Hackney Carriage Vehicle Licence
What is a Hackney Carriage Vehicle?
- A Hackney Carriage can park on an authorised taxi rank
- It can be booked for hire or be hailed by prospective
passengers within the boundaries of Cheshire East Council
- It will display white plates on the front and rear of the
vehicle
- It must be driven by a Cheshire East Council licensed driver at
all times, whether or not the vehicle is working
- It must have a fare meter (Fares are set by the
Council)
Zoning
Cheshire East Council has decided to introduce a system called
hackney carriage zones with effect from 1st April
2009.
The Council is therefore taking this opportunity to explain to
you what hackney carriage zoning means and how it will affect those
licence holders who either drive hackney carriages or are
proprietors of hackney carriages in the Cheshire East area.
Please note that the decision to introduce hackney
carriage zones has been taken and zoning does not form part of the
consultation exercise.
Why has Cheshire East introduced zones?
Since April 1st Cheshire East Council took over as the licensing
authority from the three local authorities of Congleton,
Macclesfield and Crewe & Nantwich.
The three authorities had widely differing policies for the
grant of hackney carriage licences. Because of the lack of time
available in which to devise and to consult upon a common hackney
carriage licensing policy before Cheshire East came into being,
Cheshire East Council took the decision, for the time being, to
organise its hackney carriage licensing on a system of three
zones.
The zones correspond to the areas of the three former
authorities.
What will be the effect of Zoning?
The effect of zoning will be to continue the licensing
arrangements for hackney carriages which the three former
authorities had in place immediately before Cheshire East came into
being on 1st April 2009 including existing tariffs,
byelaws and vehicle conditions.
It means that a hackney carriage licensed in one of the zones is
not allowed by law to ply for hire, including standing on ranks, in
either of the other zones.
Applications for licences will be dealt with according to the
same policies, conditions and byelaws that Congleton, Macclesfield
and Crewe & Nantwich respectively had in place on
31st March 2009.
How long will zoning last for?
It is not possible to say how long the arrangements for zoning
will last for. Cheshire East has undertaken to review the
arrangements for licensing hackney carriages during the next 12
months but it is not possible at this time to predict the likely
outcome. Licence holders will be consulted on any eventual
proposals to move away from the zoning arrangements
Will zoning affect private hire vehicles and operators?
No. The current arrangements of Congleton, Macclesfield and
Crewe & Nantwich for licensing private hire vehicles and
private hire operators ceased on 1st April
2009. All private hire licences granted or renewed on
or after 1st April 2009 will be subject to conditions
common across the whole of the Cheshire East area.
Application Forms and Guidance Notes
Please select a location from the map below to get the
apropriate forms and guidance.
