DRIVE NOW July 2022
Australia's only Magazine for the Commercial Passenger Transport Industry. News and views for Drivers, Owners and Operators of Taxi, Hire Car, Limousine, Ride Share, Booked Hire Vehicles, Rank and Hail Cars
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JULY <strong>2022</strong> - EDITION 55<br />
National<br />
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2 <strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong>
28<br />
14<br />
ESC’s draft<br />
decision for<br />
the maximum<br />
fares<br />
12<br />
18<br />
WHAT’S INSIDE<br />
FEATURES<br />
4 Unveiling Uber’s Ugliness.<br />
ACT<br />
8 ACT is racing ahead on clean transport.<br />
VICTORIA<br />
10 The Uber reckoning.<br />
12 Victoria’s Regulator has a new name.<br />
14<br />
Victorian Metro Taxi Rank & Hail fare<br />
review.<br />
OVERSEAS<br />
NSW 32 Uber’s secret lobbying in UK.<br />
16 Taxi registration is now online.<br />
SOUTH AUSTRALIA<br />
18<br />
20 Increase in Rank & Hail fares.<br />
21 Changes to the annual vehicle inspection.<br />
22<br />
33<br />
Passenger Transport Act 1994 is under<br />
review.<br />
WEST AUSTRALIA<br />
WAV modification grant expressions of<br />
interest now open.<br />
23 New cameras will catch you!<br />
Taxi and PHV drivers should do advanced<br />
driving test.<br />
www.drivenow-magazine.com.au<br />
<strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong><br />
3
UNVEILING<br />
UBER’S<br />
UGLINESS<br />
by Isobel Sparrow<br />
Mark MacGann has taken ownership of being the one to have leaked more than 124,000<br />
company files to the news agencies that are now painting Uber in a negative light. His<br />
initiative was to shed light on some of the fundamental wrongs his former employer<br />
committed in order to achieve the stance they now have in the transport industry.<br />
But who is Mark MacGann, and how was he involved in Uber? He is the ex-chief lobbyist<br />
for the company’s Europe offices, where his job description entailed winning over<br />
governments across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. But after quitting and reflecting<br />
on his past work, he said enough was enough!<br />
4 <strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong>
He left the company after<br />
claiming that Uber’s culture<br />
left him feeling “powerless to<br />
question or change its ways” and<br />
that if he contested, it would<br />
“put his family’s safety at risk”<br />
(The Guardian). Ultimately,<br />
leading to his decision to release<br />
the company’s secret files.<br />
The information he has given<br />
showcased, in intricate detail,<br />
how Uber defied laws, deceived<br />
police, exploited violence against<br />
drivers, and furtively lobbied<br />
countries to intrusively build<br />
itself. Uber has even admitted<br />
that it did these illegal acts,<br />
masking their intensity by calling<br />
them ‘mistakes’, but still asks for<br />
our forgiveness.<br />
One of the company’s<br />
ambassadors, Jill Hazelbaker,<br />
called the public to judge what<br />
Uber has achieved in the last five<br />
years and what it can achieve in<br />
the future - instead of focussing<br />
on how the company broke the<br />
law.<br />
Here in Australia, the underhanded<br />
way that Uber<br />
represented itself and the lies<br />
it told about the Australian taxi<br />
industry, was not lesser than<br />
what it did overseas. Actually it<br />
was probably worse.<br />
Further, more documents have<br />
been released which show that<br />
Uber sought to lobby Australian<br />
governments, specifically the<br />
industry regulator, in all States<br />
and Territories, to legalise its<br />
illegal operation in Victoria.<br />
Guardian Australia reports that<br />
www.drivenow-magazine.com.au<br />
the documents reveal claims<br />
made within the company that<br />
it had struck a secret deal with<br />
Victoria’s taxi authority.<br />
Emails show in early September<br />
2014 that, Uber’s policy head for<br />
the Asia Pacific, Jordan Condo,<br />
met with the chair of Victoria’s<br />
Taxi Services Commission,<br />
Graeme Samuel – a former chair<br />
of the Australian competition<br />
regulator described by Uber staff<br />
as “a staunch pro-competition<br />
advocate”.<br />
“An agreement was reached<br />
[with the TSC] that will create a<br />
process to accredit uberX drivers<br />
in the coming months with a plan<br />
to license ridesharing in early<br />
2015,” Uber staff said in a weekly<br />
email roundup of lobbying<br />
activity around the globe.<br />
However, Samuels told Guardian<br />
Australia: “There was no secret<br />
deal done with Uber or anyone<br />
else associated with rideshare<br />
services.”<br />
Guardian Australia also reports<br />
that Uber hired lobbyist John<br />
Richardson, a former senior<br />
Labor staffer, to petition the<br />
New South Wales government on<br />
its In addition, claims emerged<br />
it was working with the NSW<br />
Labor opposition to write a bill<br />
to legalise Uber in that State.<br />
According to a 10 <strong>July</strong> 2014<br />
email that Richardson sent to<br />
a colleague, the former adviser<br />
to the Hawke, Keating and Carr<br />
governments was to “provide<br />
public affairs support to Uber for<br />
the state of New South Wales<br />
<strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong><br />
and advice regarding the rest of<br />
Australia”.<br />
Uber knew and fully<br />
understood that it was<br />
launched illegally in<br />
Australia, so it leaned on<br />
governments to change<br />
the law.<br />
Yes, that’s right! Uber, for lack of<br />
other words, wanted a free pass<br />
when it came to the law!<br />
And yes, Uber had and still has<br />
the money, power and means<br />
to wiggle its way into many<br />
countries. But where were our<br />
laws or preventative measures to<br />
stop this?<br />
Where were those in our<br />
governments worldwide, in our<br />
countries, who could have and<br />
should have, done their jobs?<br />
Hiding under their desks, burying<br />
their heads in the sand, because<br />
a big loud entity was making a<br />
noise, disrupting the taxi and<br />
hire car industry, and they didn’t<br />
know what to do to curb them.<br />
Lawyer Michael Donnelly, who<br />
is leading the Maurice Blackburn<br />
class action against Uber, told<br />
Guardian Australia: “We allege<br />
that the commencement of Uber<br />
in Australia, operating illegally,<br />
had a devastating effect on<br />
the holders of taxi licences in<br />
Victoria, Queensland, New South<br />
Wales and Western Australia.”<br />
“Taxi licence holders were often<br />
from working-class backgrounds<br />
and had invested enormous sums<br />
of money to acquire taxi licences<br />
in a full and regulated market.<br />
5
The practices of Uber that we<br />
allege were illegal and caused<br />
the value of those licences to be<br />
severely impacted.”<br />
In a preliminary ruling in the<br />
case, Associate Justice Patricia<br />
Matthews found there were<br />
reasonable grounds to suggest<br />
that Uber was operating illegally<br />
in Melbourne from 23 January<br />
2014 and illegally in NSW,<br />
Queensland and WA from 14 April<br />
2014.<br />
She said that “the attempts<br />
made by the defendants [Uber]<br />
to avoid enforcement were<br />
an aspect of building scale,<br />
garnering public support, and<br />
growing the business (including<br />
by attracting and retaining UberX<br />
partners) until they had managed<br />
to flip a city”.<br />
“I accept the plaintiffs’<br />
submission that ridesharing<br />
offences were being committed<br />
systemically and on a large<br />
scale,” she said. “Even if at trial<br />
it is found otherwise, there are<br />
reasonable grounds for making<br />
this finding as part of this<br />
application.”<br />
The ruling has allowed taxi<br />
licence operators to use<br />
documents that Uber claimed<br />
didn’t have to be disclosed<br />
because they contained legal<br />
