Thurrock taxi drivers welcome Uber London licence rejection as firm encroaches into Essex

Taxi drivers in Thurrock have welcomed the banning of Uber in London with the hope that drivers licensed in the capital will no longer work in their Essex area.

Despite the controversial app never having a licence to operate in the Thurrock area, drivers registered with Transport for London (TfL) were allowed to work as part of Uber’s own geo-fencing criteria.

Uber say 45,000 private hire drivers are licensed with TfL. Many of those drivers work outside of Greater London in surrounding areas as part of the ‘cross-border hiring’ rules.

A spokesperson from the Thurrock Taxi Drivers’ Association (TTDA), said via social media: “The TTDA welcomes the news that TfL have decided to not renew Uber of their London operators licence. We have been battling for over a year to highlight the illegalities of their practice particularly encroaching into Thurrock without an operators license to work in the area.

“Uber have been using their London license to work in over 40 boroughs outside of London without operators licenses in those areas.

“TfL’s decision today confirms that Uber are not a “fit and proper” operator and that operating unlawfully catches up to operators of all sizes eventually.

“It has been found that TfL investigation showed that over 14,000 trips had been done with drivers who uploaded pictures to their account for which they were not registered to drive.

“With this news it will hopefully protect the livelihoods of Taxi firms, their drivers in all areas like Thurrock, Brentwood and Basildon.”

In a further statement by the TTDA they added: “We have had messages from Uber drivers working in Thurrock who are not happy with our statement. They claim 45,000 people could potentially be put out of work.

“Our answer to this is that there are plenty of cab firms in Thurrock wanting to hire drivers from all backgrounds. If you wish to continue to work in Thurrock please get in touch with your local Thurrock cab office where they will be more than happy to help you obtain a licence to work in Thurrock and for a local legal cab firm.”