precisely the same fuel economy as the WLTP figure – for once, the official data is on the money! It was also comparable to the diesel version we tested back in 2014 – 42.7mpg.

verdict

R

IDICULED AS BOXES ON WHEELS WHEN THEY FIRST APPEARED, THE MPV FLOWERED briefly and then got trampled by the outsized wheels of the SUV trend. A shame – the concept is particularly suitable for taxi and private hire work, with room for four adults and plenty of luggage. SUVs don’t have quite the same practicality, so I expect we’ll see growing nostalgia for proper MPVs in the not-too distant future. The Grand C4 Space Tourer is one of the last non-van-based MPVs on the market, and it’s still a handsome, rather futuristic machine with much to commend it as a people-mover with very good operating economics. So if you’re in the market for a replacement MPV, don’t hang around. There are still supplies in the network, but production finishes in the summer, and when they’re gone, they’re gone.

MAY 2022

data price as tested warranty insurance group ved

£34,490 3 years/60,000 miles 125 I

performance engine transmission

1,199cc, 3-cyl 8-speed, auto, FWD

power

132PS

torque

230Nm

0-62mph

10.8sec

top speed

125mph

combined economy

CO2 emissions

42.1mpg [wltp] 153g/km

dimensions loadspace (5 seats)

793 litres

loadspace (7 seats)

165 litres

length

4,602mm

width

1,826mm

height

1,638mm

wheelbase

2,840mm

turning circle

11.8mm

29

the last mile

T

Talking shop at the business conferences

will help secure a long-term future for private HE PAST FEW WEEKS HAVE SEEN SOME important dates in the business travel hire within the supply chain for the TMCs. calendar. First up on April 27-28 was Carbon reduction was a consistent theme the Institute of Travel Management underlined by a TED-style talk from Mark (ITM) Accelerate Conference in Birmingham, Corbett at Thrust Carbon, highlighting the the industry’s largest gathering of travel buyers. key to any carbon reduction programme – the This was followed by The Advantage Travel availability of great data. The starting point Partnership Conference in Madeira from April 29 is the ability to report on CO2 and then use Daniel Price to May 1. Advantage is the largest consortium of the information to reduce and remove carbon CEO and independent travel agents in the UK. emissions from travel programmes. founder Across both conferences there were many shared We are lucky in ground transport to be blessed of Jyrney themes: the recovery of business travel demand; a with accurate CO2 data, but offsetting and shortage of talent and people; and a keen focus on ultimately a move to zero emission vehicles will assist our sustainability. In the private hire industry we can identify business travel customers achieve their net zero goals. with these themes as they mirror some of our own as we Some fleets operate hybrid and zero emission vehicles in too seek a path to normality following the impact of the standard categories, making them indistinguishable from past two years. petrol or diesel vehicles. However, if an operator wants to At the ITM, industry leaders expressed how surprised they service corporate passengers, then creating these separate were at how quickly business travel was returning. I only groups to be bookable via integration will increase the appeal need to look at my own diary over the next few months to see to the business traveller. trips to Manchester, Milton Keynes and London for various The message from the TMCs I met at the conferences was events including the LPHCA conference, the Business Travel clear and consistent. They see a significant opportunity to Show and the Move 2022 conference (see you there – Ed). build sustainable ground transport more firmly into their The return to travel has certainly put pressure on our offering. They are looking for more connected solutions for customers and partners in business travel. The struggle with their corporate clients and we are working to ensure that the reduced driver numbers is being felt across business travel Jyrney platform can integrate connections to private hire and and I am regularly asked for solutions to late pick-ups, handtaxi operators. backs and unavailability of vehicles.

Travel Management Companies (TMCs) are looking to n D aniel Price is CEO and founder of Jyrney. private hire to connect their passengers to other travel modes. Finding a way to fulfil these business travel jobs now Daniel.price@jyrney.com — www.jyrney.com

30

MAY 2022

current affairs

T

Foundations for EV success

AXI AND PRIVATE HIRE OPERATORS AND drivers have been wary of investing in EVs compared to most of the other sectors for which I consult.