advice. But the judge found that<br />
some of the documents could<br />
be used in court because they<br />
contained advice on how to<br />
circumvent the law.<br />
Guardian Australia reports that<br />
“Uber’s ultimate success in<br />
Australia had a devastating effect<br />
on holders of taxi licences, and<br />
“presents a serious case study<br />
of regulatory failure”, according<br />
to Michael Donnelly, a principal<br />
lawyer at Maurice Blackburn.<br />
“In the future, state government<br />
regulators have to be far<br />
more resistant to large private<br />
companies entering the market<br />
and seeking to bully them in the<br />
way that Uber did.”<br />
But how can we do this when<br />
Uber has our leaders in their<br />
pockets. World-renowned<br />
leaders from places like France,<br />
USA, Britain, and Australia have<br />
all fallen to the money and power<br />
Uber can, and has provided.<br />
When will it stop?<br />
In conclusion, the ubiquity of<br />
Uber today was achieved on a<br />
premise of unfairness and, let<br />
us not forget, illegal actions.<br />
But unfortunately, government<br />
officials, industry regulators, and<br />
other authoritative bodies let us<br />
down when they masked Uber’s<br />
behaviour. Still, maybe with<br />
some urgency and fairy dust, we<br />
can work together to help those<br />
treated adversely.<br />
This is not to say that all hope is<br />
lost. It is not. We can still fight<br />
back - and we must!<br />
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6 <strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong>
I know what it is like to have<br />
your struggles, experiences<br />
and opinions ignored. That<br />
is why I came to Parliament<br />
to fight for our community,<br />
accountability, and fairness.<br />
ROD BARTON MP<br />
COMMUNITY <strong>DRIVE</strong>N, FAIRNESS FOCUSED<br />
www.drivenow-magazine.com.au<br />
Phone: (03) 9850 8600<br />
Email: rod.barton@parliament.vic.gov.au<br />
www.rodbarton.com.au<br />
<strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong><br />
RodBartonMP<br />
7
ACT News<br />
Racing ahead<br />
on clean<br />
transport<br />
FOSSIL FUEL PHASE-OUT<br />
The ACT government’s new zeroemission<br />
vehicles (ZEVs) strategy<br />
is a green light to carmakers and<br />
charging station companies to<br />
invest and will deliver Canberrans<br />
cleaner, cheaper roads, according<br />
to the Electric Vehicle Council.<br />
Behyad Jafari, chief executive of<br />
the EVC, said the ACT was leading<br />
the nation in a smooth, affordable<br />
transition to zero emissions.<br />
“The ACT Government is making<br />
the tough reform decisions now<br />
to ease an inevitable transition<br />
that’s only a decade away,” said<br />
Mr Jafari.<br />
“The Territory has shone a green<br />
light to car makers and charging<br />
manufacturers to come and invest<br />
now.”<br />
The new plan to phase out light<br />
internal combustion engines by<br />
2035 is informed by an ambitious<br />
target of 80-90% of new light<br />
vehicle sales being ZEVs by 2030.<br />
Andrew Stock, energy expert and<br />
Climate Councillor, said, “Australia<br />
has long been stuck in the slow<br />
lane when it comes to electric<br />
transport uptake, but the ACT’s<br />
game-changing policy to phase out<br />
new fossil fuel-powered cars is a<br />
welcome step forward.”<br />
“The ACT has set the bar for the<br />
rest of the country in reducing<br />
emissions from light passenger<br />
vehicle fleets while also delivering<br />
lower pollution levels and a<br />
reduced reliance on expensive<br />
petrol,” said Mr Stock.<br />
“By setting long-term targets<br />
in line with climate science,<br />
Canberrans will benefit from<br />
cheaper electric vehicles that cost<br />
8 <strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong>
a fraction to run,” Mr Jafari said.<br />
“Nearly a majority (42%) of the<br />
world’s car market have incoming<br />
bans on light combustion engines,<br />
while 16 car makers are phasing<br />
out petrol and diesel cars. Five<br />
years ago, both those numbers<br />
were zero. Can you imagine what<br />
the world will look like five years<br />
from now?”<br />
The strategy also includes financial<br />
incentives to remove the major<br />
barrier to people taking up electric<br />
vehicles.<br />
“We need the federal government<br />
to adopt fuel efficiency standards<br />
in line with those in Europe, the<br />
USA, and NZ. As a country coming<br />
from behind, we now need them<br />
urgently,” Mr Jafari said.<br />
“Taking action to price registration<br />
by emissions sets a clear<br />
expectation that lower and zero<br />
emissions vehicles should be<br />
better off compared to more<br />
heavily polluting vehicles under<br />
any future reform.<br />
While fuel efficiency standards—<br />
which limit the average amount<br />
of CO2 that a manufacturer’s fleet<br />
can emit—have been adopted<br />
across about 80 per cent of the<br />
global light car market, they are<br />
absent in Australia.<br />
“Australia’s poor track record<br />
on fuel emissions and electric<br />
transport have made us a dumping<br />
ground for some of the world’s<br />
highest emitting vehicles,” said Mr<br />
Stock.<br />
“All other Australian states and<br />
territories should step up and<br />
set similar targets to shift to<br />
an electric transport system<br />
that reduces emissions, and<br />
can be powered by affordable,<br />
homegrown renewable energy<br />
rather than imported oil,” added<br />
Mr Stock.<br />
www.drivenow-magazine.com.au<br />
<strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong><br />
9
VIC News<br />
The Uber<br />
RECKONING<br />
In recent days we have had a number<br />
of reports released by the Guardian<br />
newspaper about a trove of 124,000<br />
confidential documents leaked from Uber.<br />
These consisted of emails, iMessages and<br />
WhatsApp exchanges between the Silicon<br />
Valley giant’s most senior executives, as<br />
well as memos, presentations, notebooks,<br />
briefing papers and invoices. The data reveals<br />
how Uber knowingly flouted the law, duped<br />
police, exploited violence against drivers<br />
and secretly lobbied governments across the<br />
world.<br />
I could not say it better than in the words<br />
of Dalia Gebrial, an English political<br />
commentator and journalist, who writes -<br />
“What the Uber files confirm is that Uber’s<br />
rise is not some ‘free market’ success story.<br />
It was a co-ordinated theft of our urban<br />
economies, based on exploitation and<br />
aggressive lobbying. Much of which was – in<br />
the words of Uber execs – ‘f***ing illegal’.”<br />
Rod Barton MLC<br />
Leader, Transport Matters Party<br />
The Uber files merely confirm what the<br />
taxi and hire car industry suspected for a<br />
very long time. In Australia, these claims<br />
form the basis of an ongoing class action<br />
lawsuit against the company represented by<br />
Maurice Blackburn on behalf of licenced taxi<br />
operators.<br />
10 <strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong>
VICTORIA news<br />
That Uber was able to operate without<br />
the required permits, and did so without<br />
consequence while regulators were<br />
asleep at the wheel caused the value of<br />
those licences to be severely impacted.<br />
It is clear Uber bulldozed its way<br />
into cities around the world with<br />
little regard for taxi regulations<br />
while simultaneously lobbying<br />
aggressively for those same laws<br />
or regulations to be altered to<br />
accommodate it.<br />
For example, despite<br />
Australian state laws<br />
requiring taxis and hire<br />
cars to obtain a licence<br />
prior to operating, Uber<br />
set up shop in Australia in<br />
2012 without the required<br />
permits.<br />
Taxi licence holders were often<br />
from working-class backgrounds<br />
and had invested enormous sums<br />
of money to acquire taxi licences in<br />
a full and regulated market.<br />
