London taxi and minicab compliance officer numbers DROP by over 20% in last two years according to T

Dedicated Taxi and Private Hire Compliance Officer numbers have dropped over 20% in the last two years according to City Hall figures. The London Mayor, responding to a London Assembly question, confirmed Transport for London (TfL) currently has only 194 authorised officers in post dedicated to policing taxi and private hire.

That represents a drop of 22% compared to the 250 officers recruited, as part of the London Mayor’s commitment to the industry, in 2017. In 2016, the number of Compliance Officers stood at just 82. Susan Hall, Conservative Assembly Member, asked the London Mayor Sadiq Khan, whether he could provide the most up-to-date number of TfL’s taxi and private hire compliance officers at the most recent round of Mayor’s Question Time. Sadiq Khan responded by saying: “Transport for London (TfL) currently has 194 authorised officers in post dedicated to taxi and private hire. “TfL has recently closed a consultation with its Compliance, Policing and On-Street Service Directorate (CPOS) operational staff on proposals for organisational change, which includes Taxi and Private Hire Compliance Officers. “The new structure will provide up to 420 multi-skilled on-street officers to support activities to improve compliance standards. TfL will use intelligence-led deployment to ensure there are sufficient resources to support a more effective taxi and private hire compliance operation, and to have the flexibility to respond to operational demands as needed.”