Range anxiety has, for a long time been the leading reason for many to delay, not least among professional, high-mileage on-demand drivers.

But as a wide choice of practical and affordable EVs has become available with improved battery densities and ranges, so has EV adoption.

than $1trillion… That’s more than double all the existing motor manufacturers combined!

Tesla is actually a diversified company with separate channels of value – each a catalyst to the other. Or, as Elon Musk himself states – “There’s probably in excess of a dozen start-ups effectively in Tesla.”

Musk realised that for e-mobility to succeed and go forward, renewable energy and transport were inexorably linked – and that transport, including shiny Tim Scrafton objects like Tesla cars, were going nowhere if they were Founder and COO not able to be swiftly and conveniently charged.

CHARGING, NOT RANGE ANXIETY of The Connect Tesla’s success has everything to do with a smart As a key obstacle, range anxiety has now been replaced by Consultancy and bold strategy and preparing for future demand by ‘charging anxiety,’ as EV drivers, reliant on rapid public creating charging infrastructure to support it – which charging, can no longer expect chargers to be available then created the demand – as the by-product. when they need them, as the public infrastructure – apart from “BUILD IT, AND THEY WILL COME” Tesla’s Superchargers – is woefully unreliable and over-subscribed.

The number of chargers is now increasing faster, but it’s not Whether Elon Musk ever watched the baseball movie “Field of keeping pace with the uptake of EVs. Charge point operators, Dreams”, source of the saying “build it, and they will come”, is including Tesla, have thus far focused on en-route charging on not clear. But the phrase certainly fits the bill. For EVs to succeed, motorways and trunk roads to enable EVs to travel between cities. charging facilities must minimise disruption to ownership.

Unfortunately, when they get to their destination city, they find A LATE ARRIVAL TO THE PARTY that the charging infrastructure is often grossly inadequate.

Oxford-based EV start-up Arrival has already made waves with its Cities also have the highest number of drivers who don’t have new bespoke, space-age delivery vans, 10,000 of which have been preprivate off-road parking for charging overnight. This exposes ordered by UPS, which has invested £400 million in the project. the severe lack of on-street, rapid and ultra-rapid charging The third quarter of 2023 will see the launch of the Arrival car. infrastructure in urban areas.

Arrival has collaborated with Uber on its design, and again it is A ONCE-IN-A-GENERATION OPPORTUNITY purpose-built for the job – as a ride-hail PHV. All of this is rather unfortunate. Cities are under pressure to This is likely to be a point when the EV trend will really heat up decarbonise by switching to e-mobility. So what it creates is an within the trade, and current ‘safe-bets’ such as hybrids might start to extraordinary, once-in-a-generation opportunity. lose their appeal. Uber has also committed £5m to roll out in London With a well thought-out gameplan to ensure a smooth transition, to support these. fleets can revisit existing, or outdated business models, and switch to There are three foundations of a successful EV fleet business model: an electric one profitability, sustainably and quickly. n Suitable charging infrastructure What has looked like a safer investment – buying CAZ-compliant n Suitable EVs ICE and hybrid vehicles – may turn out to be less of a good bet n Digital management as time progresses. Indeed, unwary buyers could find themselves Innovative digital platform eco-systems connecting and managing trapped and, with a compromised market position. energy and EV drivers to charging locations, which don’t have to be Increased fuel and tax costs, falling behind mobility trends and petrol stations any more, will open up new, competitive omni-channel changing consumer demands, combined with advances in electric opportunities for taxi, PH and delivery fleets. vehicles and charging infrastructure, could leave non-EV fleets A NEW OPPORTUNITY looking increasingly irrelevant in a rapidly evolving market, and Could you become an energy reseller, chargepoint operator and vulnerable to acquisition – at a knock-down price. network? If you have your own depot with private parking – or there is Many companies have spent years building their fleets, and now’s a brownfield site nearby, you could run the infrastructure that charges not the time to stand still. your own vehicles – and also sells electricity to other users.

