Safer travel in Taxis
Following a survey that gathered feeback on how safe residents of Swindon feel out and about, there was a high number of residents saying that they would not use taxis to travel in.
Taxis licensed by Swindon Borough Council have enforced requirements to support you and drivers
- Drivers undergo a criminal conviction check (DBS check)
- Drivers undergo safeguarding training and must complete a communication and knowledge test as part of the application process,
- Drivers must remain fit and proper to hold a license at all times
Private hire and Hackney carriage license plates
Private Hire
Hackney Carriage
Private Hire Vehicles must be booked in advance. The details of the driver and the cars make, model and registration plate will be sent to you via text to the mobile number used to make the booking.
It is illegal for a Private Hire vehicle to take a journey which has not been pre-booked or to accept a fare by being hailed.
Hackney Carriages can pick up from taxi ranks and can be flagged down in the street. You will not recieve details of the driver and the cars make, model or registration number.
Advice for taxi passengers
Every complaint about licensed drivers, vehicles and operators are taken very seriously and a thorough investigation will be carried out in each case. All complaints should be made in writing. You should include as much detail as possible (who, what, when, where, why) and include the driver’s badge number and/or vehicle plate number or registration number.
Swindon Borough Council are especially interested in knowing about unlicensed drivers working in the borough, and are working with the local police to stop this.
For more information and guidance on how to make a complaint pleave visit – Advice for taxi passengers | Swindon Borough Council
News
'Sian's Law' for cab driver safety checks to start after murder of Sian O'Callaghan
The family of murdered taxi passenger Sian O’Callaghan has won a change in the law to improve driver safety checks.
Sian O’Callaghan was killed by Swindon taxi driver Christopher Halliwell in March 2011. He later confessed to murdering Becky Godden-Edwards in 2003.
From April 28th , if a taxi or private hire driver loses their licence following a claim of sexual harassment, that information will be shared nationally among all licensing authorities.
If the driver applies elsewhere, the new authority will be able to see the reasons why they lost their licence.
‘It’s an incredibly vulnerable position to be in,’ said Elaine Pickford, Sian’s mother.”To be on your own, in a vehicle where the driver can lock you in, effectively take you wherever they want to take you, which is what happened to Sian. The industry should be as regulated as possible.”
Sian was on a night out in Swindon in March 2011, when she left a nightclub and started the short walk home.
She was picked up by taxi driver Christopher Halliwell and killed soon afterwards.
When he was arrested days later, Halliwell confessed to the 2003 murder of Becky Godden-Edwards. – ITV