Bedford Council consultation reveals support to KEEP roof lights on private hire vehicles despite DfT guidance
- Perry Richardson
- 3 hours ago
- 2 min read
Bedford Borough Council’s General Licensing Committee has reviewed the future of roof signs on private hire vehicles and steps toward cleaner vehicles following a recent public consultation.
The consultation sought views on two key issues: the mandatory use of roof signs for private hire vehicles and the adoption of electric, hydrogen, or other low-emission vehicles across the licensed fleet.
A majority of respondents—61%—supported retaining roof signs for private hire vehicles. Most of those in favour said this was to help identify licensed vehicles and distinguish them from unlicensed ones. The council has maintained a two-tier visual policy since 2004, where hackney carriages must be white and display yellow roof signs, while private hire vehicles are any other colour with green roof signs.
Despite this, new Department for Transport guidance issued in November 2023 recommends that private hire vehicles should not display roof signs to help prevent illegal plying for hire. The guidance states that only taxis should carry illuminated roof signs, and signage on private hire vehicles should be limited to pre-booked only indicators and licence plates.
The council noted that removing roof signs may benefit larger operators like Uber, which previously indicated that the roof sign requirement could discourage their entry into the borough. However, concerns remain about public safety and the risk of confusion for passengers.
On environmental proposals, responses to questions about moving to ultra-low emission vehicles were mixed. There was no clear public consensus for or against proposals such as banning petrol and diesel vehicles by 2035 or licensing only zero-emission vehicles from 2029.
However, when asked if council transport contracts should give preference to operators using ultra-low emission vehicles, 51% were in favour, compared to 38% against. The council acknowledged that while procurement laws must be followed, there may be some flexibility to include emissions criteria in future contracts.
The committee will now consider whether to revise policies based on the feedback and government guidance, weighing public safety, legal obligations, and environmental goals.
