Taxis and private hire vehicles (PHVs, often referred to as minicabs) are an important mode of local transport, particularly at times when local buses or trains run infrequently (or have stopped for the night) and in areas poorly served by other public transport. Taxis are particularly important to people without access to cars, including young and older people, people in low income households, and people with mobility difficulties. There are about 20 thousand licensed 'black cabs' in London, an increase of about 40 percent since 1985. In the rest of England and Wales, the number of licensed taxis has doubled over this period to over 42 thousand. The average number of trips by taxi and private hire vehicle (PHV) made in the late 1990s was three times as high as in the mid-1970s. The average taxi trip is 3.7 miles long, compared with 6.2 miles for PHV trips. Women use taxis and PHVs more than men, and use is greatest among 16-20 year olds. Taxis are used much more extensively by people without access to cars. On average, people living in households without a car made more than three times as many taxi trips as those in households with a car. About half of all taxi trips are made to leisure destinations, and only one in five for the 'essential' purposes of work and education. Shopping is the most common trip purpose for people in low income households. More taxi trips are made on Saturdays than other days, and taxis are used most heavily between 11pm and midnight on Friday and Saturday nights. (A) For the covering abstract see ITRD E108997.
Abstract