POWERFUL ANTECEDENTS It may be easier than you think – with demand for charging outstripping supply, it’s a good time to accelerate EV chargingPerfect examples of companies and industries not reacting to as-a-service. We’ll look at how to achieve this in future columns. megatrends and technological disruption are Nokia (remember Meanwhile, please don’t hesitate to contact me for more information. them?) losing mobile phone global market dominance to Apple, which became the most valuable company in the world as a result. n Tim Scrafton runs the Connect Consultancy, providing end-toAnd of course there’s the rise of Tesla, which launched a end strategy, insight, supply of EVs, chargers and installations. repurposed Lotus Elise as an EV called the Tesla Sportster as hello@theconnectconsultancy.com recently as 2008. Now, just 14 years later, Tesla is valued at more

MAY 2022

31

the knowledge

Standard question: what do we want?

A

nother week, another think-tank

Being the people who always say no, or yes but… and another bright idea! The old maxim is tiring and exhausting and a pointless waste of that “I can solve anyone’s problems but time for policy makers, which is why we are rarely not my own” could not be truer. asked. But should we wait to be asked?

Time and time again we are gifted the thoughts Look at the way more influential industries of those who have barely ridden in a cab let and organisations continually scan the horizon, alone driven one or operated a fleet. The latest habitually develop an agenda of change and suggests that a single standard of licensing will improvement, and seek out important and Dr Michael Galvin cure almost everything. Well, I guess it is easy influential stakeholders and get them on side. to dismiss these, presumably well-meant missives https://mobility They don’t always get what they want ,but at so in the interests of objectivity let’s consider the serviceslimited least they know what they want. We only know basic concept. .com what we don’t want.

Many would agree that if we started today with a WHERE IS THE FORUM? blank sheet of paper, we would probably not design the system It will be interesting to see at the two trade shows in May we work with today. Quite what we would design and how acceptable that might be is open to conjecture. So, does a single whether either is looking to ask the trade what they want and to propose what they think we want. Instead, attendees may be standard of licensing have any merit? happier to sit in a hall earnestly discussing domestic trivia while SIMPLIFICATION FOR NO BENEFIT think-tanks, larger organisations and the various groupings that Simplicity or simplifying complex processes and structures are forming gain traction and influence and ultimately steer the appears to be a recurring vision in this industry, maybe even an ship in the direction that suits them. obsession, and one that is overrated, in my view. So, if overnight The industry has many challenges but when was that any we moved from Taxi and Private Hire to, let’s call it Personal different? I admit the scale and impact of a pandemic is Transport, who would be the winners and losers? certainly a one-off, but, like most issues, it will pass in time.

Would all Personal Transport be required to be wheelchair Meanwhile the list of challenges, threats and impacts will accessible? Could anyone rock up on a rank? How would fares continue to grow. Like an untended garden they can grow to a work? Anywhere that still has plate values might struggle point where they are capable of strangling life – but they are not to see a benefit. For all its imperfections, complexity and the biggest of threats. idiosyncrasies, don’t we really feel the current system works EXISTENTIAL AND SYSTEMIC REFORM fairly well? Street hail or phone/app – it’s covered.

The road to hell is paved with good intentions and I like to As with most think tanks, the solution is not primarily think that those clamouring for change are well intentioned… focused at any real or even perceived problem. There is always although their good intentions probably don’t extend very an agenda. This agenda is very clear: Deregulation – in other broadly. words, sacrificing safety for short-term gain.

Legislative change, deregulation and other systemic change Yes, the old chestnut of enabling teachers, doctors, dentists will have an existential impact on every business in the industry.

(I’ve never met a poor one) and the like to top up their salary by While we sit and chortle at the myths and stories of licensing taking the family saloon out for a few hours each evening with officers who trip over the finer details of legislation, cast a little or no control is seen as the next big idea. The solution to thought towards what we all really want for the industry. What the cost-of-living crisis? Wreck an industry, create turmoil and will secure your future and your businesses and family’s future. achieve what, exactly?