That Uber was able to operate<br />
without the required permits and<br />
did so without consequence while<br />
regulators were asleep at the<br />
wheel caused the value of those<br />
licences to be severely impacted.<br />
This led to devastating financial<br />
consequences for the incumbent<br />
industry, the legacy of which<br />
continues today.<br />
www.drivenow-magazine.com.au<br />
If Uber and their business<br />
approach is the poster boy<br />
for the gig economy then<br />
we are in serious trouble.<br />
This situation presents a serious<br />
case study of regulatory failure but<br />
is not without remedy.<br />
The whistleblower behind the leak,<br />
Mark MacGann, Uber’s former<br />
chief lobbyist in Europe, the<br />
Middle East and Africa, says he has<br />
decided to speak out.<br />
Mr MacGann believes Uber’s senior<br />
executives knowingly “sold people<br />
a lie” about the economic benefits<br />
to drivers of the company’s gig<br />
economy model.<br />
‘It is my duty to [now] speak<br />
up and help governments and<br />
parliamentarians right some<br />
fundamental wrongs. Morally, I<br />
had no choice in the matter.’<br />
Hindsight is 20/20 vision.<br />
The revelation in the Uber files<br />
is a timely call for a serious and<br />
considered evaluation of how the<br />
local taxi and hire car industry was<br />
allowed to unravel, the part Uber<br />
<strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong><br />
played in steering these outcomes<br />
for their own benefit, and the way<br />
regulators enabled this.<br />
State governments and politicians<br />
across the spectrum should<br />
have been far more resistant to<br />
bullying by a large private company<br />
entering the market.<br />
In many cases, the enthusiasm<br />
of government to embrace the<br />
vision they were sold has resulted<br />
in the baby being thrown out with<br />
the bath water at the expense of<br />
law-abiding small business owners.<br />
Decision makers were sold a lemon.<br />
We cannot reverse the<br />
past. But we can repair it.<br />
As in the case of Mr MacGann, time<br />
and reflection have brought this<br />
matter to the fore.<br />
Morally, there is no choice but<br />
for Australian state governments<br />
across the country to clear<br />
their conscience and own their<br />
contribution to the financial<br />
destruction and decimation of<br />
a once viable and prosperous<br />
industry.<br />
11
VICTORIA news<br />
VICTORIA’S REGULATOR HAS A<br />
New name with<br />
Same faces<br />
The Victorian Government has<br />
merged two of its safety entities,<br />
Commercial Passenger Vehicles<br />
Victoria (CPVV) and Transport<br />
Safety Victoria (TSV).<br />
Effective 1 <strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong>, this new entity<br />
will be known as Safe Transport<br />
Victoria (STV).<br />
This is the fourth name for the<br />
regulator in 10 years -<br />
1. Victorian Taxi Directorate<br />
(VTD) -><br />
2. Taxi Services Commission<br />
(TSC) -><br />
3. Commercial Passenger<br />
Vehicles Victoria (CPVV) -><br />
4. Safety Transport Victoria (STV).<br />
Safe Transport Victoria has been<br />
created to oversee the bus and<br />
maritime industries, along with the<br />
Multi Purpose Taxi Program.<br />
It apparently will continue to<br />
oversee commercial passenger<br />
vehicle regulation, including driver<br />
accreditation, vehicle registration,<br />
medical assessments, and vehicle<br />
inspections.<br />
Tammy O’Connor has been named<br />
CEO of Safe Transport Victoria<br />
and will lead STV into a new era of<br />
delivering support and direction to<br />
operators, managers and users of<br />
these critical services via one point<br />
of contact.<br />
Even though CPVV hasn’t been<br />
able to fulfil this role competently<br />
over the past years, the Victorian<br />
Government still decided to bring<br />
the CPVV’s current senior leadership<br />
over to the new regulator and<br />
additionally give them responsibility<br />
for the bus and waterway systems.<br />
Many of us hoped that this merger<br />
would mean appointing a new team<br />
of leaders passionate about fixing<br />
the industry. But, alas, this is not<br />
the case.<br />
“The regulator was unable to<br />
perform their duties correctly when<br />
they only looked after commercial<br />
passenger vehicles - how are they<br />
going to be able to look after<br />
additional areas added to their<br />
portfolio?” said Rod Barton MP,<br />
Leader of Transport Matters Party.<br />
What will change? How will this<br />
new entity make any difference<br />
to how regulations are enforced<br />
within the taxi, hire car and rideshare<br />
industry?<br />
“Notably absent from the<br />
announcement was a vision for the<br />
12 <strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong>
VICTORIA news<br />
future, strategic plan, or industry<br />
priorities. I believe that the merger<br />
appears to be nothing more than a<br />
change of name, falling short of the<br />
serious reform that is needed,” said<br />
Mr Barton.<br />
“The regulator has long had a<br />
fractured relationship with the<br />
industry. This is after years of<br />
policy that simultaneously fails to<br />
regulate commercial operators<br />
and drivers, while also crippling<br />
them with unjustified and<br />
unnecessary bureaucracy.”<br />
“We will not be taken for idiots.<br />
There needs to be some serious<br />
reform before the regulator can<br />
mend its relationship with the<br />
industry,” added Mr Barton.<br />
Over the years, there have been,<br />
and still continue to be, numerous<br />
issues that the CPVV could not<br />
handle.<br />
Firstly there is the lack of data<br />
management. CPVV cannot<br />
accurately determine who is active<br />
in the industry - not the number of<br />
drivers, operators or even vehicles.<br />
Then there is the poor<br />
management of the Multi Purpose<br />
Taxi Program (MPTP), which<br />
means there is a high probability<br />
that regional areas will not have<br />
any WATs for their disabled<br />
population.<br />
The recent report from the<br />
Inquiry into the MPTP, even found<br />
that the CPVV, ‘demonstrate a<br />
disdain for accountability which,<br />
it would seem, takes priority over<br />
its obligations to the safety of<br />
vulnerable Victorians.’<br />
Right now, the CPVV are in<br />
VCAT fighting against a Privacy<br />
Commissioner ruling to release<br />
documents as part of an FOI<br />
request, and CPVV continues to<br />
stonewall this. Really! What are<br />
they hiding?<br />
The lack of regulatory<br />
enforcement of rideshare safety<br />
requirements has led to multiple<br />
cases of sexual assaults. This, in<br />
turn, fuels public opinion that<br />
rideshare vehicles/drivers are not<br />
as safe as they purport to be.<br />
The Regulator’s lack of control and<br />
enforcement on illegal commercial<br />
passenger vehicles, primarily<br />
wedding car operators and<br />
limousine operators, is a complete<br />
farce.<br />
So, where does our industry stand?<br />
Are we eventually going to<br />
have a level playing field<br />
and less bureaucracy in<br />
the Victorian taxi, hire car,<br />
and ride-share industry?<br />
Will there be better control and<br />
fairness to all by the regulator?<br />
Will there be better safety<br />
measures implemented for all<br />
facets of the industry?<br />
There is an economic crisis in the<br />
industry. There are 120,000 drivers<br />
on Victorian roads fighting for a<br />
smaller piece of the pie every day.<br />
It is critical for the regulators to<br />
understand that their decisions<br />
affect not only drivers but also their<br />
families.<br />
by Susan White<br />
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www.drivenow-magazine.com.au<br />
<strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong><br />
13
VICTORIA news<br />
VICTORIAN METRO TAXI<br />
RANK & HAIL<br />
Fare Review<br />
