Councillor for Bromford and Hodge Hill, Majid Mahmood, has called hackney carriage taxi and private hire drivers "unsung heroes" after a Birmingham City Council licensed driver passed away from the deadly coronavirus.
Mr Mahmood confirmed the death of a private hire driver, via his official Twitter account, saying: "I'm saddened to hear of the passing away of Mushtaq Ahmed, a @BhamCityCouncil private hire driver of #COVID19.
"All private hire drivers and hackney carriage drivers are #UnsungHeroes risking their lives providing a valuable service to NHS staff and other key workers."
Birmingham City Council and the United Private Hire Drivers union (UPHD) both offered their condolences saying: "This is very sad news. Our Condolences to his family and friends" and "RIP. Please pass our sincere condolences to the family. It is so sad to see the passing of so many drivers" respectively.
London Assembly Member, Councillor for Highbury East Ward, Caroline Russell called for clearer government guidance on whether it is safe to drive buses, taxis and private hire vehicles after a number of drivers have reportedly passed away after contracting the virus while working.
In response to the announcement that another bus driver died this week after contracting COVID-19, Russell said: "The toll of lives lost to Covid-19 is heartbreaking. Apart from health care workers, there are bus drivers, private hire and taxi drivers losing their lives while serving our city. RIP Errol Gordon."
Errol Gordon was a bus driver of 17 years from Camberwell, South London. The announcement of his passing came on Monday 20 April.
Image credit: TaxiPoint/Pixabay
