Road safety officers join ‘Taxi Cop’ for dozens of joint taxi and private hire driver compliance checks
- Perry Richardson
- Aug 16
- 1 min read
Updated: Aug 17
Avon and Somerset Police’s dedicated taxi enforcement officer, PC Patrick Quinton, has completed a day of checks alongside colleagues from the force’s Road Safety Unit, inspecting dozens of vehicles across the area.
The joint patrol took place on Friday 15 August. PC Quinton, known as the region’s ‘Taxi Cop’, was joined by two colleagues who usually process speeding offences. The aim of the collaboration was to give officers greater insight into the wider traffic and licensing checks regularly carried out by the unit.
PC Quinton said: “Today I was out and about across our area with two colleagues from the Road Safety Unit (they are the ones who process the speeding tickets) as they wanted to see my work, and I wanted to show them that most drivers are great and keep to the rules.
“Thankfully, that happened – I checked 33 vehicles and only 2 had minor issues.”
The focus of the operation was to assess both private and commercial vehicles, including taxis and private hire cars, to ensure drivers were operating within licensing and safety regulations. While the nature of the two issues found was not specified, the majority of those stopped were deemed compliant and safe.
PC Quinton frequently shares updates on taxi and private hire enforcement, highlighting issues such as illegal plying for hire, improper insurance, and safety defects. His work has helped raise awareness of industry rules among the public and the trade.
