Struggling London Taxi Drivers Living In Havering Offered Crucial Support Grants

A financial lifeline has been handed to London taxi drivers living in Havering who are currently struggling. This new funding from the council will equate to a £6,000 grant.

Official London Taxicab drivers licensed and living in Havering who failed to make the deadline date to apply for funding from the previous installment of grants will now be given the opportunity by Havering London Borough Council to receive up to £6,000 . The new deadline for qualifying applications to be in by is 5pm on 28th May 2021. Private hire vehicle operators that are able to be booked online or over the phone however do no qualify for this grant.  where an Additional Restrictions Grant has previously been received then any taxi driver applying will not be eligible for aid through this new scheme.

Eligibility for applicants is as follows:

proof needs to be provided from a legitimate business that has been trading since 17 October 2020.

the driver must have a Havering address at which they are both registered and living at.

they must be able to provide proof of continued costs throughout the restriction periods from a financial commitment or rental costs of a vehicle that is used for the purposes of work. A maximum of £6,000 is available for eligible applicants.

Sadiq  Khan, the mayor of London was quoted as being unable to ‘imagine a future without black cabs’ and should he be re-elected has vowed to look into what can be done to increase the number of students to become taxi drivers with the help of the taxi trade representatives.

The test completed in London known as the Knowledge is regarded as one of the toughest taxi tests to complete in the world but must be passed by each licenced driver. The Knowledge requires an in depth knowledge of thousands of street names and recall places of interest throughout the capital in a one to one oral exam. Only 677 students currently get to the oral stage of the test with a further 565 having not yet reached this stage.

A fall in the number of licensed drivers has been seen in the capital, as low numbers of students come through the ranks to replace the aging population of current taxi drivers. These numbers has started to become a worrying concern.

Figures had already fallen from around 25,000 in 2015 to 22,000 before the pandemic struck. It is yet to been seen how much this figure has dropped since Covid has impacted the industry.

Since becoming mayor, Sadiq Khan has been promoting the benefits of becoming a London taxi driver in order to encourage new applicants  and has tried tirelessly to help lift the profile of the Knowledge of London. He described the taxi industry as being an integral part of the city’s fabric, recognised internally. He plans to further increase applications should he be re-elected.

Sadiq Khan was asked by TaxiPoint whether he considers the role of taxi drivers to be future proof as one of his pledges was to invest funding into future proof industries. Further, would he be looking to invest more money to get students trained in the Knowledge of London to continue the future of the taxi industry within the capital.

Sadiq Khan responded by assuring Taxipoint that as we move away from restrictions brought about by the pandemic that he views the iconic London Black cabs as essential in the future of the city. Adding that they provide both locals and visitors a safe convenient mode of travel around the city. He pointed out his past record of investment within the industry to demonstrate how much belief he has in the future of the industry going forward. Sadiq Khan has allowed for the delicensing of in excess of 4,000 vehicles in favour of cleaner, greener vehicles to be licensed through the investment of a support package worth £42 million.