by News Desk | May 21, 2015 | London News
Uber will challenge plans by Boris Johnson to cap the number of minicabs operating across London, arguing that the move would mean “higher prices” for millions of travellers in the British capital.
The Mayor of London, who was elected as an MP this month, is pressing for new legislation that would limit the number of minicabs in the city.
The proposals, which are expected to feature in this month’s Queen’s Speech, are being seen as a direct attempt to curb the rise of the US taxi app group.
In a letter seen by the Financial Times, Jo Bertram, the head of Uber’s business in the UK, has requested the chance to debate the issue with the mayor directly.
She also complains that Uber is not yet represented on the board of Transport for London and has been shut out of other industry bodies from which it can better challenge the move.
“London is one of the great cities of the world and Londoners have embraced Uber’s technology; tens of thousands rely on us for their job and millions more use us to get where they need to go,” Ms Bertram said.
“Capping the industry’s ability to grow would mean higher prices and less availability for the millions of people who rely on Uber and services like ours to get around.”
She added that new regulations should “protect people — their personal safety and their pockets — not hamper new innovations they value and that make their lives easier”.
A spokesman for Mr Johnson said: “The Mayor is not on an Uber witch hunt . . . It doesn’t matter who the drivers work for. It just doesn’t make sense to have such a large number of minicab drivers in the capital.”
The letter is Uber’s first step in lobbying against the cap proposals revealed by Mr Johnson last week. “We must be able to take action against the threat posed by the massive increase we are seeing in the number of private hire vehicles,” he said.
Mr Johnson argues that the increase was to blame for greater congestion on London’s roads, more air pollution and the problem of illegally parked vehicles.
The number of minicabs in the capital has increased by nearly a fifth in the past year to more than 78,000. Uber has about 14,000 drivers in London, making it the largest provider of private hires in the city.
The rise has put pressure on TfL, caught between the popularity of Uber and incumbent taxi groups. The transport regulator is currently undertaking a review of the London taxi market.
London’s long established black cab drivers have complained that a lack of regulation was skewing the market in Uber’s favour. The London Taxi Drivers Association has taken Uber to court alleging that the use of smartphones to log journey’s flouts regulations.
by News Desk | May 17, 2015 | London News
Human rights expert Martin Chamberlain….Uber’s smartphone Taximeter
Chair of the Ubited Cabbies Group Len Martin, looks at who decides what constitutes a taxi meter…
Sir Peter Hendy tells us that he took legal advice on whether UBER are using a taxi meter or not, so who did he ask?
An emminent QC who he admits hasn’t a very memorable name!
(It’s Martin Chamberlain QC, Sir Peter)
So lets draw some parallels to compare how technical issues are dealt with in the legal system in the UK.
If a new house were built and If there were an electrical house fire where upon an occupant died, the developer may well end up in court facing manslaughter charges.
Would the court ask a barrister to determine the cause of the fire or an electrician?
Would you ask an eminent QC whether the electrical wiring Installation met the relevant standards?
Or….Would the eminent QC call a subject matter expert I.E. a qualified electrician to determine the cause of the fire and whether it were the quality of the wiring that caused the fire?
If there were an aeroplane crash, would you call an eminent QC to determine the cause of the crash?
Or would the eminent QC call a subject matter expert air crash investigator?
If a drug dealer were caught with a new synthetic drug, would an eminent QC determine whether the substance was a class A drug?
Or a subject matter forensic chemist?
So why would TfL not ask the BSi, Lucastronic, Digitax etc to give expert witness as to whether the UBER device is a meter? How can a safe ruling be made if the courts do not take expert testimonials from subject matter experts?
Who did TfL consult ?
(albeit two years after they licensed UBER)
Yes thats right…. The Taximeter Subject matter expert Martin Chamberlain QC….. !!!
And what makes Martin Chamberlain QC such an expert? Well, below is some of his recent cases… It’s not obvious to the UCG why they chose him to be their subject matter expert… Perhaps Sir Peter would be so kind as to shed some light upon this less than obvious choice…???
Martin Chamberlain QC
His measured and expert advocacy is particularly well respected in relation to issues of human rights, torture, sanctions and freedom of expression.
Recent work: Acted as leading counsel for the Foreign Secretary in the high-profile case of Sandiford, resisting an appeal for legal expenses on behalf of a British woman on death row in Bali.
