Taxi drivers in Reading fear that phasing out petrol and diesel cabs by 2028 will force them off the roads.
Reading Borough Council wants to replace petrol and diesel cabs with ultra-low emissions vehicles, such as EV and hybrid black cabs, which can be hailed on the street or at a taxi rank.
In a bid to achieve that deadline, it has launched a consultation into proposals to phase out older, more polluting cabs within four years – two years ahead of the town’s net-zero carbon target.
Forced out
But the town’s cabbies – many of whom are paying for existing vehicles on finance – say they cannot afford to make the switch and the move will force them out of the trade.
The Reading Chronicle reports that Asif Rashid, chairman of the Reading Taxi Association (RTA), told the council’s licensing applications committee: “We feel like we’ve got a noose round our necks. Every so often, another knot is tied around our necks. We know the problems we’ve got [with pollution] but it’s not all by hackney carriages.
“It’s suffocating us. This policy is going to destroy the trade.”
Expense
Mr Rashid said the biggest issue for taxi drivers is the huge cost of buying a new ULEV cab. Government grants of £3,000 to £6,000 are available when drivers are replacing an old petrol or diesel cab, but Mr Rashid said won’t make a difference when a ULEV taxi currently costs £72,500.
With current pollution targets and clean air schemes in place, there is little trade-in demand for older, more polluting vehicles such as 10 to 15-year old black cabs with hundreds of thousands of miles on the clock.
Mr Rashid also told the committee that a promise to waive cab licence fees has not been met.
He said: “We need some breathing space, you can’t keep suffocating us.
“If the situation gets worse, I’d be the first to walk away, I’ve been a cab driver for 25 years and a chairman for 15 years.”
Compromises
The committee was asked to consider additions to the policy that all replacement vehicles should be minimum ULEV and less than five years old by October, 2028.
It was also agreed the vehicle age policy should be that all ULEV vehicles must be removed from the fleet after a maximum of 15 years. But the committee agreed that each vehicle will be assessed on its own merit and could have an extension of a year and a maximum of two years on the renewal of a driver’s licence.
The huge cost of replacing existing cabs with ULEV taxis was acknowledged by Cllr David Stevens (Labour, Abbey). He told the committee: “What worries me is the sheer cost. We don’t want to crush the drivers out and lead them to leave the trade.”
The committee unanimously decided to begin a consultation into the additions to the policy. The results of the consultation will be discussed by the committee at a meeting in November.
Reading’s taxi drivers are best placed to know what works for the trade in the town and it is vital they have their say during the consultation.
Compromises and agreements will have to be reached as there are genuine concerns about the future for drivers if their only option is an expensive new cab they can’t afford.
