City taxi limit gets green light - The Worcester Observer

City taxi limit gets green light

Worcester Editorial 19th Feb, 2014 Updated: 19th Oct, 2016   0

A LIMIT on the number of taxis allowed in Worcester has been given the green light.

Worcester City Council’s Licensing and Environmental Health Committee backed a proposal that will mean no more taxi licences can be issued until at least 30 existing drivers have stopped operating in the city.

There are currently 261 taxi licences in Worcester but the number is now capped at 231 with immediate effect.

But the council does not have any powers to strip any taxi drivers of their permits and so anyone who wants to start driving a cab will have to wait until people leave.




Coun Paul Denham, committee chairman, said: “There has been controversy over the number of taxis in the city for a long time, so I am pleased we have been able to make this decision.

“I think this is a good result for residents and for hackney carriage drivers.”


The move follows a recent survey by the council, which showed strong support for limiting the number of taxis in Worcester. Police have also backed the idea of a cap.

The figure of 231 is based on the amount of licences in place in September when a survey was carried out by Worcester Hackney Carriage Association.

If the number does fall below that amount the council will run a lottery process for deciding applications for the available permits.

Worcester City Council will now need to carry out a new survey of demand for taxis every three years to ensure the cap is still at the right level.

It is also proposing to add an extra £27 to the annual cost of a hackney carriage licence to pay for that survey work.

What do you think? Are there too many taxis in Worcester? Get in touch by e-mailing [email protected]

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