The Essential Services<br />
Commission (ESC) are reviewing<br />
maximum fares for unbooked<br />
taxi services that begin in<br />
the metropolitan and urban<br />
zones, which cover most of<br />
metropolitan Melbourne,<br />
Geelong, Ballarat, Bendigo,<br />
Frankston, Dandenong, and the<br />
Mornington Peninsula.<br />
The ESC released their draft<br />
decision on maximum fares for<br />
unbooked taxis on 1 <strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong>.<br />
Their draft decision is to<br />
increase the maximum<br />
fares for unbooked taxi<br />
trips that begin in the<br />
Melbourne metropolitan<br />
or urban and large<br />
regional zones by 10.4 per<br />
cent.<br />
The proposed increase will apply<br />
equally to the tariff components<br />
(flagfall, distance rate and time<br />
rate) for each tariff period.<br />
This is the first fare increase<br />
proposed since 2014 and reflects<br />
recent increases in the costs<br />
of providing unbooked taxi<br />
services.<br />
The new taxi cost index suggests<br />
that the costs of operating<br />
unbooked taxi services have<br />
increased by 10.4 per cent since<br />
the last fare review in 2020. The<br />
main contributors to the 10.4 per<br />
cent increase are:<br />
• fuel costs at 6 per cent -<br />
accounts for the change in<br />
fuel costs<br />
• driver labour at 4.3 per cent:<br />
accounts for the use of the<br />
Fair Work Commission's<br />
annual wage review as a<br />
cost inflator for driver labour<br />
instead of the wage price<br />
index (transport, postal and<br />
warehousing).<br />
The draft decision takes<br />
into account the Victorian<br />
government's recent<br />
amendments to the Commercial<br />
Passenger Vehicle Industry<br />
Act 2017, which gave the<br />
ESC discretion to consider<br />
the Fair Work Commission's<br />
annual wage review and the<br />
commercial viability of operating<br />
a taxi service when setting the<br />
maximum fares.<br />
The ESC proposes to include a<br />
fare adjustment mechanism in<br />
their price determination which,<br />
if needed, would allow maximum<br />
fares to automatically increase or<br />
decrease between fare reviews<br />
without requiring a price review.<br />
The fare adjustment mechanism<br />
will only account for any changes<br />
in fuel prices and next year's<br />
wage review by the Fair Work<br />
Commission.<br />
Taxi driver earnings depend on a<br />
combination of:<br />
• the demand for and supply<br />
of commercial passenger<br />
vehicle services<br />
• the demand for and supply<br />
of taxi drivers<br />
• fares charged<br />
• how revenue is shared<br />
between taxi drivers and<br />
operators, which is currently<br />
at a minimum 55:45 ratio.<br />
14 <strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong>
HAVE YOUR<br />
Comment on the ESC’s draft<br />
decision for the maximum fares<br />
for unbooked taxi services.<br />
Submissions should be made via<br />
Engage Victoria by 5pm, Monday<br />
1 August <strong>2022</strong>.<br />
Visit https://bit.ly/3PDduPJ for<br />
more details.<br />
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<strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong><br />
15
NEW SOUTH WALES news<br />
NSW News<br />
Taxi<br />
Registration<br />
<strong>NOW</strong> ON LINE<br />
For the first time, almost 5,000<br />
taxi operators across NSW will<br />
be able to renew their vehicle<br />
registration online via the Service<br />
NSW website, saving them<br />
from having to visit a Service<br />
NSW Centre to complete the<br />
transaction.<br />
Minister for Customer Service<br />
and Digital Government Victor<br />
Dominello said the digitisation<br />
of the taxi registration process<br />
was the result of strong advocacy<br />
of the NSW Taxi Council and<br />
collaboration with Transport for<br />
NSW and Service NSW.<br />
“This is a small but significant win<br />
for taxi operators, and I want to<br />
thank the NSW Taxi Council for<br />
their advocacy for this change<br />
over several years,” Mr Dominello<br />
said.<br />
“Previously, to renew a taxi<br />
registration, operators were<br />
required to visit a Service NSW<br />
Centre during business hours<br />
or call the Contact Centre to<br />
complete the transaction,” Mr<br />
Dominello said.<br />
“We have listened to industry<br />
feedback, and as a result of this<br />
change, taxi owners and operators<br />
will now be able to renew their<br />
registration in a way that is most<br />
convenient to them.”<br />
“The online form has been<br />
extensively user tested and only<br />
takes a few minutes to complete.”<br />
Taxi operators are required to<br />
complete their Compulsory Third<br />
Party Insurance and eSafety<br />
inspection report before renewing<br />
their taxi registration online.<br />
Customers can still attend a<br />
Service Centre or call 13 77 88 to<br />
renew their taxi registration if they<br />
prefer.<br />
16 <strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong>
Help yourself stay well this Winter. To protect yourself,<br />
you need a flu shot every year.<br />
You may have heard that you’ll get sick from the flu shot. Or you may think the flu is<br />
just a worse version of the common cold. But in reality, the flu can be quite serious. By<br />
getting vaccinated, you’re making a choice to protect yourself and others from a bad case<br />
of the flu. And the vaccine’s safety has been tested for more than 50 years.<br />
THE FLU SHOT CAN SAVE YOUR LIFE<br />
Flu can be deadly.<br />
It’s true that the flu vaccine does not always<br />
protect you from every strain of flu during<br />
flu season, but it does protect you from the<br />
most common. And because of that, getting<br />
vaccinated every year significantly reduces your<br />
risk of getting the flu.<br />
FLU VACCINE HELPS TO:<br />
• Reduce your chance of having to go to the<br />
doctor or the emergency room with flurelated<br />
illness<br />
• Lessen the severity of your symptoms if<br />
you do get the flu<br />
• Keep you from spreading the flu to those<br />
around you, like your family and friends<br />
YOU CANNOT CATCH THE FLU<br />
FROM THE FLU VACCINE<br />
The flu shot is made from one flu virus protein<br />
or an inactivated virus, and this vaccine cannot<br />
cause you to get the flu.<br />
When you get a flu vaccine, your body builds<br />
up antibodies to fight against infection with the<br />
virus.<br />
Some people may experience side effects from<br />
the flu vaccine. This includes soreness, redness<br />
or swelling at the injection site, headache,<br />
fever, nausea or tiredness. This is true of many<br />
medications. Side effects from the flu vaccine<br />
generally go away on their own within a day or<br />
two.<br />
www.drivenow-magazine.com.au<br />
THE FLU IS NOT JUST<br />
A ‘BAD COLD’<br />
Because the common cold and flu share similar<br />
symptoms, many people think flu, is a more<br />
severe form of cold. Cold and flu are both<br />
respiratory illnesses, but they’re caused by<br />
different viruses.<br />
You’re more likely to experience a runny nose<br />
and cough when you get a cold. Cold rarely<br />
leads to complications, and symptoms usually<br />
resolve within 1–2 weeks.<br />
With flu, your symptoms can be more severe<br />
and may include fever, chills, sore throat, cough,<br />
body aches, headache, and fatigue. If not<br />
treated, flu can lead to serious complications,<br />
such as pneumonia, or even death.<br />
<strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong><br />
17
SOUTH AUSTRALIA<br />
SA News<br />
REVIEW<br />
PASSENGER<br />
TRANSPORT ACT 1994<br />
The South Australian Government<br />
is reviewing the point to point<br />
transport industry regulation under<br />
the Passenger Transport Act 1994.<br />
Point to point transport is any<br />
service in a vehicle with 12 seats<br />
or less (including the driver) that<br />
can take customers on the route<br />
they choose, at the time that suits<br />
them, for a fare. This includes<br />
