Gatwick taxi drivers gathered outside the town hall on Wednesday evening (December 11) to demand that more be done to enforce the borough’s licensing laws.
The drivers can only operate within the borough – which includes the airport – once they are licensed by the council.
But they have reported that Uber cars registered in London were taking around half of the fares and ‘destroying the livlihoods’ of local drivers.
Don Barnes, who works for Airport Cars and serves as the Unite branch secretary, told the meeting that the problem had first been reported in 2020, with a complaint being lodged with the licensing team in March this year.
Yasmin Khan, cabinet member for public protection, said officers had been asked to carry out an investigation in June. She added: “I’ve received confirmation that the investigation has progressed. The officers have explored all avenues and they have reviewed the relevant evidence.
“Officers are now in the process of seeking legal advice which will determine the next steps.”
While she said updates had been shared with Unite, Mr Barnes said this had not happened.
The drivers conducted themselves well during the meeting – even though their mood may not have been helped by one councillor showing up to the town hall in an Uber.
One Langley Green driver described the situation at the airport as ‘the wild west’, accused Uber drivers of ‘stealing’ customers and questioned the levels of health and safety being observed.
Cllr Khan said she would raise the matter with officers and come back to them.
To applause from his colleagues, the driver said: “We’re all being let down – massively let down.”
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