Telford council plans to offer restricted licenses to ease recruitment crisis

Telford Council is looking to offer restricted private hire licenses to drivers who only carry out specific work such as school transport, in a bid to ease the recruitment crisis in the taxi trade.

A report to councillors said restricted licences would represent “a more compelling offer” for private hire firms who only carry out specific types of work. The council believes it can process applications for restricted licenses quickly, which will make it less likely that drivers go to Wolverhampton to obtain a license.

The report, written by the authority’s licensing manager Amitabh Singh, said it would help ease a recruitment crisis in the trade. Singh said drivers were looking at said there were “competing alternative driving opportunities in the food and parcel delivery service areas”, and his proposals sought to overcome some of the difficulties in driver retention.

The report also said that attracting new operators with new operating models will allow the council to uphold better standards in the private hire market.