taxi's on strike
 

seems most of accringtons taxis have been on strike for the last couple of days. i dont drive so i do use taxi's quite regular but i may stop soon as i hear they are striking because the drivers want a minimum fare of £4.50. does anyone else have any info on the strike?

Re: taxi's on strike
 

They set the ludicrous minimum fare in the hope of driving out all the competition then start squealing when the competition don't move

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i feel sorry for them

they cant afford brake pads to help them stop at red lights

they cant afford bulbs for their headlights

and tehy cant afford eye tests so they can see zigzag white lines dont actually say park and wait here for your passenger to get out

maybe instead of a higher minimum fare some sort of taxi driver trust can be set up to help these poor souls

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better still why dosnt every taxi driver in teh UK drive to london and block teh entire city up in one huge traffic jam until government puts fuel back to under £1.00 so everyone can benefit and they can keep fairs low for non drivers.

im not going to support them if their idea of getting tehir own way is to punish tehir customers and not the authorities.Its not as though anyone is going to ring teh council and ask them to force an increase to the minimum fair

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I thought you couldn't go on strike whilst drawing the dole?
Let them go on strike, or are they already on strike?
I don't care, let them go to hell if they want to, just so long as they don't take me with them.

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i see public support is growing lol

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Always used Hyndburn cabs myself. Paid a little more but got a first class service. Also has anyone noticed that some taxi drivers think their hazard lights have a dual purpose. They also seem to act as park where you want lights, as in double yellow lines, zigzags etc.

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I never used anything else but Hyndburn Cars, never once let me down and never tried to rip me off either

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I use cabs quite a bit and Hyndburn have some of the cheapest taxi fares in the country. Ludicously low as another contributor puts it. They are like all motorists being battered by rising costs of fuel and all the other associated increases.
I was chatting to a cabbie the other day who says they are answering pick-ups from regular customers.
That's selfish old me sorted then ;)
If they can all work together to get fares raised to give them a decent income I am all for it. Somehow though I think even if they did it would only be a short lived thing and then one cab co' would start it all over again with leaflet drops* offering the lowest fares in town and away we go gain. Cabbie's working longer hours, cutting corners on vehicle maintainance, et al.

* Don't get me started on the craparino that come through my letter box ;)

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Me too...wouldn't use anyone else....Great service and really helpful lads (and lasses too).

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What's this minimum fare thing? Don't the cabs have meters? If they do, that seems like a helluva price for the drop fee. Another thing I ain't sure about: Who grants the taxi licences? Is there a Taxi Commision to licence and inspect cabs, and to test potential drivers?

I'm thinking of something along these lines:

Kingston Area Taxi Commission - Development

Re: taxi's on strike
 

Eric most taxis here don't have those meters.

What is the distance for £4.50 min fair?. Cause I think £3-£3.50 from Accy to Bottom end of Clayton is as much as I am willing to pay for a taxi.......


It seems to me lately all the taxi drivers have Bluetooth headsets and talk to their friends for the entire journey.

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I suppose the comparitor Mr R is catching a bus but the difference being buses are not on call 24/7.

A cab from Accrington to the Greyhound for two peeps £2:50ish. The bus £5.00.

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Yeah. I won't use the SpotON bus to get to Clayton when Im on the way to work. It costs £2.50 from the town center to Sydney street clayton and then just a little bit further to the GEC its £3.50 in taxi. Sometimes £3. They always say how much do you pay.... I say £3 and they always cringe -- Its better If I am not up early enough to walk to get a taxi -- or use M&M buses. They are usually on time and I cannot say the same thing about SpotON; I have been late for work on several occasions

Though other day I got a taxi from Asda to Water street and it only cost £2

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the council are supposed to keep check on the state of teh taxis but when i spoke to the person covering our area he wasnt interested in unfit cars been on the road taking kids to school .


were supposed to believe that somone from teh council randomly visits taxi firms to keep check but how can they be doing when theres so many taxis out there that arnt up to code

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Well report the numpty :confused: You have a social responsibility... use it.

