Malvern Council reject fare increase calls from taxi drivers

Are cabbies being unreasonable asking for their first increase in 5 years?

Taxi drivers in Malvern, Worcestershire, have had a request for a 10% increase rejected by councillors.

A call to increase a one mile trip in the region from £4 to £4.40 was dismissed by Malvern Hills District Council. 

The increase was requested by representatives of the taxi industry in response to an increase in the cost of living.

Other factors included concerns that while bus and train tickets increased in price, taxi fares remained static. Councillor Peter Whatley stated that some of the reasons given for a fare increase were an irrelevance, claiming that it could be argued that the current fare structure is on the high side. However, there has not been a fare rise since 2014. The proposed increase could push a 2 mile fare up from £6.40 to £7. Councillor John Raine, portfolio holder for environmental services, made it clear that although the proposal should be rejected the council should work with the taxi industry to find a solution. Councillor Tom Wells intimated that one option may be to allow concessionary travel to be extended to the taxi industry. Taxi representative Alistair Smith stated that only the basic fare and not the night rate would increase under the proposal.

Image Source: Geograph 

Image Author: Bob Embleton