taxis, chauffeurs and ridesourcing<br />
(rideshare).<br />
The review will focus on improving<br />
the regulatory standards of all<br />
taxi and ridesource (rideshare)<br />
operators to help ensure South<br />
Australians can expect a safe,<br />
clean and reliable ride, regardless<br />
of what transport provider they<br />
choose.<br />
To help inform the review, the<br />
Department for Infrastructure<br />
and Transport is seeking feedback<br />
about how point to point<br />
passenger transport should be<br />
regulated.<br />
Your feedback will help shape the future of point to<br />
point transport in South Australia.<br />
They are wanting feedback from all facets of P2P<br />
transport, including:<br />
• Customer experiences travelling around<br />
the community using taxi, chauffeur and/or<br />
ridesourcing (rideshare) services.<br />
• Driver, licence owner and operator experiences in<br />
providing point to point transport services.<br />
Fill out the Passenger Transport Act Review Survey to<br />
help the government better understand your views<br />
about point to point transport - https://yoursay.sa.gov.<br />
au/passenger-transport-act-review.<br />
The closing date for submissions is 1 August, <strong>2022</strong>.<br />
The survey will take approximately 20 minutes to<br />
complete.<br />
18 <strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong>
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<strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong><br />
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19
WA News<br />
INCREASE IN<br />
Rank & Hail Fares<br />
Maximum metered rank and<br />
hail (taxi) fares will increase by<br />
approximately 2% from Monday, 1<br />
August <strong>2022</strong>.<br />
The increase aims to assist<br />
On-Demand Booking Services<br />
(OBDS) and drivers who provide<br />
rank or hail services, to manage<br />
increasing operating cost<br />
pressures.<br />
ODBSs are reminded that:<br />
• they cannot increase their<br />
metered rank or hail fares<br />
before Monday, 1 August<br />
<strong>2022</strong>; and<br />
• the regulated fares are<br />
maximums – ODBSs can<br />
choose to apply all, some, or<br />
none of the increase to their<br />
fares.<br />
This fare increase is an interim<br />
measure while Department of<br />
Transport (DoT) is progressing<br />
its review of the regulation of<br />
maximum taxi fares.<br />
The initial consultation stage<br />
conducted by KPMG has now<br />
concluded and DoT is currently<br />
considering the findings.<br />
20 <strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong>
WESTERN AUSTRALIA news<br />
CHANGES TO THE<br />
Annual vehicle<br />
inspection<br />
To assist operators in complying<br />
with the annual vehicle inspection<br />
requirement, the Department<br />
of Transport (DoT) has made<br />
improvements to the vehicle licence<br />
renewal process.<br />
A maximum licence expiry period<br />
of 12 months applies to any vehicle<br />
which is subject to an annual<br />
inspection requirement, which<br />
includes Passenger Transport<br />
Vehicles.<br />
This means that, regardless of which<br />
renewal period/s you choose (3, 6<br />
or 12 months), you will be unable to<br />
renew your licence for a combined<br />
licence period that is greater than<br />
12 months without first passing an<br />
annual inspection.<br />
Holders of vehicle licences for<br />
vehicles which are subject to annual<br />
inspection requirements should<br />
note the following:<br />
• You will be unable to renew<br />
your licence for any period that<br />
would result in your annual<br />
inspection being overdue.<br />
• You will receive an annual<br />
inspection reminder letter 42<br />
days before your maximum<br />
licence expiry date.<br />
• Once you have completed a<br />
successful annual inspection,<br />
you will be sent a renewal<br />
notice automatically.<br />
• If your vehicle does not pass a<br />
required inspection before the<br />
expiry of the maximum licence<br />
period (12 months) your vehicle<br />
licence will expire, the vehicle<br />
cannot be driven, can be<br />
impounded, and your insurance<br />
may be invalid.<br />
PLEASE WEAR YOUR<br />
MASK<br />
Help stop the spread of viruses -<br />
like the FLU, common COLD and<br />
COVID-19.<br />
Thank you!<br />
www.drivenow-magazine.com.au<br />
<strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong><br />
21
WESTERN AUSTRALIA news<br />
WAV MODIFICATION GRANT<br />
Expressions of Interest<br />
Expressions of interest are<br />
now open for the Wheelchair<br />
Accessible Vehicle Modification<br />
Grant<br />
To help increase accessible<br />
transport options for people<br />
with disability, each year,<br />
Department of Transport (DoT)<br />
provides grants of up to $20,000<br />
to assist eligible operators with<br />
the cost of purchasing and<br />
installing a wheelchair hoist and<br />
restraint systems in a wheelchair<br />
accessible on-demand rank or<br />
hail (taxi) vehicle.<br />
Expressions of interest (EOIs)<br />
are now being accepted from<br />
authorised on-demand rank or<br />
hail (taxi) passenger transport<br />
drivers seeking a Rank or Hail<br />
Wheelchair Accessible Vehicle<br />
Modification Grant.<br />
Expressions of interest close<br />
5.00pm, Friday 2 September<br />
<strong>2022</strong>.<br />
There are a limited number of<br />
grants – submitting an EOI does<br />
not mean you will be successful<br />
in receiving a grant.<br />
Please note: If you’re operating<br />
primarily in the Perth and Peel<br />
areas, you will need a current<br />
association arrangement with<br />
DoT’s dedicated Multi-purpose<br />
Taxi Dispatch Service (currently<br />
Black & White Cabs, trading as<br />
BWC MPT).<br />
22 <strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong>
WESTERN AUSTRALIA news<br />
IF YOU SPEED, USE THE PHONE<br />
OR DON’T WEAR A SEATBELT<br />
New cameras will<br />
catch you<br />
Perth drivers who use their mobile phones and travel<br />
without wearing seatbelts will be caught on camera in<br />
a trial of new Australian-first technology.<br />
For the next three months, six mobile point-to-point<br />
road safety cameras will be placed in pairs around<br />
Perth's metropolitan area and up to 200km out on<br />
regional roads, detecting average and top speeds of<br />
road users.<br />
Road Safety Minister Paul Papalia said no fines would<br />
be issued under the trial, but those caught acting<br />
egregiously will have their details forwarded to police<br />
for investigation.<br />
“Say someone speeding well in excess of the speed<br />
limit and doing something really dangerous. That<br />
information obviously can be used by police to<br />
investigate,” he said.<br />
Last year, 14 of more than 160 fatalities on the roads<br />
had not been wearing a seatbelt.<br />
Papalia said the trial would help inform where large<br />
numbers of certain types of offences were occurring<br />
and where to deploy more law enforcement.<br />
Western Australians are fined $500 for touching or<br />
using a phone plus three demerit points, but using it<br />
as a streaming service while driving gets a $1,000 fine<br />
and four demerit points.<br />
Not wearing a seatbelt starts at $550.<br />
There is no limit on the number of cars the cameras<br />
can photograph at a time, with each car detected.<br />
Images that do not detect offending behaviour will be<br />
discarded.<br />
www.drivenow-magazine.com.au<br />
<strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong><br />
23
QLD News<br />
MAXIMUM<br />
FARE<br />
5.5% INCREASE<br />
An increase to maximum taxi<br />
fares of 5.5% took effect on 1 <strong>July</strong><br />
<strong>2022</strong>, following a review by the<br />
Department of Transport and<br />
Main Roads of maximum taxi<br />
fares.<br />
Maximum fares apply to all rank<br />
and hail taxi services. In addition,<br />
booked hire services are subject<br />
to maximum fares only if the<br />
service is for a member of<br />