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All cabs in Kingston are required to have three ministry safety checks a year ... MOT (Ontario Ministry of Transport) does the checks ... if the cab fails, its licence is pulled. KATC does random spot checks on cabs ... cabs can be pulled even for a missing hubcap. The KATC is a part of City Council. Two councillors sit on the commitee, plus the taxi inspector (full-time paid position). All three taxi companies are required by law to charge the same rates, and meters are set and sealed by the inspector. If you get into a cab with an unsealed meter, you don't have to pay the fare.

I'm not saying that we do things better, or, that the way we do things is the only way. But people who phone for a cab ... in Hyndburn or in K'town ... , or who stagger into one when leaving the pub (hey, that's me:D), have a right to expect that the cab is clean, well-maintained, fully insured (with lots of passenger liability insurance), and driven by someone who knows what the hell he/she is doing.

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Preaching to the converted there Dr Eric ;)

*Well it is Easter*

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Who do you think takes any notice ?

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theres only so long you can tleerat ebeen put on hold only to be put through to teh same guy

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A well written letter usually hits the spot. :D

Re: taxi's on strike
 

Re: taxi's on strike
 

thankyou everyone for your replys. personally i dont mind if they want to put the prices up a little but a minimum fare of £4.50 is a bit high. as i said before i dont drive, i live at the top of ormerod street and do my weekly shop at tesco, i buy too much at a time to walk up the hill with it so i get a taxi, if they get their way with this i would have to pay £4.50 for that very short journey, just think such a hike in the minimum fare all at once is not right

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that is assuming that if by some miracle they dont loose it they can actually read it :)

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Oh come on Accyman most taxi drivers round here don't know where the next street is never mind find London:)

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Not forgetting clean quite well maintained vehicles too;)

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The thing is Eric most are not taxis they're private hire cars, if they are a licenced taxi they have to display a meter and charge the rates set by the licensing authority

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To be pedantic, Its Hackney or Private Hire, Both are classed as a Taxi, The Hackney has to have a meter n charge the said rates, or at least that was the case early 80s when i had a hackney.;)

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Pedantic don't you swear at me, or I'll get you at playtimehttp://www.easyfreesmileys.com/smile...mileys-427.gif

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You could always email the Chief Exec at Hyndburn David Welsby. Most HBC email addresses are [email protected]

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Are private hire allowed to ask you what you are usually charged or are they supposed to tell you the fair when you book the taxi?

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If I was ever going on a different trip than I usually took, (I knew the far from home to Ossy Con:D) I always used to ask the cost when booking. A lot of people don't know but only an Hackney Cab can pick up on the street, Private Hire can't, they have to be booked through an office

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Have never worked Private Hire, So aint sure? logic says in the name "Private Hire" They can please themselves.;) Jaysay is correct saying only Hackney can pick up on street.

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Not quite on topic-but has it become commonplace to for taxis to charge the fare in advance?
I became very hostile with a driver some weeks ago-a firm I've used for about ten years. He tried to charge me upfront for a short journey that I make often. The fare is usually about £6 and he wanted £10 upfront.
I am open to it in certain situations but he told me most taxi drivers do it now, which I think was a lie.

Re: taxi's on strike
 

the only place i have expericenced this is when coming home from blackburn and that was only because they were doing an out of town trip .They dont usually ask for money upfront on local trips

looks like its time to either put a complaint in about teh extra cost and your dislike of paying upfront or find a new firm that dosnt assume your going to run and not pay

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If yeh used em regular fer years i would suggest ringing the company n asking the question.;) I would also ring the authority who is responsible fer licensing em.:)

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Out of town trips are fair enough I agree. I would want some insurance in that instance if I was a driver. I'm not amused by the idea that they may do it for other times though.

I found a new firm straightaway-I was very annoyed and told him that I was never using them again, and would let everybody I knew about their lack of respect for loyalty as I had used them for ten years.

He wasn't saying he was going to charge me extra-he said he wanted £10 upfront and if it was less he would return the difference. At first he protested he hadn't seen me before-then admitted that he recognised me but had picked me up from my old address so hadn't made the connection.
I said regardless of this, I was a woman on my own going a short journey. Had I been in a group and wearing a hoodie I would be more empathic but I found it insulting.
The journey was short and I had booked them for it many times before.

