CRAVEN taxi drivers will have to have CCTV cameras fitted in their vehicles by the start of next year.

After deferring implementation of the policy for two years, Craven District Council’s licensing committee agreed it was needed for the safety of both passengers and drivers and should be brought in without further delay.

There will also be a hardship policy where drivers not able to afford the £450 to £630 cost of instalment will be able to apply for a longer period of time to get a camera fitted.

Drivers will also be contacted with details of available government loans after two councillors suggested it should be down to the council to loan hard pressed taxi owners the money to have the cameras fitted.

Councillor Peter Madeley, himself the owner of a taxi, said drivers welcomed the policy, but many needed help in buying the equipment, which the meeting heard had increased in cost over the last two years.

One taxi driver, who spoke at the meeting, added drivers were struggling even after the lifting of coronavirus restrictions because of the rise of internet shopping.

Cllr Madeley said no one wanted to see the policy being ‘kicked down the road’ again, but suggested it was better to loan struggling drivers the money rather than give them more time to get the cameras fitted.

A report to the committee summarised complaints made by both drivers and passengers since October last year. They included drivers making prohibited turns, blocking disabled bays, not complying with Covid regulations and swearing.

There were also claims of drivers refusing to pick up a passenger with a guide dog, of using a mobile phone and using ‘rude hand gestures’.

Committee chairman Simon Myers said it was ‘completely ridiculous’ to suggest the licensing committee bind the council to offering loans and that they were not ‘masters of finance’.

There were government loans available for businesses at much lower interest rates than the council could offer, he said.

Cllr Robert Heseltine, who moved adoption of the policy from January 1 next year, said it would give drivers almost three months to get cameras fitted.

Cllr Chris Moorby said he believed prevention was better than the cure, and that cameras were needed to protect both driver and passenger.

“We have been very fair during the situation with Covid, but now is the time to move forward. There is CCTV on buses and trains and we need to have it in taxis.”

Drivers who apply for hardship exemption will be assessed by the licensing manager, the chairman and deputy chairman of the licensing committee and the council solicitor.

New taxi vehicles have been required to have cameras installed since the start of 2021 and so far, 15 have had them fitted.