Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982: Taxi Fare Scale Review
Argyll and Bute Council · 19 April 2023
Back to Planning, Protective Services and Licensing Committee — 19 April 2023 and its agenda
Text extracted from the council's PDF. Layout and reading order may differ from the original.
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ARGYLL AND BUTE COUNCIL PLANNING, PROTECTIVE SERVICES AND LICENSING COMMITTEE LEGAL AND REGULATORY SUPPORT 19 APRIL 2023 CIVIC GOVERNMENT (SCOTLAND) ACT 1982 TAXI FARE SCALE REVIEW 1.0 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY In terms of Section 17 of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982, the Local Authority requires to fix maximum fares and other charges in connection with the hire of taxis operating in their area and to review the scales for taxi fares and other charges on a regular basis. The fares were last reviewed by members on 23rd March 2022 and took effect on 22nd April 2022. A letter will be issued to all taxi operators on 24th April 2023 inviting their comments by 29th May 2023. A further report will be placed before the Committee at their meeting on 21st June 2023 detailing the comments received from the taxi operators. 2.0 RECOMMENDATIONS The Committee are asked to: a) Agree to commence the review of fares in order that this can be completed within the 18 months required in terms of the Act. b) Agree that the consultation required in terms of the Act will be in writing.
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ARGYLL AND BUTE COUNCIL PLANNING, PROTECTIVE SERVICES AND LICENSING COMMITTEE LEGAL AND REGULATORY SUPPORT 19 April 2023 CIVIC GOVERNMENT (SCOTLAND) ACT 1982 TAXI FARE SCALE REVIEW 1. 1.1 1.2 2. 2.1 3. 3.1 SUMMARY In terms of Section 17 of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982, the Local Authority requires to fix maximum fares and other charges in connection with the hire of taxis operating in their area and to review the scales for taxi fares and other charges on a regular basis. The fares were last reviewed by members on 23rd March 2022 and took effect on 22nd April 2022. A letter will be issued to all taxi operators on 24th April 2023 inviting their comments by 29th May 2023. A further report will be placed before the Committee at their meeting on 21st June 2023 detailing the comments received from the trade. RECOMMENDATIONS The Committee are asked to: a) Agree to commence the review of fares in order that this can be completed within the 18 months required in terms of the Act. b) Agree that the consultation required in terms of the Act will be in writing. DETAIL Section 17 of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 states that “the licensing authority must fix scales for the fares and other charges within 18 months beginning with the date on which the scales came into effect”. In terms of the last review the fares came into force on 22nd April
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3.2 3.3 3.4 2022. The next fares scale will need to come into force in October 2023. Therefore the review process would require to commence in April 2023. At the 2022 review the committee agreed to a 15% increase so the fares changed as follows:- Tariff 1 £3.00 to £3.45 Tariff 2 £3.60 to £4.14 Tariff 3 £4.20 to £4.83 Charges in respect of soiling remained as £100 (maximum), waiting and telephone bookings increased by 5p so from 35p to 40p per minute and from 30p to 35p respectively; Although no changes were implemented to the yardage distances which are currently based on an initial charge, the initial charge increased as follows:- Tariff 1 - 860yds and a subsequent charge from 20p to 23p for each additional 176 yards Tariff 2 - 860yds and a subsequent charge from 20p to 23p for each additional 150 yards. Tariff 3 - 860yds and a subsequent charge from 20p to 23p for each additional 120 yards. As previously stated the most recent taxi fare scales took effect from 22nd April 2022. In terms of Section 17 of the Act in carrying out a review of taxi fares, the licensing authority must – a) Consult with persons or organisations appearing to it to be, or to be representative of, the operators of taxis operating within its area. b) Following the consultation – (i) Review the existing scales (ii) Propose new scales (whether at altered rates or the same rates. The Act does not stipulate how the consultation should be effected. 4. 4.1 CONCLUSION Members are invited to agree that;
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A) B) 5. The next taxi fare review should commence in order that it can be completed within 18 months as required by the 1982 Act. and Agree that the consultation required in terms of the Act will be in writing. IMPLICATIONS 5.1 Policy- None 5.2 Financial -none 5.3 Legal – The Council require to review taxi fares in terms of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 5.4 HR -none 5.5 Fairer Scotland Duty:-none 5.5.1 Equalities - protected characteristics-none 5.5.2 Socio-economic Duty-none 5.5.3 Islands -none 5.6 Climate Change-none 5.7 Risk-none 5.8 Customer Service-none Douglas Hendry Executive Director with responsibility for Legal and Regulatory Support Policy Lead: Cllr Kieron Green For further information contact: Sheila MacFadyen, Senior Solicitor Tel: 01546 604265 Email Sheila.macfadyen@argyll-bute.gov.uk