A STAGGERING 97 taxis were ordered off the road by Greater Manchester Police following the first force-wide traffic safety initiative for hackney taxis and private hire vehicles.

The shock figures show that more than one in eight taxis examined during the initiative was found to be unroadworthy.

Inspections were carried out by Greater Manchester Police's traffic network section along with local authority licensing departments, the Department of Transport Vehicle Inspectorate, the Benefits Agency and the National Insurance Contributions agency.

Taxis were stop-checked to ensure their general roadworthiness.

The results show that out of 760 vehicles stopped, 97 were immediately suspended from operating, with 143 referred for further testing and 167 served with vehicle defect advisory notices.

In addition, checks were also made on the other legal requirements of taxis, such as fire extinguishers, first aid kits and correct local authority licensing. The documentation of the drivers was also examined in a bid to crack down on benefit fraud.

The campaign co-ordinator, Inspector Duncan Grundy of North Manchester divisional traffic unit, said: "The initiative was undertaken with the support of both private hire and hackney drivers across Greater Manchester and was well received by passengers who, despite the inconvenience, understood the need for the short delays in their journeys.

"It also enabled us to remind the public that private hire vehicles can only be hired by prior booking and may not be insured if flagged down."

He added: "While I am concerned that we found it necessary to suspend more than one in eight vehicles from operating, the standard displayed by the majority of drivers, particularly those of hackney carriages, was very good and reinforced our impression of improving standards within the taxi industry.

"Greater Manchester Police is keen to help rid the taxi industry of a minority of irresponsible drivers who abuse the system and give the others a bad name."

Mr Grundy went on: "By using a multi-agency approach to improving safety, we want to ensure that the public can continue to use taxis with confidence as an alternative to their cars. We will certainly be repeating this operation."

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