What does good look like?

BUT WHAT DO WE WANT? The alternative is to sit back with the “it’ll all happen anyway” These ideas come thick and fast into this industry. We also have mentality and leave it to others. There are genies that cannot be the building coalition of regional licensing, national licensing put back into bottles once released. There are also businesses and now an even easier solution… no licensing. that thrive in a certain system and within certain boundaries But is it any wonder that people and organisations continually that quickly fail when those boundaries and systems change. seek to solve our problems when we do not? Where is our voice?

Let the industry be clear on just one thing – what do we want?

What research, what proposals and what solutions do we as an n www.mobilityserviceslimited.com industry develop?

32

MAY 2022

the advisor

A fine time to be in business

I

F YOU’VE BEEN FOLLOWING THE EAZITAX social media feed, you’ll see that we’ve been on a UK tour, promoting knowledge of Conditionality to the masses.

Even though I am talking about tax checks, writing about tax checks, even potentially singing about tax checks if it would make people listen, I am going into cab offices across the country to be met by the following response: “Yes, I did hear about the tax check thingy. No, I didn’t really read the article about it. Do I just need my UTR (unique tax check code) to give to the licensing office? Oh, that’s not right? I have to go on to the tax check govt gateway and answer questions? I didn’t realise...”

Then when I ask them when their relicensing is due, they reply “In a couple of days...” It’s enough to make me want to scream.

Come on, operators. Just help these poor guys get their licenses. Both the taxed drivers and the naughty untaxed ones need a helping hand. All the stuff they need to know is available for free on the ‘Resources’ section of the Eazitax.co.uk website.

Anyway, I will keep on, keeping on running around the country. If you want me to do the same for your drivers, you know who to call.

So, let’s talk about some accountancy stuff and some trade stuff. My thanks to www. planinsurance.co.uk and renecopy.com for the extra info for this column.

COMPANY NEWS Did you know that in 2022, companies had to pay out a record amount of money in Director and Officer fines. According to law firm BLM, fines of almost £500 million were handed out to UK companies in 2021.

This includes fines from major UK regulators, the Serious Fraud Office, Financial Conduct Authority, and the Information Commissioner’s Office.

Why should this worry company directors in our trade? Because it means the regulators are putting their foot down. And if they are going for the big institutions, it will trickle down. We are already in a super-regulated trade, so we are absolutely not immune.

There are signs that regulators are starting to flex their muscles in the most powerful way.

Even if directors and officers aren’t complicit in illegal or immoral activity, they can play a role in bad behaviour in the company. The significant risk in our trade is misuse of data.

That isn’t to say blame always lays at business leaders’ feet.

MAY 2022

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

Smart and medium-sized companies racked up over £60m in D&O fines in 2021. It’s mostly about the directors’ responsibility over the safekeeping of customer information, and today we have more customer data available than ever before.

Alex Trailer of BLM says, “The safeguarding of customer data is the responsibility of company directors and officers, and when that data is misused, directors can face fines or even custodial sentences.

The Information Commissioner’s Office has fined five major companies a collective £405,000.

Claims can arise from many sources: employees, customers, shareholders and many more. Regardless of the size of your company, the cost to defend a director can be immense.

ELECTRIC VEHICLE ROLLOUT? Our government’s vision for an EV Britain, is in reality hopeful at best.

However, with the consistent optimism of a govt that can party on through a plague, and still stay in power, the government laid out its plan to “remove charging infrastructure as a perceived, and real, barrier to the adoption of electric vehicles..”

They “believe” that understanding the exact number of charging points that are needed is “uncertain”, due to ongoing changes in both battery/charging technology and consumer preferences. Their plan seems more like a rough projection, in their words: “By 2030, we expect there to be around 300,000 public charging points as a minimum in the UK, but there could potentially be more than double that number.”

