Taxi Licensing in Buckinghamshire - Public survey

Results updated 9 Nov 2020

We received 583 responses to this public survey.

• 58% of respondents were residents 
• 27% of respondents were taxi drivers
• 7% of respondents were taxi companies licenced by Buckinghamshire Council

The main findings were:

Taxi vehicles

• Vehicle safety and roadworthiness was the most important factor (98%)
• Other important points were vehicles being clean and tidy (94%), vehicle exterior being in good condition (91%) and vehicles being clearly identifiable as a taxi (86%)

Taxi drivers

• Greatest importance was placed on drivers being able to read and speak English (92%)
• Almost as important was driver drug and alcohol testing (89%)
• Only slightly less important were safeguarding training (84%), disability awareness training (81%), more frequent medical checks (81%) and finally drivers knowing the local area without the need for a sat nav (76%)

Taxi ranks

• There was broadly a 50/50 split between respondents who do use taxi ranks, and respondents who don’t use taxi ranks
• A notable exception to this were respondents from the South Bucks area where the majority (84%) said they did not use taxi ranks, which is explained by the fact that there are very few ranks in South Bucks
• Suggestions on where to site new taxi ranks included train stations, outside major retail units, night-time economy hubs and in key towns
• Respondents also suggested improvement to current ranks such as extending ranks to fit more cabs, making ranks for easily identifiable particularly for the blind/partially sighted, providing CCTV for safety and other disputes

Taxi operating zones

• This subject provided the least clear view from respondents
• Many (37%) weren’t sure whether we should keep four separate zones
• Almost the same number of respondents wanted to keep separate zones (36%)
• Slightly fewer wanted us to create a single, countywide zone (28%)
• Taxi drivers licenced by us were in favour of keeping separate zones (46%), whilst residents weren’t sure (41%) and taxi companies favoured unifying them into a single, countywide zone (38%)
• Reasons given from those in favour of keeping separate zones included:
  • With a single operating zone, taxis will focus on the most profitable areas only and therefore under-serve less profitable areas, leading to an inconsistent service across the county
  • It will be too complex to manage a county-wide zone
  • It’s better for the environment if taxis are working and travelling only within a localised zone
• Reasons given from those in favour of creating one countywide zone included:
  • It will provide greater fare efficiencies
  • It will generate savings e.g. training costs, maintenance and so on
  • It will increase flexibility and allow supply to better meet demand
  • Different rules in different zones makes it complicated for the public