Purpose

To consider a request from the taxi trade to
amend the Hackney Carriage Fare Chart and if necessary, agree the
statutory consultation process.

Decision

RESOLVED that the Cabinet
 

i.     
notes the existing tariffs which have been in place since 16 June
2022 (Appendix B).
 

ii.    
considers the Hackney Carriage Fare Chart put forward by the trade
(Appendix A).

 

iii.   
considers if statutory consultation should be undertaken on
revisions to the table of fares for hackney carriage tariffs.
 

iv.  
agrees that the consultation will run from the 18 March 2026 to the
01 April 2026.
 

v.    
agrees that a public notice (as set out in Appendix C) will be
placed in the Bracknell News on the 18 March 2026.

 

vi.  
agrees that the consultation will be promoted on the Public
Protection Partnership’s website and a note will be displayed
at the Time Square Offices on the 18 March 2026.

 

vii. 
agrees that a copy of the
notice should be emailed individually to all Bracknell licensed
Hackney Carriage Proprietors for their comments.
 

viii.notes that the Licensing and Safety Committee will, at the June
2026 meeting, be informed about the outcome of the consultation and
any ensuing decisions taken by the Cabinet.
 

ix.  
notes that
if objections are received and not withdrawn the Cabinet at its
meeting on the 28 April 2026 will consider the business case
alongside any objections and determine whether the proposed varied
table of fares, with or without modification, will come into
operation and the revised implementation date.
 

x.    
notes that
if no objections are received or if they are withdrawn the revised
table of fares will come into effect on the 02 April 2026 or the
day after the withdrawal of the last objection.

Reasons for the decision

i.     
Local authorities have a statutory power to set the maximum fares
that licensedhackney carriages (taxis)
can charge for a journey. Under section 65  of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions)
Act 1976, local authorities have the power to “…fix
the rates or fares within the district as well for time as
distance, and all other charges in connection with the hire of a
vehicle or with the arrangements for the hire of a vehicle, to be
paid in respect of the hire of hackney carriages by means of a
table (hereafter in this section referred to as a “table of
fares”) made or varied in accordance with the provisions of
this section.”
 

ii.    
The taxi trade has submitted a business case asking for two changes
to the existing fare chart. The first change seeks to increase the
existing fouling charges from £50 (internal fouling) and
£10 (external fouling) to £80 (internal fouling) and
£25 (external fouling). The trade has stated that these
charges are proposed to reflect that valeting and car wash costs
have increased over the years.
 

iii.   
The second change is a presentational change in relation to
journeys when vehicles are carrying five or more passengers. The
current fare chart states “When this vehicle is carrying more
than 4 passengers, a surcharge of 50% will be applied to the fare
shown on the meter at the end of the journey. This will however
not be shown on the taximeter.” The trade have reported
that this causes confusion for passengers and that they would
prefer to show the information as stated on Appendix A and for the
fares to be programmed into the meters.

Alternative options considered

Not to increase the fouling charges or the
presentation of the fare chart.