Serious consideration also needs to be given to those who drive for a living. Driver shortages in the private hire industry are not helped by the prospect of spending time looking for and waiting at charging points.

That can’t be an enticing picture for those thinking of driving or returning to driving professionally.

“Regulators are putting their foot down…

If they are going for the big institutions, it will trickle down.

We are already in a super-regulated trade, so we are absolutely not immune...”

THE PROJECTION n E xpect around 300,000 public chargers as a minimum by 2030. n 10 million users THE CURRENT SITUATION n A bout 29,600 public charging points in the UK. n Around 750,000 plug-in vehicles.

I am going to say that I am being enthusiastically hopeful. We will see.

33

the negotiator

Y

A dangerous thing?

TRIGGER WARNING! It is proposed that a national licensing authority could OU MIGHT FIND THE COLUMN YOU ARE ABOUT reduce regulatory burdens for the sector and thus create a to read upsetting. Indeed, it might even upset my freer and fairer market. friends. Gulp!

Across the UK, from July 2022, passenger-facing CCTV In its report “A Fare Shake: Reforming Taxis will be mandated for taxis, PHVs, and ride-hail operators. for the 21st Century”, the Adam Smith Institute’s Maxwell Since 2013, Southampton’s licensing authority has registered Marlow spells out proposals for reform of the licenced cab and authorised CCTV cameras in an easy-to-access document private hire sector. The Adam Smith Institute is a renowned and allows drivers to claim the cost of the cameras back “free market” think-tank that is considered by some to be on against tax. the right of the political spectrum.

Marlow makes a number of other recommendations that Dennot Nyack Marlow’s report follows Professor Mohammed Abdel-Haq’s tout the case for deregulation, in which he uses the cab report to Government of 2018, “Steps towards a safer and and PHV customers as human shields for his argument that The union view more robust system”. Prof Abdel-Haq and his group made regulations are the bane of the sector. from our GMB more than 30 recommendations designed “to chart a future I believe that for a market to work effectively it needs representative which ensured public safety for all, a working environment for effective regulation. What do we mean by a free market? After those in the trade which guaranteed fair working conditions all a truly free market would allow me to do unmentionables to and while maintaining a competitive, dynamic market, any rival so as to gain market advantage. preserve the character, integrity and aesthetics of this time-honoured trade”.

However, the taxi and private hire sector, like any other business, once a But things have changed. Marlow states: “A combination of the cost of living mode of operation has been created, finds it hard to change the way it does crisis, intense inflation within the car market, and an increased wariness things. So when new challenges are thrown up by advances in technology, the of pollution is making it harder and harder to buy, refuel, and insure a car. sector struggles to respond effectively.

Professional drivers and mobility services are perfectly placed to relieve this Therefore, new entrants use the gains made by new technology at the burden on families across the UK. However, in part due to old and burdensome expense of established businesses. This has been the key to success for regulation, this market is not being filled. Instead, it is creating problems for Uber and other ride-hailing apps. It is rare for advances in technology drivers and consumers across the UK.” to be reversed.

In order to relieve the burden on families across the UK “due to old and For example, when I entered the private hire profession over 30 years ago burdensome regulation”, Marlow makes a number of proposals.

I found it difficult to understand why minicabs could not liaise with other On the motherhood and apple pie side of his report, Marlow proposes that firms to offer return fares to drivers. If the old-fashioned shipping industry the Government could do more to encourage transfer to electric vehicles (EVs) could do this via the Baltic Exchange, why was this not possible with the and hybrids by creating a subsidy fund, providing tax incentives and travel invention of the phone? cards for green travel by taxis and PHVs. I believe that Marlow is quite right in stating that the knowledge is He goes on to a number of recommendations, and the headline-grabber redundant. This came with the advent of the London A-Z atlas, compiled by concerns ‘The Knowledge’ and other topographical tests. Marlow argues Phyllis Pearsall in the 1930s. these should be removed as requirements, as a result of the widespread use of But working for Addison Lee many years ago I came to realise that the regularly-updated GPS and traffic-mapping systems. introduction of a satnav system made the knowledge redundant. This has been He says: “Despite protestations from the Black Cab lobby, ‘The Knowledge’ ignored by the taxi trade. does not in fact provide significant additional knowledge above that which As a PHV driver I was never asked by a punter to find the Garrick Club or may be gained from the constant directional and traffic updates that are fed Adam and Eve Court. They either knew where these locations were or the into navigational systems.” He argues that the topographical test requirement routes to be taken. In any event any respectable satnav has these on their acts as “a screen against potential drivers”, costing drivers a ton of money and database.

