A trrl study undertaken in 1980 showed taxis and hire cars to be an increasingly important element in public transport provision in recent years. In late spring 1985 trrl repeated the survey of all district councils in england and wales (the regulating authorities for taxis and hire cars outside london), and also conducted a survey of scottish districts. Comparisons were made with the situation in the capital using data supplied by the public carriage office. The study was undertaken to update the previous work, and to provide a basis for the assessment of the effects on the taxi and hire car industry of the transport act 1985. The results of the work are given in the report and clearly indicate that the importance of taxis and hire cars in providing public transport is continuing to increase. Since 1980 their number have increased while the number of buses has remained broadly unchanged. However in recent years taxi fares, in real terms, have been tending to rise more quickly than bus fares. (Author/publisher)
Abstract