Cab drivers suspended in festive clampdown

FIVE taxi drivers in the Worth Valley have been suspended by the authorities.

Officers from the Bingley and Worth neighbourhood policing team and colleagues from Bradford Council suspended the licences of five taxis last Friday in a joint operation.

The operation was mounted before Christmas as the season regularly sees an increased demand for cabs.

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Vehicles stopped included those that were defective and another that did not comply with licensing regulations.

Pc Eddie Irving said: "Suspending a vehicle from operating is not something we take lightly as we appreciate it is a person's livelihood.

"However, people expect taxis to be a safe means of transport and operations like this prove this isn't always the case.

"People should check that the vehicle and or driver are licensed and only ever use a reputable company that they know and trust."

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The clampdown was also timed to tie in with the force-wide Operation Northdale campaign to boost safety for women using the night time economy.

Sergeant Chris Watson added: "As an NPT we are working hard to help people stay safer over the Christmas and new year period and more operations of this type are planned for the coming weeks."

Police are urging all revellers over the Christmas period to make sure they only use private hire taxis from firms they know.

Officers are also reminding those who use Hackney Carriages to make sure they queue for them at organised and official taxi ranks.

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Police also conducted checks on private cars in the Bingley area over the weekend.

As a result of that operation, two vehicles were seized for being uninsured, six drivers were given fixed penalty notices (FPNs) for failing to wear seatbelts and three were given FPNs for using mobile phones.