Listening to James O’Brien on LBC a few days ago one of the contributors years of their life. stated that no-one is prevented from doing The Knowledge. Rather, those Here comes the Trigger. I believe that this proposal has some merit and doing The Knowledge drop out after failing to get through the very tough exam. needs to be considered as part of an ongoing review of the cab and private hire The knowledge is a valve that is used to prevent everyone becoming a black profession. cab driver.

The Marlow Report then turns to other contentious issues. The The issue is not whether The Knowledge should exist or not, but whether exclusionary right to use bus lanes by taxis, buses and a limited range of there should be a differentiation between sectors within the taxi industry. I other vehicles should be scrapped. This is, he states, highly unfair on nondon’t have an answer for this. But the Adam Smith Institute has the ear of wheelchair accessible PHVs and other licenced operators, who are excluded government, so the sector needs to be ahead of these proposals rather than from bus lanes, and customers, whose taxes pay for these roads, because being reactive. of “preferable union influence”. Marlow argues there should be no special BTW, the Garrick Club is on Garrick Street, London and Adam and Eve treatment because of lobbying and threats of strikes by taxi unions.”

Court can be found between 136 and 138 Oxford Street.

He then states that having unregulated fares will be “...a sensible policy...”

—Dennot Nyack Yikes! In making this statement he references research from 1977 and 1980, n Dennot is a AGM trade union member and was a former representative which, surprise, surprise, found that deregulation led to fare reduction with no of the GMB’s professional drivers. He is also an author and broadcaster decrease in service quantity or quality. with a strong knowledge of the private hire industry and an equality This claim is somewhat dishonest. In previous articles I have referred to the and diversity specialist. email: dennotnyack@yahoo.com deregulation of the profession in a US city in the 1930s. This certainly led to mobile: +44 0740 625 276 fare reductions but at considerable cost to the drivers.

34

MAY 2022

the insider

H

Join the professionals

onestly, there is no better time to

The pool of available drivers has dwindled enter the world of professional driving dramatically and this issue isn’t just a London one. than right now.

I’ve heard from contacts in Scotland, Newcastle, OK, there are a couple of hurdles to clear, Manchester and Liverpool who are all struggling to get such as finding a suitable vehicle without the need to work covered. A short-term fix is not the answer here sell a kidney in order to satisfy the ludicrous prices either. We need drivers to come into the trade across all currently being sought. And fuel prices will put many levels of what constitutes being a professional driver off, together with the erratic availability of the muchand we need these people to want to stay, start a career needed commodity once some nutter has created and eventually run their own business.

Kevin Willis another panic after gluing themself to an oil tanker.

So, with the said lack of educational facilities at our But, all things considered, the time is absolutely right disposal, here is the Kevin Willis School of Professional to start your engine and look to forge a new career as a Motoring.

Everyday problems 1 T ake yourself out for a test drive. Drive only to the professional driver. from the operator’s We need guys and gals – and there is a woeful lack speed limits and never undertake. Ask your other point of view... of women doing this job – who are patient, considerate half to ‘ride along’ while holding a (plastic) glass full drivers, who possess the ability to converse when asked of water. but who also recognise too the importance of ‘shut up 2 L earn how to use Waze without looking like you are and drive’ when necessary. relying on Waze.

