Cab giant Uber wins permission to move into Hartlepool despite opposition
Plans to allow taxi provider Uber to operate from a new base in Hartlepool have been approved.
An application was submitted to Hartlepool Borough Council in October by Uber Britannia Limited, known more commonly as Uber, for a five-year private hire operator’s licence.
The service, which sees users able to request taxi rides from drivers using a smartphone app, is to operate from Hartlepool Enterprise Centre, in Brougham Terrace.
The proposals went before the latest meeting of the council’s regulatory services committee and were approved by councillors with standard conditions in place.
Matthew Freckleton, head of cities for Uber UK, outlined how all drivers would own their own vehicles and be licensed to run a taxi service.
He added Uber, which has more than 80 operator licences across the UK, has its “own pricing technology and fare card” which uses “dynamic pricing”, with the estimated journey cost shown to customers prior to requesting a vehicle.
He continued: “I would describe it as the lowest cost available ride, so that is the best price that we can guarantee you a trip, so a reliable driver is going to pick you up.”
Two taxi drivers spoke at the meeting to raise concerns over the application, with one, Andrew Sutherland, voicing his worries around potential passenger safety.
Both Uber and council officers stressed enforcement action can be taken against drivers where offences are found to have occurred, with the information uploaded to a national database.
The application went before the panel as it falls outside the scope of the local authority’s current private hire and hackney carriage licensing policy.
This states such licences will only be granted to applicants who have an “operating base”, which is classed as a “building that it is used for the taking of private hire bookings”, within the local authority area.
A response from Uber noted “all private hire bookings will be managed through our app and records will be maintained within Uber’s computerised record system” and there will be no physical service in the Hartlepool office.
Kevin Pout, from 23 Taxis, told the meeting a public consultation should take place first around changes to the policy before any decision is made.
He added: “If you just grant a licence against your own policy, that doesn’t seem to be quite right to me.”