the Taxi Subsidy Scheme or<br />
is provided in a Wheelchair<br />
Accessible Taxi to a person using<br />
a wheelchair.<br />
Maximum fares do not apply for<br />
all other personalised transport<br />
services that are booked. Booked<br />
hire services include booked taxi<br />
services, limousine and ridebooking<br />
services.<br />
A fare estimate (in Australian<br />
dollars) must be provided before<br />
the journey commences, or the<br />
fare is agreed to upfront.<br />
All taximeters must comply with<br />
the maximum fares notice and<br />
must be configured in such a way<br />
as to only reflect the approved<br />
fare components.<br />
New taxi fare stickers are being<br />
distributed to taxi operators<br />
throughout the state via TMR’s<br />
Passenger Transport Offices and<br />
must be displayed in all taxis by<br />
29 <strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong>.<br />
24 <strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong>
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<strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong><br />
25
Live Payments<br />
partner with<br />
Visa to<br />
launch<br />
Tap to<br />
Phone<br />
product for SMEs<br />
Live Payments, one of Australia’s leading payment providers with over 11,000<br />
merchants, have announced a new partnership with Visa to help Australian small<br />
and micro businesses, and taxi operators, accept digital payments securely and<br />
conveniently using Visa technology.<br />
Brian McGrory from Visa and Reuven Barukh from Live Payments<br />
26 <strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong>
In a game-changer for small<br />
businesses and a first for taxi<br />
operators in Australia, Live<br />
Payments will employ Visa’s Tap to<br />
Phone technology to transform a<br />
merchant’s smartphone[1] into a<br />
point-of-sale device. Participating<br />
merchants will be able to<br />
accept fast, secure payments<br />
from any contactless-enabled<br />
Visa card, device or wearable,<br />
which a customer simply taps<br />
to pay against the merchant’s<br />
smartphone or tablet.<br />
With no additional hardware or<br />
device required, Tap to Phone is an<br />
especially exciting option for small<br />
and micro businesses that may not<br />
have the resources for full point of<br />
sale infrastructure.<br />
Brian McGrory, Visa’s head of<br />
merchant sales and acquiring<br />
for Australia, New Zealand and<br />
South Pacific said, “This is opening<br />
another door to the digital<br />
economy for small businesses. By<br />
making it easier to accept digital<br />
payments anywhere, anytime, Tap<br />
to Phone is creating new ways<br />
for small and micro businesses<br />
to reach customers, prevent lost<br />
sales, and support cash flow.”<br />
Research shows consumer<br />
appetite for the technology too.<br />
Despite Tap to Phone being new<br />
to the Australian market, a YouGov<br />
study of over 1,000 consumers[2]<br />
shows nearly half (45 per cent)<br />
would already be likely to use the<br />
payment option if available, citing<br />
ease of use (50 per cent), time<br />
savings (44 per cent), security (43<br />
per cent) and eliminating the need<br />
to carry cash (42 per cent) as the<br />
most popular reasons.<br />
In a further sign there is appetite<br />
for Tap to Phone, two in three (66<br />
per cent) Australians reported<br />
being inconvenienced having<br />
to find an ATM to withdraw<br />
cash to pay businesses such as<br />
tradespeople or cleaners who<br />
can’t accept card payments on the<br />
spot.<br />
McGrory added, “Given the rapid<br />
adoption of digital payments and<br />
the major role smartphones play<br />
in our day-to-day lives, we expect<br />
Tap to Phone will become an<br />
increasingly popular way to pay<br />
among Australian consumers.”<br />
Reuven Barukh, CEO at Live<br />
Payments added: “This is an<br />
exciting partnership for Live<br />
Payments. Our integration of<br />
Visa’s Tap to Phone solution is a<br />
first for taxi operators and will<br />
revolutionise the way customers<br />
and small businesses make and<br />
receive payments.<br />
Merchants across the board have<br />
had to rapidly change how they<br />
do business, and this new solution<br />
will facilitate the type of seamless,<br />
flexible and “no fuss” payment<br />
processing that people are now<br />
looking for.”<br />
Live Payments has also integrated<br />
their Tap to Phone solution<br />
with Cybersource, Visa’s global<br />
payment and fraud management<br />
platform that provides businesses<br />
with a one-stop solution for<br />
managing payments.<br />
Martin Meters - Oz Cab Store<br />
Phone: 03 9335 1551 sales@martinmeters.com.au www.ozcabstore.com.au<br />
• 1TB Memory<br />
• 1080P External Color Camera<br />
• 720P Internal Color Camera<br />
(1080P Option)<br />
• Led Camera Status<br />
• Active GPS<br />
• Audio, 4G & WiFi option<br />
(Where permitted by state)<br />
THSVIC1 HD TAXI CAMERA SYSTEM<br />
VIC & NSW APPROVED OTHERS PENDING<br />
Priced from:<br />
$1500+GST<br />
Standard Vic Spec.<br />
www.drivenow-magazine.com.au<br />
<strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong><br />
27
There’s yet<br />
ANOTHER<br />
Ride-Share App!<br />
PASSENGERS<br />
PITCH the FARE and<br />
SELECT the <strong>DRIVE</strong>R<br />
There’s a new ride-sharing app<br />
in Melbourne, because we need<br />
more Uber-adjacent services. But<br />
this one is a little different, as it<br />
lets you [the passenger] pick your<br />
driver and suggest a fare.<br />
It’s called inDriver.<br />
inDriver announced its Aussie<br />
launch earlier this year with the<br />
tagline of being a “revolutionary<br />
ride-hailing service”.<br />
“Revolutionary” because it<br />
“promotes justice in the market”.<br />
inDriver said it enables passengers<br />
and drivers to set their own prices<br />
by negotiating directly.<br />
How this works is the passenger<br />
makes a request for a ride (by<br />
selecting pick-up and drop-off<br />
locations), and then they suggest a<br />
price they want to pay for the trip.<br />
They can also add additional info,<br />
such as a request for a child’s car<br />
seat or another stop.<br />
Drivers nearby can either accept<br />
the offered fare or make a<br />
counteroffer.<br />
The passenger is then presented<br />
with offers from multiple drivers<br />
and they choose the one they<br />
28 <strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong>
want. In addition to the pitched<br />
fare, picking your driver can be<br />
based on their rating (you can see<br />
this ahead of time), the type of car<br />
they drive (it’s gonna be a Toyota<br />
Camry, it always is) and how quick<br />
they say they can arrive.<br />
Like with other ride-share services<br />
[and taxi services], passengers can<br />
contact the driver before arrival<br />
and see the car’s approximate<br />
arrival time and real-time<br />
geolocation point on the map.<br />
However, something we can get<br />
behind is that inDriver does not<br />
increase prices based on high<br />
demand or weather. Many of us<br />
know this as ‘surge pricing’. And<br />
to get drivers to sign up, inDriver is<br />
waiving commission requirements<br />
for the first six months. inDriver<br />
isn’t saying how much their cut<br />
is but said it “assures drivers” its<br />
“commission will be the lowest on<br />
the market”.<br />
inDriver currently operates in<br />
Brisbane and Melbourne.<br />
by Asha Barbaschow | Gizmodo<br />
ONLINE<br />
Safe Driver Training<br />
RACV has launched its new online<br />
Safe Driver Training program,<br />
ensuring participants have access<br />
to RACV’s high-quality driver<br />
training program created by<br />
RACV’s own fleet and road safety<br />
experts.<br />
Whether new on the road or<br />
experienced, the ‘Safety Mindset’<br />
approach helps drivers prepare,<br />
plan ahead, and most importantly,<br />
have good awareness to help<br />
avoid incidents.<br />
