BRIGHTON LINE COMMUTERS

BRIGHTON LINE COMMUTERS in conjunction with SOUTHERN Taxi Meeting Thameslink Undercroft Conference Room 24.09.14 Minutes Chair Shelley Atlas () Chairlady, Brighton Line Commuters Attendees Beth Holbrook () Station Manager, Brighton Andy Byfield () Customer Experience Manager Brighton, Taxi Liaison Andrew Cheesman () City Cabs Tony Turner (TT) Radio Cabs Tony Breslin (TB) Radio Cabs John Streeter (JS) Streamline Steve Ovett (SO) GMB Union John Oram (JO) Unite Union Mark Durell (MD) Private Hire Association Martin Seymour (MS) Hackney Carriage Officer, Brighton and Hove City Council Nick Stepney (NS) Senior Supervisor, Brighton and Hove Buses Brian Coomber (BC) Independent Apologies Chris White (CW) Revenue Development Manager Ibrahim Saidaroos (IS) Independent Introduction Who When opened the meeting. Thanked everyone for coming along and also thanked all on behalf of the BLC members and to Southern for arranging and holding the meeting with her. Description of new layout /walkway at front of station informed the group that there would be a new walkway/path at the front of the station along the wall for pedestrians to use for safe passage from Queens Road to the Travel Centre. Listed Building consent has been sought and approved and money and plans have gone through for this. is currently awaiting the

paperwork for this but it has been signed off in principle. will inform the group when this will be going ahead. It was raised that plans had been seen from Network Rail for the removal of the Port Cochere (canopy) at the front of the station. and AB said that they had heard of this and that they were aware that plans had been drawn up but that this was just in the planning/ideas phase at this stage and that there is nothing concrete and to watch this space. Over ranking and enforcement said that this was a real issue and that this poses a safety risk to customers and staff as people have been rushed at by taxi drivers in this area. All agreed that this was unacceptable behaviour. raised that Meteor were supposed to police this and that there had been a meeting held in the Hilton hotel roughly 6 years ago with Mark Epsom from Southern where it was believed to have been agreed that a marshall would be paid for due to the rise in licence costs at the time. then said that this had never been progressed. said that there had never been any enforcement since she had worked at the station which was almost two years. AB said that he will speak with Bill Weir from Meteor about this and asked if there were any minutes from said meeting. and others said that it was so long ago and they were not sure but they would look. AB and said that they would look for these also. said that there was room/agreement for 17 taxis only and that this was flouted every day. said that it is up to Southern to enforce this as it is private land and that a barrier system and marshalling had been discussed for years but nothing had been done. JO raised that the only way that there would ever be any resolution to this issue was by exercising proper enforcement of the area, either by using a barrier or by using a marshall. There has been meeting after meeting about enforcement and policing, CCTV, warnings etc. is the only way forward. This was agreed by all. said that at another location he knew of there was a barrier that money was put into which was used as a form of enforcement and that this would be a revenue stream for Southern as well. The point about the station rank being private land was reinforced by several parties. said that it appears that there is agreement that all want something done and that we all need to work together to this common goal until we find a permanent solution. said that it cost 470 per year for the permit. JO said that there are other ranks around the city that can be used that are just as profitable such as St. Peter s and East Street if the station is full. BC said that the private hire companies are a nuisance and should behave themselves whilst on the station. AB said that the last thing we want to do is remove someone s licence and understands that people s livelihoods depend on the station rank but we will remove licences if necessary. It was raised that there are problems with trying to drop off at the station because drivers do not want to lose their place in the queue. AB said that moving forward there will be a drop off point in Queens Road. He said AB 2 weeks

