FRUSTRATED CABBIES: Taxi drivers question why chargepoint access cards have not been made available
Updated: Jun 12, 2021
Licensed taxi drivers have questioned why new chargepoint technology, newly available to the private hire firm Uber, has not been made available to the black cab industry after months of calling for urgent action.
The cabbies' frustrations follow the opening of the UK’s first rapid charging hub for fleet vehicles, which includes dedicated and protected card enabled access chargepoints for Uber partner-drivers.
The new multi-charger hub located on Mayfair’s Park Lane currently provides rapid charging for 10 vehicles, with future plans to more than double its capacity in the coming months.
According to sources, the two Uber-dedicated chargers are set up in such a way that it only allows Uber drivers with valid cards able to access them.
bp pulse are also expected to work with the licensed taxi industry to look at the best way to enable black cabs access to the remaining, non-Uber dedicated, chargers.
However, tensions have escalated in the taxi industry for several months as drivers trying to use e-taxi charging facilities find Raid Charging Points (RCP) BLOCKED by minicabs and other motorists.
Tom, an electric taxi driver in the capital who has been the victim of several incidents of abuse whilst trying to charge his taxi on taxi chargers, visited the new site of Park Lane.
In a video shared on social media he shows how the RCP’s at the new fleet hub rejects his access request.
Tom said: “If Uber decide to put 100 chargers for their drivers that's up to them, but if bp can put restrictions on those chargers "for uber drivers only" so they should on ours.”
An E-Taxi Chargers spokesperson replied: “Exactly Tom, RFID identification for E-Taxi chargers is perfectly possible, so what is the delay?”
Questions around the issue affecting the taxi industry have now been brought to City Hall for the Mayor of London to face.
Assembly Member Caroline Pidgeon asked the London Mayor via a written question: “Is TfL taking any further steps to improve compliance in electric vehicle bays allocated solely to taxis?”
Sadiq Khan said: “Yes. TfL has also increased compliance activity at taxi-dedicated rapid charge point locations where intelligence has been provided that they are being used by other vehicles.
“Taxi trade representatives and individual licensees have been providing helpful information on the use of taxi-dedicated RCPs by other vehicles and I would urge them to continue to do so.”
Assembly Member Pidgeon also asked the Mayor in a separate question to set out specific reasons why TfL decided against utilising CCTV enforcement for taxi-only rapid charging bays despite being suggested as a policy option in back in 2019.
Khan responded: “TfL has delivered 310 Rapid Charge Points (RCPs), with 83 of these dedicated for taxi-only use.
“TfL regularly issues communications to licensees reminding them that the taxi-dedicated RCPs are for Zero Emission Capable (ZEC) taxis only and that anyone found using the bay illegally could be subject to a penalty charge notice.
“At the time of responding to Mayor’s Question (in 2019), TfL explored the feasibility of using existing CCTV infrastructure to support enforcement of taxi dedicated RCPs. However, the exploratory work found that none of the taxi dedicated RCPs were located within line of sight of a CCTV camera.
“I have asked TfL to update this work to determine whether any recently installed taxi dedicated RCPs, particularly those where there are reports of illegal use, are feasible for CCTV enforcement.
“I am aware that TfL is in discussion with RCP operators to determine what more can be done to ensure taxi-dedicated RCPs are only be used by ZEC taxis.”
In London alone over 4,000 electric taxi drivers have invested over £200million in Zero Emissions Capable (ZEC) vehicles since January 2018. The problem around designated taxi chargepoint access has escalated so much that a new channel to report private hire vehicles and other private cars using the bays has now been established.
Drivers on the social media platform Twitter are being urged to send in photos and details to @taxis_e who in turn will report to Transport for London (TfL) once a week.
Specialist EV parking management firms now exist to resolve the issue of ‘ICEd’ electric vehicle (EV) charging bays. ICEd is the term given when an internal combustion engine car is parked in an electric vehicle only bay blocking access to legitimate vehicles.
The enforcement firms use their own ANPR cameras to monitor the use of marked EV charging bays and issue Parking Charge Notices to drivers/keepers of vehicles parked in these allocated bays.
The latest developments are set to spark fresh questions as to why RCP operators cannot supply licensed taxi drivers with similar cards to access their charging facilities.
Comments