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Hastings taxis could get CCTV as racist abuse soars


Taxis are set to be fitted with cameras as standard with the boss of one leading firm describing racist abuse to drivers as “out of control”.

Chris Vale, who manages 24/7 Taxis, spoke out after a customer who admitted racially abusing one of his drivers avoided prison.

The victim, 23-year-old Aras Cassidy, who is Kurdish, said foreign drivers are subjected to racist comments twice a day.

Brian Styles, 49, of Maple Heights, pleaded guilty to racially aggravated harassment and failing to provide a specimen, and he was found guilty of taking a vehicle without consent. He was fined £900, banned from driving for a year and ordered to pay £300 costs.

Styles was arrested after driver Mr Cassidy went to collect him from The Rising Sun pub in Battle Road in October.

“I tried to be friendly and have a chat with him but he just started saying things like, ‘Why don’t you go back to your own country?’

“I ignored him but he kept swearing so I got out of the car. He jumped in the front seat and removed the handbrake.

“I was shocked but we get comments like that twice a day and you just learn to live with it. Most people we pick up are really nice but you get some who are aggressive.

“I sometimes ask myself: ‘What am I doing in this country?’ but all my best friends are English and I have been here for 12 years.”
Mr Vale, 43, was stunned by the sentence.

“They should have put him inside. The racism from some people is getting out of control. I have lived all over the UK and grew up when the National Front were at large but I have never known anything like this.”

Chief Inspector Mark Ling said: “We take a positive stance against hate crime of all types. Nobody should live or work with the fear and anxiety that this type of crime can cause. I would urge people who are victimised or abused in this way to report it. If nobody knows about the it then little can be done to stop it happening again.”

Mr Vale’s company has 70 cars, making it the biggest fleet in the town.

About one third of his drivers are foreign nationals and they all report the same kinds of problems.

“Since 2005 issues with racism and drugs and people doing runners have become much worse,” said Mr Vale.”I have people get in the car talking openly about buying drugs,” added Mr Cassidy.

Now Mr Vale is supporting a council scheme, funded by the Safer Hastings Partnership and overseen by the licensing team, to put CCTV cameras into taxis across the town.

A council spokesman said: “It’s likely to take place over several phases but we are confident that this is a positive move, increasing safety for both driver and passenger. Any abuse towards drivers, whether verbal or physical, is completely unacceptable and these cameras will go a long way in providing an extra element of protection.”

But Reg Torab, 49, who runs New Carmiles sounded a note of caution.

“I do not think cameras should be compulsory,” he said. “They do help when there are incidents but we keep very records of every job and there are issues about customers’ privacy as well.”

source: http://www.hastingsobserver.co.uk/

I have come to the conclusion with CCTV that the only attraction for councils in this is to be a spy on the driver in the cab. How many bilkers, abusers etc have ever been admonished resultant to CCTV evidence? The street cameras never seem to be working when Taxis are under attack and to find a police station open or Council LO available to download and act on images captured in the taxi is near impossible at the times these events kick off...red tape and data protection make the whole thing easily unworkable...Unless its against the driver! The only benefit to us is the visible cameras keeping the peace in the cab...a lot to be said for the dummy cameras that do not drain drivers pockets and giving hard evidence if the LO wants to turn funny in one of their period spin modes where black can seem white at kangaroo committee hearings.

You buy CCTV out of your own pocket, what then are the powers of LO to seize the disk and have a right good laugh seeing our more personal moments taking the family out and being henpecked by HMV...leaving you unprotected for the duration while they piss around with £90 worth of hard drive...if its damaged what hope is there to have it replaced judging by the way they peel oranges in pockets...I wonder how far their rights extend in this area; Is there any national guidance for this? The steamroller encouragement "CCTV" may sting us in our own backsides and have the Turkeys voting for Christmas yet again!

I have long expressed my opinion that CCTV for cabs is a great idea and should be fully supported.

Howver, I also supportthe opinion that it should be down to the driver to make the decision as to whether a system should be installed or not. It should be a plain and simple driver choice.

Of course this is not suppoerted by those who will profit on yet another expensive burden on th trade.

Yes Andy, CCTV in Cabs is a great idea and should be supported...but only when we can be sure drivers are going to get full support from the police and LO, that tapes and disks are not only scrutinised after customer complaint and the usual expected comments "its a civil matter" not trundled out with the same constancy by regulators. As drivers we deserve far better support than what we have at the moment...drivers just do not bother reporting anymore in anticipation of brick walls, or maybe this is just a Canterbury thingy?

No its a national thing.... Someone somewhere is making a loy of money from the CCTV network.. Any system that can be opened by the driver/company is not acceptable to most LAs, it must be only opened by the police ( to confirm the evidence has not been tampered with )..

There are so few CCTV setups here that our LO and police have not gotten round to turning the usual thumbscrews. Not likely to be either all the while drivers are aware of the true LO motives behind it all. Lazy gits cannot even enforce properly...unless they are targeting someone, normally a Hack...the breakdown in trust is begining to tell. I would see no problem in just the police downloading images...but where are they to be found at 2.30am when you need to identify offenders quickly...plod are not exactly renowned for pulling out fingers for the taxi trade are they?

Female cab driver has a £700 system installed in her cab, has given the police the hard drive 3 times and as yet the police have still not convicted anyone... But she does feel a little bit safer with it installed and she says she gets a lot less hassle as well...

Mind you it is an in your face system...

Most CCTV footage is recorded in software that could not be tampered without detection (MYS?)....and most times when offenders are given viewing they come clean if its obvious what they have done. If court view is required it must be on the original storage meduim...at least thats my understanding at the moment...which may or may not be correct....? So why the big thing that Drivers cannot access the same as most premises are allowed...is it because we are all considered vagabonds and likely to hide guilt or be peeking at ladies knickers? Makes my blood boil the way these unelected officials use us to spray their territory as dominant alphas.

Your not over keen on the officialdom are you???

Officialdoms OK Nigel, it makes the world go round and better to work with than against....provided there is impartiality, respect and most important...Trust.

We used to have that here before the Button gospel and the new incubents of LO. (Or maybe I was taken in by the spin too?)

When every turn now displays intent against the interest of the Taxi trade...albeit with spin that has drivers thinking its for their own good...then I get angry.

The only honest comment I can recall was when they told us "their only remit was for the safety of the travelling public...welfare of the drivers business does not come anywhere near the equation". This comment is also almost fair enough...but when things start to take a sinister turn toward the total annihilation of the Taxi trade as we know it. you know...that which puts the crumbs on our tables; then I just get plain mad...

Espesially when all heads around are stuck firmly in the sand chasing the next fare or putting in complaints about other drivers to gain brownies from the LO. Or as Mr Durrell GMB AKA "Sussex man" used to say "Not long now"

Turkeys voting for Christmas we really are our own worst enemies sometimes!

Like I said, forget any support for the driver...and under these conditions you are just as safe with a £5 dummy camera thats "in your face"...also safe from the LO spy in the cab eyes too.

Only encrypted CCTV is acceptible as evidence in court in the Darlington area... The lass who has the £700 kit fitted in her cab has to phone the supplier up in front of a copper who she then hands over a downloaded copy of the incident too... If the lass doesnt have a copper by her side the evidence is considered as having been tampered with by her....
What a carry on but at least she is not having to hand over her hard drive to the police to lose on the way to the evidence lock up.....

By the way she has 2 cases pending one having been resolved... She has been paid out on one case pc plod actually acted on as the person concerned was well known to the police...