REGULATING FOR ACCESSIBLE TAXIS

This paper considers some of the technical and economic issues that surround the introduction of accessible taxi regulations covering all licensed taxis operating in the UK. Under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995, regulations will be made to cover taxis. The current proposal is that taxi regulations will take effect from 2002 for all newly licensed taxis and that by 2012 all taxis will be required to meet the regulations. The regulations will require a taxi to be wheelchair accessible and include requirements to benefit ambulant disabled passengers and all these requirements will be based on several years of ergonomic research. It is essential that a taxi must remain attractive to the majority of the population if an operator is to earn a living and the regulations will allow this and also ensure the vehicles are available at a cost that the majority of the trade finds acceptable. Reconciling the many conflicting desires of the various interest groups and setting up a mechanism for conducting a widespread public consultation exercise with clear cost implications for all in the industry is discussed in the paper.