|
With so much recent publicity concerning licensed
taxi drivers allegedly being reported for touting, Call
Sign was invited for our second visit to join the
Transport Operational Command Unit’s (TOCU) anti-tout squad
to see for ourselves what was happening on the streets. Our reporter was given unrestricted access to observe how the anti-touting teams operate and we also saw how PH cars - proudly displaying their stickers - blatantly flout the law by stopping of their own accord to pick up would-be passengers standing by the roadside. On the Friday evening we went out, several teams of dedicated police officers were deployed at various ‘hot-spots’ where touting is rife and simply stood at the kerbside as if they were looking for transportation to another destination. It didn’t take long before an elderly red Nissan car eased into the kerb alongside the officers and wound down his nearside window to speak to the plain-clothed police. This was a clear-cut case of touting and the driver - wearing some form of I.D. tag around his neck - was instantly arrested and driven off to the custody suite of Charing Cross police station! He displayed a look of utter surprise! Our reporter noted that this particular car did not have any PH stickers displayed, so we await the outcome of the individuals’ court appearance from Sgt. Dave Hillson, who has said he will update Call Sign in due course. During the evening, we observed numerous cars - the majority of them with PH stickers - stop for the ‘pretend punters’, only then to be summarily arrested for touting and whisked off to Charing Cross nick. Our reporter specifically looked to see whether the police showed any indication of provocation or intent, showing out with arm or hand gestures for example, but they simply stood at the kerbside, seemingly looking for a cab, so if a car or for that matter a taxi stopped for them and made himself available, he / she is touting - end of story! And yes, in fact our reporter did see a taxi in the distance - his ‘for hire’ light out - stop for a couple that got into the cab. The ‘hire sign’ flickered on momentarily as the meter was engaged – so it wasn’t a radio job - and he drove off into the night. Whether it was a booked job is unclear, but the cab did not display radio circuit logos, so it is possible that he too was playing ‘the high game’. Fortunately for him, the Cab Enforcement team showed little interest in that episode. To pretend that it’s illegal for PH but ok for us would be wrong. With all the anti-tout teams now fully occupied having arrested a number of car touts, Sgt. Hillson suggested our reporter join another team, also from TOCU, touring the streets looking for cars |
Exclusive! CALL SIGN GOES ON PATROL WITH THE TOUT SQUAD
|
|
| in
breach of Public Hire offences – perhaps with dodgy or tampered
stickers - and something Call Sign is continually
being sent photographic images of by our drivers. At no time
were taxis or taxi drivers mentioned as a target. So Call Sign joined Sgt. Paul and PC Keith in their van looking for suspicious cars and it wasn’t very long before we found one… We were cruising through Soho and PC Keith decided he didn’t like the look of a little Mercedes Benz in front of us. "Can’t put my finger on why," he said when Call Sign asked, "call it a Coppers Nose!" The two officers got out to chat with the driver who by now was standing at the kerbside, his passengers remaining seated in the back of his car. PC Keith spoke to the driver, while Sgt. Paul had a few words with the passengers. The story was that the driver was a friend of the passengers and he was giving them a lift home after a night out. All seemed straightforward enough until Keith decided to run a check on the driver. The police van’s radio crackled with a perfect description of the driver, who was standing casually by the side of the car. "Warrant out for arrest by the Court for non-payment of fines," the lady dispatcher croaked. Before our reporter had blinked in amazement, the driver found himself handcuffed and placed under arrest. Sgt. Paul re-interviewed the passengers sitting in the car, who stuck to their original story, but eventually realised they would have to find alternative transport home as the car driver was ushered into the police van. Under caution, the driver admitted he had picked up the people from a club and had agreed to take them home for money. With our prisoner sitting comfortably in the back of the police van, we headed back to CX police station. En route, we spied a car with PH stickers stopped at the kerbside talking to a couple of young girls. It was obvious he was chatting to get them into the car and Sgt. Paul, pulling his van alongside |
the
car, offered the driver some good advice. "We know what you’re up to, so get lost quick before you get a free bed for the night in police cells," he told the driver firmly who then took off like a scalded cat, leaving the two teenagers standing bewildered on the pavement. Sgt. Paul then spoke to the two girls: "Never enter a car you don’t know," he advised the girls in a sort of fatherly tone, "always get a proper taxi to take you home safely or catch the night bus." They nodded. Hopefully they will accept his advice – not to give us more work, but for their own safety. The two officers told our reporter how they often stop unlicensed or unsafe vehicles and will flag down a passing taxi to take the otherwise stranded car passengers to their destination. "Our main concern is for the safety of the public and we usually get co-operation from the taxi drivers when we explain the situation and ask them to take punters onto their destination," PC Keith added. To sum up an eventful night with the anti-tout squad, numerous car drivers were arrested for illegal touting. More worrying was that many of those cars had PCO PH stickers on their windows, suggesting an air of legality to mislead the public. God only knows what will happen if PH is allowed to use bus lanes – everyone will get one! Call Sign would be happy to publish a PCO / TfL response. One driver was re-apprehended after a court warrant had been issued for his arrest, but the tout squad stopped no taxis, nor did any taxi drivers stop beside them, which would indeed have been touting - not to mention embarrassing for us if they had not had their For Hire on! Our view? The tout squad have a never-ending job out there, which they do well. Are they after licensed taxis? Not particularly, but if you flout the law under their nose, it’s their job to pull you up, but percentage-wise, PH hugely outnumber us when it comes to being nicked. © Call Sign Magazine MM7 |
|
 |
Powered by NetXPosure |
| Copyright 1997-2007 Dial-A-Cab Ltd, All rights reserved. |