FURIOUS taxi drivers in Grimsby have claimed a victory after staging a noisy 5mph "go-slow" protest against changes which they say are preventing them from earning a living.
Drivers are angry about North East Lincolnshire Council's decision to close their rank on Victoria Street West and Town Hall Street as part of a long-term revamp of the town centre.
They claim the planned new ranks on Victoria Street South are too far from the town centre and yesterday morning, about 10 drivers launched the slow moving protest near the town hall beeping their horns before more drivers joined in, eventually bringing traffic to a standstill.
The protest came to a head when a handful of the drivers were invited into the council offices for a hastily arranged meeting, which saw the council agree to temporarily restore Town Hall Street as a taxi rank and to erect signs to point the public towards pick-up points.
Susan Barss, a taxi driver of over 30 years, said it was "bad enough trying to making a living as it is".
Fellow driver Colin Wilson claimed the driver at the front of the rank on Town Hall Street yesterday had been sat there for two hours without a fare.
"Nobody is going to be able to earn money and I can see the town centre grinding to a halt," he said.
"The taxi ranks are constantly full and nobody can move.
"It's going to have a drastic effect on us drivers, even if we do get fares the roadworks make it so difficult to get in and out of town.
"It's a total waste of money what is happening here."
One driver claimed the council had taken away some 20 taxi spaces in recent weeks. Councillor Andrew De Freitas (Lib – Park Ward), who watched some of the protest from the Town Hall steps, said he had sympathy for the drivers.
"The issue really needs to be dealt with immediately," he said.
"You can't have these people struggling to make a living.
"I have a lot of sympathy for these guys."
Marcus Asquith, head of highways at NELC, said: "The relocation of taxi ranks is part of the major Local Sustainable Transport Fund (LSTF) developments taking place across Grimsby town centre.
"From the start of this project we have worked closely with all stakeholders to communicate the changes and wherever possible address the concerns they raise.
"The problems which led to today's protest by the taxi drivers occurred as a new phase of the LSTF project started. Following a meeting on site, the problems have now been addressed and we have made a commitment to work closely with them to continue to keep them informed of our intentions.
"As with any project of this size, there are bound to be times of change and inconvenience and we will try to minimise disruption wherever we can.
"We will continue to work with the taxi drivers and businesses in the town centre to keep them informed of progress. And I would like to thank them, and the public, for their patience during these essential improvement works."
Mrs Barss said the drivers had agreed to set up a new organisation which will have regular meetings for drivers to discuss concerns.
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