RACV Executive General Manager<br />
Motoring and Mobility, Phil<br />
Turnbull said RACV’s new program<br />
was an evolution of RACV’s<br />
existing classroom-based driver<br />
safety sessions and in-vehicle<br />
driver assessments and can help<br />
make our roads and workplaces<br />
safer.<br />
“The online training covers every<br />
aspect of driver training and<br />
provides practical advice about<br />
the vehicle, the road and driver<br />
behaviours to keep drivers and<br />
everyone else on the road safe,”<br />
Mr Turnbull said.<br />
“It assists participants evaluating<br />
their unique situation and make<br />
decisions about how to apply<br />
their learnings to their work<br />
environment and become a leader<br />
for others in their workplace.”<br />
RACV’s training aligns with the<br />
Victorian Government’s Road<br />
Safety Strategy 2021 - 2030, which<br />
focuses on increasing safety for<br />
those using the road to get to<br />
work or from work.<br />
www.drivenow-magazine.com.au<br />
<strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong><br />
29
Driver JOBS<br />
QUEENSLAND<br />
COOLANGATTA/TWEED HEADS<br />
Is it time to enjoy the great outdoors, beautiful weather<br />
and laid-back lifestyle? Then the magnificent border<br />
area of Tweed Heads / Coolangatta is the place for you.<br />
Earn a few dollars while you are here by driving one<br />
of our modern taxis. Plenty of shifts available. Phone<br />
0439 769 259 now!<br />
TOWNSVILLE 13CABS<br />
Single car Owner /Operator looking for a motivated<br />
driver who is flexible on shifts available and wants to<br />
get on with the business of making money. New to<br />
town or looking to become a Taxi Driver, no problem, as<br />
in-depth training can be provided to help reach your full<br />
earning potential. Contact Darren 0407 597 908 to learn<br />
more about what’s on offer.<br />
BRISBANE CROWN CABS<br />
All shifts available – 7 days per week. Please phone Tuna<br />
Guclu on 0419 484 666.<br />
BLACK & WHITE<br />
All shifts available. Home changeover available all over<br />
Brisbane. Set Pay or 50/50 Commission. Limited Set pay<br />
cars available. Albion Cab Centre. Call Ronnie today on<br />
0411 864 392.<br />
\<br />
WESTERN AUSTRALIA<br />
PERTH BLACK & WHITE CABS<br />
Day shifts (5-7 days). Call Georgina on (08) 9230 0400.<br />
CROWN CABS<br />
Drivers wanted full-time or part-time in Morley and Perth.<br />
Contact Tuna Guclu on 0419 484 666.<br />
TAKE THE <strong>DRIVE</strong>R’S SEAT IN BROOME’S<br />
BEST TAXI FLEET<br />
Airfares included to Broome and accommodation<br />
provided. Drive for an established Taxi business and enjoy<br />
the fantastic lifestyle of Broome. APPLY <strong>NOW</strong> to drive with<br />
us in Broome. Email: Res@broometaxis.com.au<br />
NEW SOUTH WALES<br />
BYRON BAY<br />
Taxi Driver Positions Available. Day and night shifts<br />
available every day of the week. Send us your email<br />
address and we will forward an information pack. Email<br />
- operations@byronbaytaxis.com<br />
SOUTH TAMWORTH<br />
Existing positions available for Taxi drivers. Day and<br />
night shift available. Phone 0456 441 538.<br />
SALAMANDER BAY<br />
Nelson Bay Taxis are looking for additional driver to<br />
assist in the transport of passengers on the Tomaree<br />
Peninsula and beyond.<br />
New drivers will need to have held a full NSW Driver<br />
Licence for a minimum of two years, have a clear<br />
Criminal History and hold or are willing to obtain an<br />
ABN that is registered for GST. A WWCC would also be<br />
beneficial.<br />
Please contact Nelson Bay Taxis on (02) 4984 7766<br />
during office hours to register your interest.<br />
WILEY PARK<br />
Taxi Driver Wanted for 13cabs Toyota Camry Hybrid.<br />
Taxi has Full Comprehensive Insurance, leather seats,<br />
rubber mats and weather shield. Very well maintained<br />
taxis.<br />
Change over in Punchbowl, Lakemba or Belmore. Day/<br />
Night/Weekend or Weekly. Full Time, Part Time or Casual.<br />
Immediate Start.<br />
On-going opportunity. Reasonable pay in. (You must have<br />
13cabs Authority card. If you don’t have one, call 13CABS to<br />
get one, please). Phone or SMS 0418 612 692.<br />
NELSON BAY<br />
Nelson Bay Taxis are looking to hire additional drivers<br />
in preparation for COVID restrictions easing. Drivers are<br />
required to assist in the transport of passengers around<br />
the Tomaree Peninsula to medical appointments, shopping<br />
trips and social engagements.<br />
You must have held a full NSW driver’s licence for at least<br />
12 months and willing to get an ABN and be registered for<br />
GST. Forward your resume to combinedlimos@gmail.com<br />
or phone (02) 4984 6699.<br />
30 <strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong>
VICTORIA<br />
SHEPPARTON<br />
Lots of opportunities than Melbourne to operate<br />
an INDEPENDENT taxi in Shepparton. No expensive<br />
local network fees. Ralph 0473 189 190.<br />
& <strong>DRIVE</strong>RS<br />
OWNERS, OPERATORS<br />
ADVERTISE<br />
HERE FREE<br />
Send details (word limit=50) of your<br />
<strong>DRIVE</strong>R or JOB advertisement to<br />
contact@drivenow-magazine.com.au<br />
or sms 0400 137 866 and we will print<br />
your advert here for 3 months.<br />
SHEPPARTON<br />
Shepparton Taxis Pty Ltd now has opportunities to<br />
join our fleet as a taxi operator. A limited amount<br />
of leases are available. If you are interested in<br />
operating your own taxi, please contact (03) 5331<br />
4367 or email stephen@shepptaxis.com.au.<br />
ELSTERNWICK<br />
Day shift or night shift MAXI taxi driver with<br />
13cabs. Reliable and well maintained maxi taxi<br />
with single private operator. Permanent bookings<br />
available. Changeover in flexible locations. New<br />
drivers welcome. Please call 0411 223 454<br />
EAST DONCASTER<br />
Driver wanted full time for Silver Top car. Please call<br />
Harvey 0404 847 699.<br />
EAST DONCASTER<br />
Must be 25+ years old. At least 3 years experience.<br />
East Doncaster changeover. Call or SMS Tony on<br />
0413 393 594 or email tonysursock@gmail.com.<br />
SOUTH AUSTRALIA<br />
TRANMERE<br />
Friday or Saturday Night Driver wanted. Immediate start. Call<br />
0416 821 840.<br />
<strong>DRIVE</strong>R CAREERS<br />
If you’re thinking of a career as a taxi driver, come and join<br />
Adelaide’s largest taxi company. Great income potential<br />
with all shifts available in all metro areas. Call ADELAIDE<br />
INDEPENDENT TAXIS on (08) 8202 1200 to book your free<br />
information session.<br />
CANBERRA<br />
OWN YOUR OWN BUSINESS - TAXI OPERATOR<br />
Are you a taxi driver looking to become your own boss? If you are,<br />
talk to us about leasing a taxi plate and working with Canberra’s<br />
biggest taxi fleet. We will help you through the process of<br />
becoming an accredited taxi operator and starting your own<br />
business. Contact fleet@aerialcg.com or call (02) 6126 1500.<br />
FOR SALE<br />
MACLEAY ISLAND TAXI SERVICE<br />
Proven sound and enduring business operating for more than 30 years.<br />
Independent of major taxi companies,<br />
setting its own operation hours and<br />
fare prices.<br />
Bookings by mobile phone and fare<br />
payments made by cash or EFTPOS.<br />
Home-based business including:-<br />
• 3 Hi Ace WAV Taxis including 1 x<br />
NEW automatic Hi Ace with only<br />
40,000kms.<br />
• all necessary related equipment<br />
and spare parts.<br />
Detailed information and training is<br />
available to genuine enquirers.<br />
FOR MORE DETAILS<br />
Ring 0468 428 873 or<br />
Email daza9900@gmail.com<br />
www.drivenow-magazine.com.au<br />
<strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong><br />
MACLEAY ISLAND<br />
31
overseas news<br />
Uber’s ‘secret’ lobbying<br />
meetings with ministers<br />
after branding Boris Johnson ‘a problem’ to its<br />
London expansion<br />
should spark public inquiry<br />
by Josiah Mortimer | MyLondon<br />
Uber’s executives should be hauled<br />
before a public inquiry, the head<br />
