From: CHRIS JOHNSON
To: Mick Cash
Sent: Wednesday, 3 July 2019 13:49:53 BST
Subject: Membership problem
Membership number XXXXXXXX
Dear Mr Cash
I have been told to write to you after telephoning the membership helpline.
As you might be aware Transport for London "TfL" & the Mayor of London have introduced a policy to decommission diesel taxis with and out of date and flawed impact assessment, this assessment was undertaken by Cambridge Economic Partners.
Inherently there has been approximately 12% more licensed drivers than licensed vehicles, however, this has increased to approximately to 19% more licensed drivers than vehicles due to TfL & the Mayor's ill thought out and harmful policy.
Neither TfL nor the Mayor of London have carried out a revised integrated impact assessment to the Cambridge Economic Partners assessment even though there was a significant change to the decommissioning policy that was firstly suggested, TfL claim that 50% are fleet rental vehicles and 50% are owner drivers, TfL also suggest that two thirds of the fleet rental companies have decommissioned taxis and only one third are owner drivers who have decommissioned.
This has caused a significant strain in the fleet rental market, with the failure being that neither TfL nor the Mayor of London carried out a revised impact assessment to understand this data - they simply introduced a policy on an old assessment.
In short, TfL & the Mayor of London have introduced a policy without any real up to date impact assessment data, and in doing so, have knowingly caused mental anguish, anxiety, stress and other mental health related problems due to the fact that they have reduced the size of the renal taxi fleet to a position where there are not enough available taxis to supply the number of drivers who need a taxi to earn a living.
The taxi which I rent broke down last week with an engine failure, because there are now a shortage of taxis to rent due to this allegedly unlawful policy, I now cannot work because I don't have a vehicle and unless this changes will be out of work for a considerable time.
This has impacted on my own mental health and is causing me real hardship which is impacting on my relationship with my family.
Therefore, I am asking that the RMT step in here and look at the legal implications of TfL's policy of deliberately putting drivers out of work and knowingly initiating a policies that cause mental health problems, I further suggest there is potentially a conflict with the 2010 equalities act given that mental health is classed as a disability.
I look forward to your reply.
Best wishes
Chris Johnson.
TAXI LEAKS EXTRA BIT :
After 18 months of waiting and seeing, our largest org and our smallest Union (LTDA/Unite) after recently congratulating the Mayor on doing an excellent job in regards to decommissioning, have asked the Mayor for more funding to speed up the decommissioning process, to take into the mix TX4 and Vito Euro 5s.
You don’t have to be a genius to work out that this is not going to help find a solution to the problem facing rental drivers, but will actually add to the problem as there will be less cabs available for rentals, as fleet owners take the money and run.
Charlie Croker (@InThePinkTaxi) Tweeted:
After telephoning several garages I couldn't find a cab to rent as the spare I was given had to go back for a repair with a gearbox problem.
I have billed TfLTPH for loss of earnings @ £60 per day.
This has been caused by TfL ill thought out decommissioning policy.
https://twitter.com/InThePinkTaxi/status/1146099512483766272?s=17
8 comments:
Couldn’t you just sign up for the new petrol powered taxi, on the never ending payment plan!. Nearly every page of the LTDA rag is dedicated to getting the drivers in hock, and switchover to a massive monthly payment, extortionate insurance premiums, more expensive tyres. With big diesel savings over your new 7 day working week, you will be quids in.
No one at all, cares about the taxi drivers, their physical, and mental health, or that of their families. Never have done. The lack of taxis, and lack of flexibility, that follows, isn’t something an office worker, who cycles, or uses the tube to get to work, would even care about. After all, they can show up for work hungover, over tired, and just sleep through till lunchtime, still getting paid.
Not much longer in the job for many now.
Possibly a warning to all. Try have a plan B and C. I wish this driver luck in getting money out of TFL. Time for possible cab share? Has this driver put money away for a rainy day? Remember there are good times and bad times in life. I have personally been preaching doom and gloom (or reality) for many a year now for this trade. Seems to me that there are a number of people higher up who would gladly see the end of us and are actively assisting with our demise. Be lucky.
Totally agree phd aloud to use euro 6 but as usual we get fucked over time and time again I’m sure the knowledge of London is well and truly finished
Let us know when you get paid out mate, but i wont bank on it, and doubt you will either!Yes 10.12, not long for many including me in the game, im not investing one more penny in tfl, licencing, medical, crb check, not one penny, and am not even working a cab now, just running down my bill, anyone know if you stil get paid out if you hand it in early?
I find myself astonished to read this story & not truly understand how the taxi trade did not see this coming?
Tfl are using itimidatory tactics which are running parallel to this taxi elimination scheme as the so called age limit consultation scam has clear intimidation overtones which destabilize all taxi values if this 12 year limit is implemented & furthermore contains small print which states TFL's intentions to reduce age limits to 10 years next year if emission level targets are not met.