it would be better to have a gate with one in and one out. said that he was concerned with this and suggested that and AB would support continued drop offs at the station itself. and AB said that this was ideal but would have to look at plans moving forward as it may not be possible. said that there were 1100 cars, 525 private hire and only two spaces on Queens Road. He went on to raise points concerning accessible spaces and that there had been five refusals recently by drivers to take passengers with wheelchairs. There had been a complaint to the council. MS said that the complainant did not wish to take this any further. AB said that we are aware that there is an oversubscription and that, unfortunately, due to CW not being present we could not comment further on this. There was then a discussion on changes of licences and control over licences and BC raised that this was changed two years ago. AB to elaborate. TT asked for the agenda to be kept to as some of the items being raised appeared on the agenda later on. Weight limit explanation and enforcement explained that we all need to help with this and that it would be checked in terms of the walkway that is going on to the site as discussed earlier. It was raised that the cost of the licences was raised to pay for the enforcement which would help with this. This was for SIA accreditation. and AB said once more that they would try to get hold of the minutes form the Mark Epsom meeting held at The Hilton. Emergency Access AB reinforced that the emergency lane must be kept clear at all times and that this was everyone s responsibility. mentioned an incident where the taxi drivers refused to move when someone had a cardiac arrest on the station and the ambulance had to park in Queens Road which is unacceptable. said that all drivers have signed terms and conditions and they should be adhering to what they have signed up to. All agreed and the expectation moving forward is that this will be adhered to. Drivers stopping on cross hatching AB mentioned that this must stop. BC said sometimes it was impossible not to stop on there due to deliveries but all said that they would try to keep it clear to the best of their ability. AB said that we have more and more deliveries and that we all have to be mindful of this whilst keeping the cross hatching clear. Drivers dropping rubbish and being rude to cleaners To take to CW AB/ AB ALL AB NOW raised that this must stop and it s unacceptable to be rude to the cleaners who are only doing their jobs. and BC raised that clear plastic bags used to be allowed and AB said that this is a category A station and that this is not allowed. and AB said that the bins outside the station must be used. JS asked if we could put up signs and said yes. 1

It was also discussed that smoking is unacceptable under the canopy and against the law and all drivers who smoke must do so outside the station gates. week Drivers refusing to take passengers short jobs and disabled passengers raised this following a discussion with prior to the meeting. This really needs to be rectified as it is against the law to discriminate and is bad customer service to refuse short jobs. If this is something that we at the station are witnessing then we need to take numbers and report this to MS. It is both a licensing issue and is covered by the Equality Act. There are rules that all need to follow but a lot of people don t follow the rules. A suggestion was made that a sign was made up as to what the cab driver can and can t do. Request for an arrivals board instead of bus information by the rank explained that there was no money to do this. BC said that customers have freedom of choice and can get in anyone s cab even though there is a queue. BC also said that the drivers don t know when the trains are coming in. AB said that it s not Southern s responsibility to provide that information for the taxi drivers alone and that there was an arrivals board going in on the main concourse display. Drivers using bus bays as drop off point and as a feeder rank NS NS said that they have a mobile supervisor for the bus rank on Friday and Saturday nights. He does understand that the cars have to go somewhere and he has been asked to mention it. He would like a list to say what can and can t be done. pointed out that this does not help the commuters and people still need to get home and this hinders their progress. Taxis driving on pavement outside Railway Bell The police need to enforce this. All agreed that having a bus stop outside The Railway Bell was a bad idea. The one way system is being restored which will help. There was a residents and business association meeting during which they were informed that the taxi rank would be closed in January 2015 for 3/4 months. said that it was not unreasonable for passengers to be dropped off at the station. Hackneys not allowing private hire to drop off BC said that the drop off point for them is round the back. All but BC were of an agreement that licence holders and private hire should be able to drop off at the front because this helps passengers who use both. We need to be respectful of one another. There was a suggestion that it might help if a suggestion was made by Southern to encourage passengers to ask to be dropped around the back.

