Council committee agrees more action is needed by the government to tackle the influx of Uber drivers

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Members of Wokingham's council committee met on Tuesday to discuss what action can be taken to limit the impact Uber is having on local Taxi and private hire drivers.

Taxi drivers from the borough have highlighted their concerns surrounding the amount of work that is being lost to Uber and the committee has agreed that stronger action by the government is needed to tackle the issue.

The council will now push for stronger recommendations regarding the operation of Uber in Wokingham Borough, the Bracknell News has reported. During the meeting, one councillor said that it is clear that there is not a level playing field in Wokingham and highlighted what they believe to be a potential public safety issue with so many drivers obtaining their licences from outside the borough. The council is calling for current legislation to be updated to grant licensing authorities the power to carry out compliance checks for any taxi or private hire vehicle within their area. The Licensing Committee may also call on TfL to make it a condition of licensing that drivers cooperate with requests from compliance officers in areas such as Wokingham. Its claimed that an increasing number of drivers are now operating almost entirely at a significant distance from where they are licensed, making it impossible for licensing authorities to effectively monitor their activities. The government could now be asked to bring forward legislative changes to protect public safety and to ensure fairness for all drivers in the borough. National rules mean Uber drivers can be licensed by Transport for London but can live in and operate in Wokingham without needing to be checked out by Wokingham Borough Council (WBC).

November 14, 2018 at 06:40PM https://ift.tt/2ufVjKI Michael Murphy THESE POSTS ARE NOT OUR ENDORSEMENT