Bury Council to approve proposals tomorrow helping taxi drivers recover from lockdown

Urgent measures to help taxi and private hire drivers recover from the economic effects of coronavirus are set to be approved by Bury Council tomorrow.

The proposals will ensure that licences up for renewal will not lapse and that drivers and vehicles can continue to operate despite difficulties caused by the lockdown.

The proposals include:

• extend by three months all current vehicle licences which were due for renewal between July and September.

• extend by three months all vehicle licence tests, both renewal and interim, that were due this financial year.

• postpone medical examinations for three months due to drivers having difficulty in getting appointments, with drivers required to self-certify in the meantime.

• issue 12-month licence renewals rather than the usual three-year licences, so drivers have to find only one-third of the cost now.

These proposals are due to be presented to the council’s emergency powers group tomorrow. All taxis will continue to operate safely and meet MOT requirements.

Councillor Jane Black, cabinet member for the cultural economy, said: “Like many people, taxi and private hire drivers have been badly hit during the coronavirus lockdown, and suffered a major drop in their income due to the requirement for people to stay at home.

“We hope that the measures we’re announcing tomorrow will give them some much-needed help as we leave the lockdown and go back to business as usual.”