JS said that this would encourage easier access. There aren t enough trolleys at the station for rear drop off as people have too many bags and cases. Drivers blocking way in and out impact on bus services for passengers We had previously discussed this so did not elaborate here. Display of out of town prices said that we don t want passengers to be ripped off. There was an example given of a girl who was charged 40 to go to the Hilton on the sea front and 7 to come back. All have a licence. It is a metered rate within the boundary. Streamline said that their out of town work is booked and a price is quoted and agreed. The station is an important link. and JS said that on the Meteor paperwork that they sign there is a box they can tick to take part in a scheme called Fair Fares. JS said that the Fair Fares prices are agreed by all the companies. BC said that he did not tick the box and does not agree with it. All asked for a poster. said that she could not display a poster unless everyone agreed on the same fares. BC said that not everyone signs up to Fair Fares. Those who do sign up have a sticker with Fair Fares on their cars. BC was reassured that this was worked out on metered fare. BC to ask the independents what they think. AB and asked to see the form from Meteor. said she would be happy to put a poster for passengers to look out for the Fair Fares logo. JS said that he would send this to. Someone suggested a Mystery Shopper scheme but it was said that this only applies to metered work. Refusal of station passes for disabled taxis BC JS mentioned a ruling concerning changing cars which means that we are cutting out certain cars including those that have disabled access. AB said that there is red tape surrounding this and that we do have an awareness of customers needs. BC said that that this was put in place over two years ago. AB to clarify for the minutes. AB said this was a loophole that the decision makers needed to clarify. AB 2 weeks Cost of station passes Has been discussed. Improved signage when front of station closed Will be closed for 3/4 months in January 2015.

Signage is needed to get people used to the fact that it will be closed and where they need to go. Can this be in other languages as well? What about ranking at the front? BC said that Hackneys have the right to park up on the roads outside. said that this is MS s jurisdiction. AB said that we can also improve the signage when the station is closed for weekday football matches, Pride and Lewes bonfire as well as for any other events the BTP ask us to close it. JS said that Meteor need to be brought to book for things like this. General feeling that Meteor is taking money under false pretences. Would all be happier if it was managed by Southern? Chris White needs to answer this. AB and will take to him. Feeling that a meeting with Meteor was needed. Resiting of taxi rank to rear of station /AB AB/ for CW MD MD said that the taxi rank has been at the front of the station for 40 years plus and the situation has got worse over the years. Needs to be round the back in his opinion. The biggest problem is idiots outside the station who block everyone else in which stops the flow and stops the whole city moving. If Southern see this they should make a note of the plate numbers of those cars who are blocking access to the station and tell them that if they do it again then their permits will not be reissued. BC asked what would happen if there were extra drivers on the same licence. Why should he be penalized if one of them disobeys the rules? A heavy hand is needed in terms of enforcement. AB said that we don t want to take licences unless we have to. AOB ALL 1. There are a lot of Independent taxis and drivers that service the station. Why was there no representation at the meeting from any ethnic drivers AB: As far as I was concerned all the drivers or their representatives were represented at this meeting today and it made no difference as to what ethnic background drivers were from the taxi guidelines must be adhered too. 2. Is the Pick up / Drop off area at the front for licensed taxis only. AB: No, we are a private rank and all our arriving customers can be dropped at the front 3. When we close the taxi rank can there be better signage directing passengers to the back of the station. AB: Yes, I will try to improve the directional posters for when the rank is closed. 4. When the taxi rank is closed and the taxis are picking up/dropping off at the rear can the 21 bus be rerouted so it doesn t call at the back.

AB: No 5. Can a train arrival screen be installed so the taxi drivers can see it? AB: Beth H already indicated that is unlikely to happen to do budgetary constraints. 6. When the front of the station is closed can we ensure that taxis do not drop off / pick up from the front closed gates AB: Martin Seymour would be the person who would have to monitor this and would need to spot check. Southern wouldn t have any jurisdiction outside the front gates. 7. Can you confirm what times the taxi rank will be closed only evening football games? AB: 16.00 20.00hrs unless advised by BTP. 8. Could drivers be individually sent the station and licence rules (Code of Conduct) as they don t seem to know them, they are only given to the taxi licence holder, and not the other drivers he may rent his car out too. AB: This should be the responsibility of the holding licensee to inform any driver using his car to work from Brighton Station. 9. Could we ask Meteor to attend the next meeting so we can ask them about issuing of licences and forecourt monitoring as when Mo did it he did a good job? AB: Yes they will be invited to attend.