Long, anti-social hours are guaranteed, and the ability to adapt at 3 D o a couple of dummy runs to the main railway station, airport or short notice is integral to success in this service industry. hospital. Find out where to drop off, pick up and talk to as many Hang on… Service industry? The British, in the main, don’t much drivers who will spare you the time. care for working in the service industry. We consider it beneath us, 4 D o NOT spend money on a security driving course. unlike in the US where entire careers are carved out as waiters or shop 5 D o NOT spend out on an association or Guild (yet). assistants without a hint of ever feeling they need to lie about what 6 D iscover what side of the industry you want to focus on; taxi driver, they do for a living. executive hire, chauffeur or unit driver in the film world. Make In fact, my most recent tour of the Cotswolds was with an American connections across all social media platforms. family whose daughter told me proudly on how she had always worked 7 T alk to relevant companies in your chosen field and ask them what ‘providing service’ in a bar and, not only did she genuinely love her job, they expect from dress code, radio playing and door marshalling. she made over $100,000 a year. Order Up! For the first time in years they desperately need to listen to Unfortunately, there does not exist a Professional Driver Academy interested parties. that can teach the skills needed for this chosen career, meaning most new entrants to the trade are unsure of the rights and wrongs of Still interested? providing a decent service when having to learn the skills on the job.

Some established drivers insist that such skills cannot be taught.

8 B uy a suitable vehicle, clean it, license it and yourself with your You either know them or you don’t. But surely being forewarned on the local authority (or Castle Point if London-based and TfL is your vagaries of any job forearms a person to proceed and discover whether only other option). Clean the vehicle again. they are good, bad or indifferent at the various tasks. For instance, 9 D rive to various locations having set yourself timed deadlines. should drivers still be holding open the car door for their client?

10 D o NOT pay for business cards or web site optimisation. An email Well, if I am a taxi driver pulling a seven quid fare then probably address and mobile phone are all that is required at this point. not. If I am a chauffeur escorting a super model for a days shopping Smarten up your WhatsApp and Facebook profile pictures, clients in Bond Street, then absolutely. Then again, if the seven quid fare is are not interested in seeing their driver drunk in Ibiza (1998). for an elderly lady it surely wouldn’t be right for the driver to sit and 11 C onnect with Gary Jacobs at Eazitax, Chris Brown at Ethos and watch the old girl struggle.

Sam McCarthy at the Chauffeur Guys and, obviously, subscribe A prime example arose recently when one of the unit drivers I work to Professional Driver magazine and you’ll find yourself talking to with on a film set told everybody how his client was “great” because guys who know the industry and a lot of people within. he went to sleep as soon as the car pulled away. This meant the driver Trust me, this game isn’t for everyone. We work long hours over six could relax knowing he was relieved of any small talk duties and, as and seven days a week, with Bank Holidays available only to those not told to me, allowed him to put the radio on and listen to whatever he in the game. You will also meet some great people, both colleagues and wanted on the way into the studio. clients alike. People that will gift you stories to tell in later years. The This I wholeheartedly disagreed with! In all my years of driving for a money is good if you put the work in and extremely good if you really living, the radio is always offered but only played at the client’s behest. put the effort in. And it is incredibly busy right now.

I believe that our customers are paying for the right to be afforded the n K evin Willis runs Chirton Grange, courtesy of having both me (within reason) and my vehicle at their contact@chirtongrange.co.uk – 07725467263 disposal. I provide a service.

MAY 2022

35

I N C R E M E N T A L

T R I P S

Are you the next ‘Local Cab’ Operator?

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

McLeans Taxis McLeans Taxis

Lakeside Taxis

trips, creating additional revenue for your existing drivers and enabling recruitment of new drivers

Amber cars

to handle the Starline Taxis

ever-increasing demand.

Key Cars

A2B

Hawk Express Jet Taxis

Andy Cars

www.autocab.com Need-A-Cab

sales@autocab.com

Apple Taxis Need-A-Cab

001 Taxis