Recent work: Acted as leading Special Advocate for Bank Mellat in the first ever closed hearing in the Supreme Court, in which financial restrictions imposed on the bank for the purpose of limiting Iranian nuclear proliferation were overturned.
Recent work: Appeared in Swiss International Airlines v Energy and Climate Change Secretary; a claim concerning Switzerland’s omission from the suspension of the EU emissions trading scheme.
Recent work: Represented Transport for London in the newsworthy case of Eventech v Parking Adjudicator. The case regarded Addison Lee’s challenge to the rules on the use of bus lanes in London, which raises free movement and state aid issues.
Well…. Having read his resume its pretty obvious really, of course you would call Martin Chamberlain, sounds just the right chap to us ! perfect choice Sir Peter.
I wonder what the outcome of this hearing behind closed doors will be ?
We’ll have to ask William HIll for some odds, no wait, don’t ask them, ask a window cleaner or a hospital porter
by News Desk | May 15, 2015 | London News
We have been informed that Uber Drivers are planning to go on strike and have a Drive In outside Ubers Office on the 6th June 2015.
Minicab drivers are apparently upset that Uber have increased their commission to 25% and they are trying to curb the number of drivers that are recruited.
It seems that their drivers are starting to feel the pinch and are not happy with the way in which they are being treated.
Below is a leaked text message sent between drivers.
by News Desk | May 15, 2015 | London News
A London Taxi was involved in a high speed car case around St Johns Wood after an unmarked police car’s Automatic Number Plate Reader (ANPR) picked out the fact the vehicle had been reported as stolen earlier in the day.
At approx 18:15 the Taxi collided with a tree at the junction of Prince Albert Rd and Avenue Rd Regent’s Park. The driver abandoned the cab and made off in the general direction of the Zoo.
After witnessing the chase and subsequent crash, I spoke with an officer at the scene who said the vehicle had been alleged stolen.
by News Desk | May 15, 2015 | London News
When it was announced last night that Boris would be making a major statement to the Taxi industry today, there was much speculation about the content of his statement
Was he going to resign as Mayor?
Was he going to Ban Uber?
Was he going to announce “Yes it’s a meter”
Was he going to announce a 10 year age limit on Taxis?
Nope, we were all wrong
Boris Johnson announced this morning that he would be “looking” to introduce legislation to limit the number of minicabs on London’s roads.
BoJo says the number of private hire vehicles in the city has risen by more than 13,000 in 18 months which is causing increased congestion.
In a statement made on LBC this morning, Boris said: “I’d like to talk about the congestion threat caused by the massive increase in minicabs. You may be aware of this as you’ll have seen it around you”.
Yes Boris we’ve notice, but not because it’s affecting bus time tables, TfL’s crazy light praising schemes, extended pedestrian crossing times and ridicules road works schedule would be the villain of the peace there. We’ve notice because it’s almost killed off the licensed Taxi trade.
He went on to say “In the last 18 months, Private Hire Driver numbers have gone up by 18%. They’ve leapt from 65,000 minicabs to 76,000 minicabs – and it’s growing at the rate of about 1,000 a month”. A bit of an under estimate as we have heard Uber are taking on over 100 new drivers every day! But then true facts have never been the Mayor’s or TfL’s strong point.
“We need to consider that there are 25,000 black cabs and we are starting to see a real threat to the movement of traffic on the roads”. Nothing to do with the thousands of new, empty buses that have appeared on our streets under his watch
“What we’re proposing is that you need to have some legislation and I’ll be looking to take that forward to restrict the number of minicabs that can come on the streets.”
Boris ever the politician, with under a year left of his Mayoralty, is he again writing checks with his mouth that his arse can’t cash?
Unsurprisingly, the LTDA are claiming the kudos for lobbing the Mayor in the run up to this momentous achievement. Their 7 years of fence sitting has finally paid dividends (in their eyes) other than splinters, with Boris currently “thinking” about introducing a cap.
Boris also announced he wants to ban rickshaws in London to a bid to help ease traffic congestion.
At present, he claims he doesn’t have the authority to do that, so he is seeking government legislation for a pedicab ban.
Meanwhile, back on the front lines with the rank and file…..the demo is still on.
Over the past few days the intention of the protest have been sort. The question has been asked
What is your objective, what would it take to happen for the demo to be called off?
That’s very simple….the only thing that can stop this demo at Windsor House, which now has the full support of the LCDC, is the resignation of Peter Hendy.
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