The important part of this dreadful plan is the missing consultation regarding ages of current drivers & the clear discrimination of the older drivers who's opportunities of buying a £60k electric vehicle when they no longer work the extremely long hours but find either renting or buying a cab in its final years have all but vanished.
The people who lock themselves away in Tfl's offices to scheme these plans are clearly far too bright for our trade representatives to pick up on although there are a few out there who did see this coming but were not listened to.
If TFl does decide to reduce the age limits to 12 years there will be no shortage of unemployed drivers available to demonstrate their inability to continue their service due to the dulpicity of tfl and they should turnout at every demonstration that occurs, talk to the press, and point out why they are there as there is nothing else left in their working life for them to do.
Let's regurgitate all the publicity surrounding the overpaid TFL individuals who hold CV's in irrelevance but hold us, everyone of us are qualified for our jobs to become tactically out of a job through TFL's underhanded tactics which were unfairly presented.
All of those who have found themselves out of work because of this duplicity s
Must demonstrate, get the tube or bus, turn up and have your say!
Remembering, every electric taxi sold is "contracted" legal terms to protect the seller, and if you are 60 years old plus you simply cannot sign on the dotted lines when the current "health" question is asked, simply because things can change overnight, and also remembering TFL decides your fitness to hold license so it's now apparently longer feasible to drive at 60 plus unless you can plan your own future or retirement which you now cannot which is a disgrace.
Be Lucky
greenbadgejohn.
I cannot afford to retire and tfl have made now it too expensive to set up shop and go to work doing the hours I do now.
There are waiting lists of 30 plus drivers in cab rental firms so by the time a cab comes up you have no say in the quality of the vehicle because another driver is waiting if you dont want it, The cab quality is dropping fast with unscrupulous money grabbing companies (they know who they are) setting up fast ans all because tfl renaged on the limit it set not that long ago.
They should have allowed a natural progression of electric vehicles to encourage drivers to choose a new cab on its merits and this is a serious mistake for tfl to make and i hope a legal challenge is constructed by us because 12 years from 15 years in this current turmoil is unjust
Imagine a ladder that has 14 rungs, take away 7 of the bottom rungs.............. that is what tfl has done to the taxi trade
the top 7 rungs are fine for those who can find a way of reaching them and those who cannot are still cab licensed drivers in the eyes of tfl...except they no longer drive cabs.
Oh, but I know what.... lets find a firm we can gain a bung by way of TFL exclusive approval of euro 5 retrofitting (this all sounds very familiar) and then we have a new saviour in our midst, I give you Mr Steve Macnamara.
The Knowledge qualification, The License, The Job freedom, the age barrier removal and contribution (health permitting) are all finely linked together.
Some could truthfully say with a high degree of accuracy that enviromentalism is the new fascism as when organisations like TFl devise plan to reduce minimal overall emmision levels by reducing taxi age limits to 12 years at direct human cost to us when the manufacterers have been churning out fully approved euro 5 vehicles for years.
Corruption is rife, All those drivers who are (or have) banked between £10k-to -£8k have found themselves at the very front of the rental queues where their TFL bungs will last 9 months if their lucky, and all those who know keeping your cab equated to keeping employed will eventually find when their cab expires no second hand vehicles to buy and nothing to rent.
The impact on our trade is going to be devastating lets make no mistakes and all the time one after another new mini cab app enters the market as tfl tears down ours, talk about morons.
I posted that there would potentially be a problem of a cab shortage when the TX E price was announced. Purely based on the facts that how many mushers could or in the case of older drivers would not want to afford it. Older drivers would simply run their cabs out and possibly retire, therefore you would have no circle of part exchanges and more cabs being retired than new replacements. Allied to this you had the run out offer of euro 6 cabs which people with mid age cabs part exchanged for lowish monthly payments who are still tied into agreements and now with the collapse in values are somewhat stuck.
Now the de- commission deal has truly sliced straight through it taking a swathe of cabs out and more or less paved the ruling for the twelve year age limit. It would be interesting to know how many licensed ‘03 to 07 ‘ reg cabs there are that if the rule was brought in tomorrow what the effect would be then when you add the ‘08 to 12 reg cabs decommissioned it’s job done. Remember these cabs are now gone for good.
My guess is the numbers were already calculated particularly as it appears two thirds of de commissioned cabs are fleet, that as I have said before it was manner from heaven for them, they have got out of old cabs and can now control the market as they have certainly got more demand than supply. Being more cynical you also have too ask why the Nissan petrol cab died at the eleventh hour after so much was invested.
It is all very well talking about upgrading euro 5 engines but what would be the point as taking into account the above as you would be looking at 12 to 15 reg cabs and at what cost would it be, you can bet it wouldn’t be worthwhile.
Something else to consider with no second hand market life becomes interesting for Brewery Road a big revenue stream loss. I can see big fleets being dealt direct given them even more control
Whatever way you look at it it’s a numbers game and unfortunately it does not add up
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