Welsh Government Taxi And PH White Paper Seeks To Tackle The Big Issues

Last month, the Welsh Government published a white paper outlining its vision for taxis and private hire vehicles (PHVs) in Wales.  

This vision was initially presented in Llwybr Newydd, the Welsh Transport Strategy 2021. The consultation white paper seeks to tackle the issues that will achieve this strategy.  

The government seeks to establish a licensing system that ensures safety for passengers and drivers, contributes to a cleaner environment, enhances customer experience, and promotes accessibility for all. In essence, the aim is to create safer, fairer, and greener taxi and PHV services across the country.  

While the paper focuses primarily on legislative aspects, it also addresses the need for a coordinated approach to provide reliable transportation services in rural areas, where the demand for taxis and PHVs may be limited due to the lack of consistent public transport options. 

The Welsh Government have made 9 core proposals in the white paper. These are: 

• Retain the current two-tier licensing system of taxis and PHVs but introduce new definitions and terms for them 

• Introduce national minimum standards for drivers, vehicles and operators. 

• Introduce powers for enforcement against drivers and vehicles licensed by another local authority 

• Introduce fixed penalty notices for a range of offences 

• Introduce a national penalty points scheme 

• Introduce cross-border hire safeguards between Wales and England 

• Improve information sharing between local authorities and with passengers 

• Give Ministers powers to speed up the transition to zero-emission taxis and PHVs 

• Introduce class B licenses for other types of vehicles 

Lee Waters MS, Deputy Minister for Climate Change, said in a cabinet statement: “Taxis and Private Hire Vehicles (PHVs) play a vital role: making public transport a more practical choice by providing connections for the first and last mile of journeys and moving people at times when other transport services are not operating or in places where they are not available. 

“This is also about social justice. Taxis and PHVs are particularly important in communities with low levels of car ownership and they play a crucial role in school, social care and patient transport where there isn’t a suitable public transport alternative. 

“Given the importance of the sector, we should expect consistent standards across Wales. Currently, there is far too much variation in terms of suitability checks and training requirements for drivers, vehicle age and emissions standards, and the requirements to become an operator.  

“This leads to an inconsistent service and is unfair on drivers and operators facing competition from drivers licensed to lower standards in neighbouring local authorities. 

“We recognise that we need to level that playing field and our proposals will deliver better, safer, more consistent services. We will achieve this through the introduction of national minimum standards for licenced taxis, PHVs, drivers and operators, improved local authority enforcement powers, and better information sharing.  

“As the taxi and PHV sector has modernised rapidly in recent years, the legislative framework has simply not kept up with the pace of change. Our proposals are based on extensive engagement with the industry and key stakeholders on the most pressing issues facing the sector, but we recognise that some issues will need to be re-visited as the industry landscape continues to evolve.  

“I welcome views from drivers, our social partners, the wider industry and all of those who want to see a thriving, safe and reliable taxi and PHV sector in Wales.” 

You have until June 1st to respond to the consultation. You can find more information and submit your response here.