During the middle of the day, St Sampson is supposedly in the middle of a foot street area. Can't we have some space free of the wretched vehicles?

Isn't there one at stonebow just round the corner. If the disabled people have been getting round town, surely the small distance to stonebow won't be much of a problem.

Isn't there also one opposite the Dean Court Hotel in Duncombe Place? How many do we need?

All I have read it the Press just lately is about taxi/private hire drivers. I do know the difference between the conditions of hire between hackney and private hire. As a compromise can a rank on St Sampsons be opened on certain hours when demand is greatest i.e. when the drinkers start to go home. To allow access through the day in a pedestrianised area is an accident waiting to happen. And it will. I suspect daytime use will be abused. I totally agree with an earlier comment on wheelchair users. If they have been round York centre then one of the ranks already in use are never far away. I do feel some sympathy with the Hackney drivers having to buy vehicles that are black and white. The Taxi License Office have long been a law unto themselves and think they can dictate every aspect of licensing both Hackney and Private Hire Vehicles. Some years ago they tried to "bring in" all cars had to be less than 5 years old. That would have taken the great majority of vehicles off the road and added to unemployment figures. They were beaten hands down. The mechanical and appearance test performed by City of York Council mechanics cost a fortune and is much much stricter. Maybe not a bad thing. Sorry I digress. Yes St Sampsons rank should be opened at restricted times. Some of the best fights I ever saw in my younger years happened there.

redjanet wrote:
All I have read it the Press just lately is about taxi/private hire drivers. I do know the difference between the conditions of hire between hackney and private hire. As a compromise can a rank on St Sampsons be opened on certain hours when demand is greatest i.e. when the drinkers start to go home. To allow access through the day in a pedestrianised area is an accident waiting to happen. And it will. I suspect daytime use will be abused. I totally agree with an earlier comment on wheelchair users. If they have been round York centre then one of the ranks already in use are never far away. I do feel some sympathy with the Hackney drivers having to buy vehicles that are black and white. The Taxi License Office have long been a law unto themselves and think they can dictate every aspect of licensing both Hackney and Private Hire Vehicles. Some years ago they tried to "bring in" all cars had to be less than 5 years old. That would have taken the great majority of vehicles off the road and added to unemployment figures. They were beaten hands down. The mechanical and appearance test performed by City of York Council mechanics cost a fortune and is much much stricter. Maybe not a bad thing. Sorry I digress. Yes St Sampsons rank should be opened at restricted times. Some of the best fights I ever saw in my younger years happened there.

Steady Tiger !!!

OldFart wrote:
Isn't there also one opposite the Dean Court Hotel in Duncombe Place? How many do we need?

They have shut that on a night because of residents complaining.

lj wrote:

OldFart wrote: Isn't there also one opposite the Dean Court Hotel in Duncombe Place? How many do we need?

They have shut that on a night because of residents complaining.

The rank is still open till a certain time at night.It was a "gang of 3" that were the main complainers,a husband and wife team that set up a Duncombe Place Residents Association (they were the only 2 members!)to give themselves more clout and a certain Hotel manager not a million miles from the rank!
They claimed that drunks waiting for taxis at night caused husband and wife to be woken at all hours and certain hotel manager claimed his guests were being woken!
Closing their windows at night may have been a start but no they had to complain.
2 points of interest to this tale, 1,Hotel manager is forever in the paper after the New Year celebrations saying how wonderful the crowd were etc,etc.Surely the crowd made a noise, did his guests complain?
2,Husband and wife are the parents of a councillor?
Make your own mind up!

St Sampsons would be a night time only rank(opening after the Duncombe Place rank closes at 10:00pm)

OldFart wrote:
Isn't there also one opposite the Dean Court Hotel in Duncombe Place? How many do we need?

After the 1st of July this year there will be 173 taxis in York with ranking space for 84, which includes 12 at the station which 40% of the fleet are not allowed to use, so I think it is fair to say more space is needed

SMUDGE I will give your tiger. How did you know? PMSL

After the 1st of July this year there will be 173 taxis in York with ranking space for 84, which includes 12 at the station which 40% of the fleet are not allowed to use, so I think it is fair to say more space is needed

Only 173 taxis in York?
So that's why I have to wait 2 hours to get a taxi home at the weekend!
Probably only half of the 173 will be out at any given time plus most of those will be on the move carrying a fare so 84 rank spaces should be more than adequate.

LibDem wrote:
St Sampsons would be a night time only rank(opening after the Duncombe Place rank closes at 10:00pm)

Why don't the press print the whole story? This, and sayitasitis's explanation of Duncombe place now makes sense.

"redjanet" - it really would be helpful if you actually know what you are talking about before making such statements as "the taxi licensing office have long been a law unto themselves and think they can dictate every aspect of licensing both hackney and private hire vehciles". Incorrect comments like that are not very useful.