of London’s black cabbies has<br />
told MyLondon, following fresh<br />
revelations into the scale of the<br />
firm’s efforts to fight tougher<br />
regulations. It comes after the leak<br />
of 124,000 files on the US giant,<br />
including 83,000 internal emails<br />
between 2013 and 2017 - which<br />
show a concerted campaign to<br />
urge Boris Johnson not to toughen<br />
up regulations on the private hire<br />
company while he was London<br />
mayor.<br />
On <strong>July</strong> 11, <strong>2022</strong> the Guardian<br />
revealed a “remorseless” lobbying<br />
campaign to stop Johnson bringing<br />
in tougher regulation of Uber,<br />
targeting then-chancellor George<br />
Osborne as well as ex-PM David<br />
Cameron who were close to the<br />
London mayor.<br />
The firm’s leaked strategy<br />
in 2014 stated: “The need is<br />
for a more positive image<br />
of Uber to be conveyed<br />
to Boris, by people that<br />
he trusts and respects,”<br />
with targets including Tory<br />
assembly members, No 10<br />
aides and the regulator,<br />
Transport for London (TfL) -<br />
chaired by Johnson.<br />
The firm hired high-profile lobbyists<br />
as TfL launched a review of rules<br />
regulating private hire companies<br />
like Uber.<br />
Mr Johnson was viewed as being<br />
on the side of the black cabs, but<br />
after a campaign by the company’s<br />
“friends in government”, the<br />
paper reported, Mr Johnson<br />
was “deluged” by complaints<br />
from Conservative allies about<br />
his proposals. The Conservative<br />
mayor’s efforts to regulate Uber<br />
32 <strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong>
largely failed. While it is not clear if this was a direct<br />
result of Uber lobbying, the firm celebrated victory<br />
in 2016 when several proposals to regulate the firm<br />
were dropped in TfL’s review.<br />
But Steve McNamara, General Secretary at the<br />
Licensed Taxi Drivers Association - which represents<br />
London black cabbies - said to MyLondon he believed<br />
the watered-down review was a result of Uber’s<br />
lobbying. He claimed: “Within minutes of launching<br />
a review [into Uber and other private hire firms]<br />
at TfL, Johnson’s deputy mayor for transport was<br />
getting phone calls from Cameron’s secretary,<br />
basically saying ‘what the hell is going on?’”<br />
“Thousands of rides were taking place in London<br />
in vehicles that weren’t insured. Why has there<br />
never been an inquiry into what went on? This is<br />
the biggest scandal of the 21st century. Forget<br />
partygate. This company was walking in and out of<br />
No 10. That work paid off with Johnson,” the taxi<br />
drivers’ leader said.<br />
The leaked Uber files reveal that Uber<br />
representatives met with at least six Conservative<br />
ministers, including then-chancellor George<br />
Osborne, which were not declared by the ministers,<br />
between 2014 and 2016. Uber denies allegations the<br />
meetings were secret. The firm has also claimed that<br />
some of the lobbying tactics revealed in the leaked<br />
messages no longer reflect the company.<br />
However, Mr McNamara said: “They’ve got a<br />
massive lobbying campaign - they’re still doing it. Go<br />
to any party conference, and events are sponsored<br />
by them. But ‘this time they’re [lobbying] better or<br />
nicer’ they say…”<br />
“Leopards don’t change their spots - these<br />
lot are very rich leopards who came in and<br />
out of No 10 at will.”<br />
Last year Uber lost a major Supreme Court case that<br />
meant their drivers now have to be classed as formal<br />
‘workers’. It entitles them to pay and minimum<br />
hourly rates from the moment they log on - but<br />
unions and cab firms have accused Uber of ignoring<br />
the ruling.<br />
Taxi and PHV drivers<br />
should undergo<br />
Advanced<br />
Driving Test<br />
by Perry Richardson | taxi-point.co.uk<br />
UK - ALL taxi and private hire drivers (PHV) drivers<br />
should have to undergo an Advanced Driving Test<br />
(ADT) before being licensed says taxi representative<br />
after new best practice guidance responses are<br />
submitted.<br />
The Government recently closed a 12-week consultation<br />
to update vital Taxi and Private Hire Vehicle (PHV)<br />
guidance supplied to local authorities to better cope<br />
with new digital ways of working following the boom in<br />
ride-hailing services.<br />
The London Cab Drivers Club (LCDC) responded,<br />
making several points around private hire vehicle (PHV)<br />
recognition, tinted windows and passenger safety. One<br />
of the recommendations included bringing back the<br />
ADT to improve the standard of driving in London and<br />
help the Mayor of London’s ‘Vision Zero’ ambitions.<br />
Vision Zero aims to eradicate deaths and serious<br />
injuries from London’s roads and make London a safer,<br />
healthier and greener place.<br />
Grant Davis, LCDC, said: “If TfL and the Mayor are really<br />
serious about their “Net Zero” project in London then<br />
TfL MUST bring in all these additional changes to their<br />
licensing process.”<br />
The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, confirmed that the<br />
ADT will be looked at only once the updated guidance<br />
is published. Khan said: “The Department for Transport<br />
is carrying out a consultation on updates to its taxi and<br />
private hire best practice guidance. Once the updated<br />
guidance has been published, Transport for London<br />
(TfL) will give consideration to all the points within it,<br />
including any guidance on advanced driving tests.”<br />
www.drivenow-magazine.com.au<br />
<strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong><br />
33
Only $ 35 for<br />
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FOR SALE: Taxi Business - VIC<br />
Want a change of scenery? Want to work in a country town with<br />
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up For Sale. We have 2 taxi vehicles - 1 x FG XR6 (100,000 kms)<br />
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work and blood transfers from Cohuna Hospital to Swan Hill,<br />
Echuca and Rochester. Interested? Call Chris or Sue on 0427<br />
562 974 to find out more details.<br />
FOR SALE: Taxi Business - VIC<br />
Surfcoast Taxis. Working along our beautiful coast lines, Great<br />
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FOR SALE: Taxi Business - WA<br />
Situated on the south coast of WA servicing two towns. Very<br />
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sedans. Also associated are two further vehicles, an eight seat<br />
people mover and a small SUV. In the process of converting to<br />
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CPV Centre www.cpvcentre.com.au<br />
ONE STOP SHOP FOR ALL YOUR CPV REQUIREMENTS<br />
• Latest Taxi Camera Technology - 1080 1TB HD<br />
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COMPETITIVE PRICES Call us on: 0434 423 423<br />
LEASES WANTED - Brisbane<br />
We are expanding in Brisbane. We will pay $100 to lease<br />
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Guclu or call 0419 484 666 to discuss price & terms.
Ask R U OK? No qualifications needed<br />
R U OK?Day is 8 September <strong>2022</strong>. It’s our national day of action<br />
when we remind Australians to start a meaningful conversation<br />
whenever they spot the signs that someone they care about might be<br />
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Our research has found four in ten Australians feel that asking<br />
someone, 'are you OK?' is a conversation better had with an expert.<br />
However, R U OK? want you to know you don’t need to be an expert<br />
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Ask R U OK? No qualifications needed, because a conversation<br />
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R U OK?Day<br />
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www.drivenow-magazine.com.au<br />
<strong>July</strong> <strong>2022</strong><br />
35