Ground Transport Group - Peterborough Taxi drivers are ecstatic over CCTV U-turn

CCTV will not be compulsory for taxis in Peterborough – to the delight of the hundreds of drivers who voted against the scheme. Peterborough City Council’s Licensing Committee has been pushing for two years to make CCTV cameras compulsory in all taxis and PHVs to improve passenger safety.

Opposition

The BBC reports that the scheme had been extremely unpopular with both Hackney carriage and private hire drivers. It had been described as an “intrusion of privacy” that would cause “a financial burden” to drivers.

The proposals would have meant that more than 100 operators and 1,800 taxi drivers would have had to pay for approved CCTV systems to be installed in their vehicles within 18 months. They would also have to adhere to strict GDPR regulations about access and storage of images.

A consultation about the proposals received more than 600 responses, including 288 from people in the trade. Despite strong opposition – 90% of the trade voted against it – the licensing committee voted in September to make cameras mandatory, with the full council making the final decision in December.

The BBC reports that while the scheme was primarily aimed at passenger safety, drivers felt that as well as leaving them out of pocket, it was an intrusion into their privacy, as well as that of their passengers.

Councillors were concerned that if they pushed ahead and forced drivers to install cameras in vehicles, many PHV drivers would register their vehicles in other districts and the council would not be able to hold them to the same standards as other Peterborough-badged drivers. This would undermine the drive for safety the council was aiming to achieve.

Victory

Such was the strength of the opposition to the proposals. When it came to the vote at full council, 37 councillors – almost 70% – voted against introducing the cameras, eight voted in favour and nine abstained.

After the decision to pull the plug on CCTV plans, Peterborough Private Hire Association chairman Nawaab Imran Khan said members “welcome the council’s decision and feel ecstatic”.

He said “cross-border issues was a big concern”, and his association felt it was a “big victory”.

“This is a huge relief for us. Of course there is the voluntary CCTV option for drivers.

“We are happy with the voluntary take-up of the CCTV but are against the mandatory rule.

“If it was introduced nationally, we would oblige but find it unfair that only Peterborough is being made to follow this rule.”

Labour councillor Zameer Ali, who is also a taxi operator but was not allowed to vote, said: “We didn’t expect the level and volume of support we got.

“Hopefully the [drivers’ association] can work with the council’s licensing authority and move forward and improve the trade.”

Working together

This is a good example of a licensing authority listening to drivers and operators, rather than forcing new regulations on them. It is obviously an issue the licensing committee feels strongly about, but with the cost and red tape involved, it doesn’t make sense to penalise Peterborough drivers while those who are registered in other areas can operate alongside them without the same requirements.

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