Item 7 - Application for Variation to a Taxi Licence - Tin Sang Chow
West Dunbartonshire Council · 18 February 2026
Back to Licensing Committee — 18 February 2026 and its agenda
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WEST DUNBARTONSHIRE COUNCIL Report by Chief Officer – Regulatory & Regeneration Licensing Committee – 18 February 2026 Subject: Application for Variation of a Taxi Licence 1. Purpose 1.1 To consider an application for the variation of a Taxi Licence submitted by Mr Tin Sang Chow, 3 Coach House, Arden, Alexandria G83 8RD. 2. Recommendations 2.1 It is recommended that the application be considered and determined by the Committee. 2.2 The proposed variation to the taxi licence is contrary to the policy agreed by the Committee on 15 February 2017 and as such it is recommended that the application to vary the taxi licence to carry 7 passengers, without the vehicle being a Wheelchair Accessible Vehicle, be considered for refusal. 3. Background 3.1 Mr Chow is the holder of a taxi licence which operates in the Dumbarton & Vale of Leven zone of West Dunbartonshire Council. The taxi licence has an expiry date of 6 October 2028. 3.2 Mrs. Tracey McKernan, 127 Strathleven Road, Bonhill, Alexandria G83 9PG is also named on the licence as the person responsible for the day-to-day management of the vehicle. The vehicle which is operated under this taxi licence is a Ford Tourneo MPV, licensed to carry 4 passengers. 3.3 An application for the variation to a taxi licence was submitted on 27 October 2025. Within the variation application the applicant has requested to increase the carrying capacity of the vehicle from the existing 4 passengers to 7 passengers. 3.4 Although the vehicle has a carrying capacity of 7 passengers, it is only licensed to carry 4 passengers as the policy applicable in the Dumbarton & Vale of Leven zone only allow Wheelchair Accessible Vehicles (WAV’s) to be licensed to carry 5 or more passengers. The vehicle is not adapted to carry wheelchair passengers. 4. Main Issues 4.1 At the Meeting of the Licensing Committee held on 15 February 2017, when considering the Taxi and Private Hire Vehicle Age and Vehicle Specification Requirements, it was agreed:- ITEM 7
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‘that in future all vehicles proposed for use as a taxi or private hire car, within the Dumbarton and Vale of Leven zone of West Dunbartonshire, with a carrying capacity of 5 or more passengers would require to be wheelchair accessible’. 4.2 Members also agreed the following policy for all taxi and private hire vehicles operating in West Dunbartonshire Council:- ‘Purpose built vehicles and adapted WAV’s can operate indefinitely with no restriction on age at first use’. ‘Saloon cars/MPVs may operate until 14 years old and they must be licensed prior to being 8 years old.’ 4.3 The report (Appendix 1) from February 2017 was put before Members to provide options to potentially increase the number of WAV’s operating in the Dumbarton & Vale of Leven zone. An earlier taxi demand survey had suggested that the Dumbarton & Vale of Leven zone should aim to have at least 20% of their taxi fleet as WAV’s. The option selected by Members at that time was to only allow vehicles that were wheelchair accessible, in the Dumbarton & Vale of Leven zone, to carry 5 or more passengers. By utilising a vehicle with a larger passenger carrying capacity, there is a benefit to the operator by enabling them to carry additional passengers up to the carrying capacity of the vehicle when the vehicle is not carrying a wheelchair passenger. 4.4 Members will be aware that the Clydebank Taxi zone of West Dunbartonshire Council requires every taxi to be a wheelchair accessible vehicle. 4.5 Currently, the Dumbarton & Vale of Leven taxi zone of West Dunbartonshire Council have a mixed fleet of saloon vehicles and multipurpose vehicles comprising of 175 taxis and 32 private hire cars. Of these, 8 taxis and 4 private hire cars are wheelchair accessible. The percentage of WAV’s within the taxi fleet is 4.6% and within the private hire car fleet 12.5%. Overall there are 5.8% of vehicles currently operating which are wheelchair accessible in the Dumbarton & Vale of Leven zone. 4.6 The request submitted by the applicant is to operate a larger capacity vehicle capable of carrying 7 passengers without the need for the vehicle to be a WAV which is contrary to the current policy. The reasons cited for the request are that the public are disadvantaged when there is a request for a vehicle to carry 5 or more passengers and none of the WAV vehicles are available. This results in the passengers having to use 2 taxis for their journey. It should be noted that the Licensing Team have no record of having received any complaints from the public where this situation has arisen. 4.7 The report which came before Committee on 15 February 2017 advised that there were 14 WAV’s operating in the taxi fleet from the 177 taxi licences that were being operated at that time which represented 7.9%. The number of WAV’s operating has fallen since then from 7.9% to 4.6%.
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4.8 The policy that was agreed on 15 February 2017 also allowed WAV’s to operate indefinitely as there would be no age restriction on how long a vehicle could operate. Any vehicle that was not a WAV would have to cease operation as a licensed vehicle once it reached 14 years. The policy also allowed for a WAV of any age to be operated at the time of its’ first use as opposed to non-WAV vehicles which had to be under 8 years old at the time. 4.9 The vehicle which is being used by Mr. Chow was first registered on 30 June 2025 therefore it is currently less than 1 year old. 4.10 The EIA highlights that if the proposal was accepted the current policy could no longer be applied. If the request to operate a 7 seater vehicle was allowed, without their being a requirement for the vehicle to be a WAV, this would have a detrimental effect on the availability of WAV's. Operators, when considering which vehicle to acquire, would likely choose to have a vehicle with a higher passenger capacity without it being a WAV due to the reduced cost of obtaining these vehicles. The proposed variation offers no benefit to anyone with protected characteristics, 4.11 There are no objections or representations from Police Scotland. 5. Personnel Issues 5.1 There are no personnel issues 6. Financial Implications 6.1 There are no financial implications 7. Risk Analysis 7.1 There is no increased risk to the Council associated with the contents of this report. 8. Equalities Impact Assessment (EIA) 8.1 EIA 1403: Allowing an exception to the policy on economic grounds would set a precedent that may result in a lowering of WAV vehicle availability to the detriment of customers with protected characteristics for example disabled people, particularly wheelchair users. 9. Consultation 9.1 Police Scotland were consulted in relation to the application. 10. Strategic Assessment 10.1 In terms of the Council's Strategic Priorities, the purpose of licensing is to ensure
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our Communities are Resilient and Thriving. Chief Officer – Regulatory & Regeneration Date: 29 January 2026 Person to Contact: Robert Mackie, Senior Officer (Licensing Section), Licensing Team, Municipal Buildings, College Street, Dumbarton, G82 1NR. Tel. No. (Direct line) 01389 738741 robert.mackie@west-dunbarton.gov.uk Appendices: 1. EIA 1403 2. Taxi and Private Hire Vehicle Age and Vehicle Specification Requirements Background Papers: 1. Application for variation of a Taxi Licence submitted by Mr Tin Sang Chow, 3 Coach House, Arden, Alexandria G83. 2. Letter to Mr Chow dated 30 January 2026. 3. Letter to Mrs McKernan dated 30 January 2026. 3. Report submitted to Licensing Committee on 15 February 2017. 4. Approved Excerpt from Minute of meeting of Licensing Committee held on 15 February 2027.