Rugby councillors consider increasing hackney carriage fares

The report on hackney carriage charges will be presented to the Rugby Borough Council licensing and safety committee when it meets on March 21.

The proposals would give hackney carriage drivers their first fare increase for 10 years.

Hackney carriages are allowed to pick up fares without prebooking journeys.

The proposals would see the night-time fare start from midnight instead of 6pm, meaning most commuters and visitors to town centre bars and restaurants will no longer have to pay the higher rate.

The daytime starting rate is proposed to increase from £2.30 to £3.20 but will give customers a longer journey before increments start to be added.

If adopted an example three mile journey during the daytime would increase in price from £7.20 to £7.80. The same journey after midnight would increase from £7.70 to £11.70, but this journey would only increase from £7.70 to £7.80 between 6pm and midnight.

Journeys on Christmas Day, Boxing Day or New Year’s Day will be charged double the daytime rate, as now.

Extras, charged for example for additional passengers and bags, will not be charged under the new tariff.

If approved, the new tariffs will be subject to a statutory consultation period but could be in place by May.

Cllr Lisa Parker, Rugby Borough Council cabinet member for environment and public realm, said: “These proposed changes have given us an opportunity to make the tariffs fairer to customers by giving them a longer journey on the basic rate and moving the start of the night-time rate to the end of the evening.

“At the same time we’ve been able to support hackney carriage drivers, many of whom are self-employed and with regulated incomes, by addressing cost of living increases over the last ten years.”