Wayne Garland, who has been a Bristol taxi driver for 16 years, said the new fee comes with no benefits.
He told the Post: "We are paying money for nothing. If the station can't supply us with enough spaces then why have they issued so many permits? Temple Meads station is our main income. We have no choice but to buy the permits, but when we come here at the best times we are getting moved along by the authorities.
"We've paid our money and now where are we supposed to go? It just seems as though we are paying the money and getting less work."
The 47-year-old from Totterdown added: "It's just another money making exercise."Gosh! You don't say?
Kenneth Lines, a taxi driver for 40 years from Brislington, said: "The police are turning people away.
"When you have to pay as much money as we do for a permit you expect to be able to park.
"They've asked for all taxi drivers to apply for this permit but they've given out more than there is space available. They're taking money under false pretences.
"They're money grabbing."Yes. They are. Welcome to the real world.
What, did you think they'd sack their middle managers or their huge internal HR teams or their 'sustainable travel' division when things got tight? Dream on!
Some people welcome this, of course:
One motorist who regularly picks up a colleague from the station, but asked not to be named, said: "Just getting to the short-stay car park in front of the station can be a nightmare at times. Taxi drivers leave their cabs virtually in the middle of the road – this blocks the road for buses and other vehicles.
"Something needs to be done – taxi drivers aren't the only people who use the station."They are the only people being charged extra for it though. Of course, I'm sure they'll figure a way to get charges to apply to you too, in due course!
First Great Western, which owns Station Approach, told the Post it was reluctant to make any improvements while the dispute is ongoing.
Dan Panes, from the train operator, said: "We acknowledge that there needs to be improvements, but until the judgement is made in the courts we cannot make any promises to improve the situation.
"We maintain that the permits are for hire on our premises. They are not paying to park here."You can have a permit, at a price, just don't expect it to be of any use. Well, we are a nation of shopkeepers...
6 comments:
Company notices that it has people using its land for free and decides to monetize said resource.
Free-loader suddenly has to pay to use something he'd previously used for free and complains.
So far, so normal.
His real complaint, it seems, is that competition is a Bad Thing™.
If the company had only handed out enough permits to cover the number of spaces available and he hadn't got one then I guess he'd have moaned about that instead.
The station has a fixed number of spaces but as those with permits to use them can't occupy them 24/7 then of course you are going to issue more permits than the number of spaces available in order to ensure maximum occupancy during operating hours.
Best suggestion in the comments was for the train company to auction off the parking permits, say 50 spaces for perhaps 4-500 Taxis.
The drivers taxi drivers do seem to be a little confused as to what they are paying for:
TAXI drivers who have paid for permits to work at Temple Meads ...
and
"When you have to pay as much money as we do for a permit you expect to be able to park.
Parking ain't working.
When you have to pay as much money as we do for a permit you expect to be able to park.
Well, one would in a sane society.
Well, one would in a sane society.
And in a sane society everyone would be considerate and no one group would expect to be exempt from the rules everyone else has to abide by, like not causing an obstruction. Read the comments following the linked article - the taxi drivers don't get much support from other road users in the area.
"If the company had only handed out enough permits to cover the number of spaces available and he hadn't got one then I guess he'd have moaned about that instead."
Maybe, but the presence of a taxi rank should make the prospect of travelling by train more enjoyable. Shouldn't the rail company consider keeping the taxi drivers happy, too?
"Parking ain't working."
I think it's a bit much to expect weary commuters to run alongside a moving taxi, John Wayne-in-'Stagecoach'-style, no?
"...the taxi drivers don't get much support from other road users in the area."
No, they don't. But how much is this because of the actions of the rail company in not ensuring a sensibly-run pick up and drop off point? Instead, they seem to believe their responsibility ends when the passengers exit the train.
Surely public transport should be better in 2012?
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