I didn't give him the £10-I gave him £6. I made him drop me off before the address I'd asked him to go to, and when I was getting out I noticed his meter said £7 something pence. He said 'You owe me money' and I said 'I don't think so do you' and got out.:rolleyes:

I think I will-I just couldn't be bothered at the time but I should. I was on first name terms with the main operator and often had a chat with him when I rang up-I even stopped by to see him if I was passing, I've always used them to pick me up from work, and after shopping and stuff. This adds to why it angers me that this happened!

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When I lived in Hassy we went to a do at the Corporation arms in Burnley, we had got to the final of a national pool completion at Hammersmith Pally and were spending the cash, four of use went in one car and we were getting a taxi home after, around 2am a Pakistani gentleman came round to pick us up, we never asked him the price but when we got back to Hassy he wanted to charge us £20 (this was over30 years ago) we got him down to £15 and as he dropped me of on Blackburn Road, he asked me the quickest way back to Burnley, I said sure mate, up to the lights turn left follow the road will take you straight back to Burnley, off he went turned left, even though there was a sign saying Blackburn:D

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I haven't been driving for the last two years due to medical reasons so use taxis quite a lot - I regularly use Hyndburn Cars who I find entirely reliable. As a woman travelling on my own I always feel quite safe. I'm aware that some other firms charge lower fares. When I went with Hyndburn Cars to Manchester airport and told them what some other firms charged they said they didn't know how they could do it for that price as they wouldn't even be covering their costs. Occasionally I use other firms, e.g. to come home from ASDA. Leaflets come regularly through my door advertising cheap fares. However, when you get home and ask the fare, some invariably ask, "What do you usually pay?" Although they advertise a cheap fare on their leaflet, in practice they try to charge as much as they can get away with. A few months ago I took a taxi from the rank on Holme Street - it was just after midnight and they said the fare would be double. I took this as gospel and paid. Later I mentioned this to Hyndburn Cars - they said if I'd rung them to pick me up they'd just have charged standard rate. So I prefer to stick with them!

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Hot off the press: Just in from the Forts ..cabbie from Altham Cabs tells me it's all sorted :D Another 50p on all fares.
Seemingly a few skirmishes between the cab co's..handbags and a few smashed windscreens..
The big 4 cab companies have settled on the 50p increase. ;)

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It won't happen once you get to my age. I bet their decision criteria on whether to charge at the start of the trip or the end is "Can she run faster than me?"

Which he's allowed to do (legally). If you agree to conditions before the journey, including just agreeing a price, then it's a contract: At the end of the journey, that's what you pay.
If there's no contract then at the end of the journey and they try to rip you off, just pay what you're used to paying plus 50p. The fact that you've tendered anything at all means that it becomes a civil matter and the police won't get involved unless it becomes a breach of the peace.

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Everybody knows, it's just that the benefits agency prefer to stay behind a desk than get out and check ;)

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Please be careful when naming cab firms or they could sue the site
if you say something bad about them on open forum

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Head nail hit Dave

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Only if it's defamatory. They can't (successfully) sue the site if someone types something bad that is the truth.

Maybe a better warning would be "Don't say anything about companies unless you are willing and able to defend your statements in court".

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The thing is Studio when people use screen names like you and me, it makes it hard work to sue the individual, so they go for Roy, it ends up very messy and can hurt the site

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Haha maybe-but I did have a huge bag with me (from work) so I doubt I could have bolted as fast as I normally would have done lol.
If he had have agreed a reasonable price in the beginning, even if it was slightly more than normal I wouldn't have reacted badly-I just wanted to go home. But wanting an upfront amount that we both knew was too much was just rude.

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Maybe a better idea would be too let admin run the site.:rolleyes:

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Its not hard to sue the individual but there is a legal process to go through to obtain the posters IP address from the forum owner. Then you have to get the details of who was using that IP address from the ISP.

How do you think those people are being sued on twitter for comments about that MP?

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ya but it ain't straight forward and if members value the site they refrain from doing anything which could cause problems

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anyone know ... what's with the go slow on Blackburn Road...

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Dunno, perhaps a protest cos one was stopped by police on Milnshaw Lane this afternoon.?:D;)

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Was he driving without tyres:rolleyes: