A fare deal?

So it is all the more surprising that a deep fracture running through Southampton's taxi trade over the new proposed fare hike threatens to spill over into a public row.

Angry independent cabbies say the latest hikes are unjustified and threaten to kill their trade. Drivers spoke out after Southampton City Council and taxi bosses announced last week that fares were to rise for the seventh year in succession.

As part of the rise, the initial charge will leap from £2 to £2.90 during the day and from £2.75 to £3.90 at night. But distance covered by this new starting fare will also be extended from 110m to 550m.

The overall cost of a typical two mile journey will go up 10p (1.92 per cent) and a five-mile trip will go up 30p (3.26 per cent).

However, drivers say they were never consulted over the rise and called for the council to throw out the proposal. This week the Daily Echo learned that the rise has become so divisive that it will be reviewed.

The bitter row highlights the divide between "journeymen drivers" who rent cars, independent drivers who own a single cab and the big companies which control fleets.

Strict controls over the complex Southampton taxi trade has created a taboo culture around the volatile issue of fare increases and the value of licensed taxis.

Lucrative hackney carriage plates - cabs that can be hailed in the street or at taxi ranks - are limited to 263 by Southampton City Council. However, there are no limits on private vehicles - which have to be pre-booked - and 409 operate.

The Daily Echo can reveal that council-owned hackney carriage plates swap hands for as much as £35,000 and multi-plate owners - some of whom own a dozen cabs - rent their cars to drivers for up to £430 a week.

The weekly rental for a hackney carriage kept on the road 24 hours a day, seven days a week by two drivers is about £180 for day shifts and up to £250 for night shifts.

An experienced Southampton independent driver said cabbies were split over the proposal to raise fares.

"We are never consulted about these proposed rises and we are quite happy as fares stand," he said.

"These people who propose the fare increases have not driven a taxi for a number of years and do not know or understand what is required by the taxi drivers of Southampton.

"Taxi drivers of this city are not just out to rip people off, but to give a good and affordable service to everyone."

Another angry independent driver said: "My problem is that when it's introduced and the passenger sees £2.90 on the meter, we're the ones who have to explain it."

While it was the council which requested the new flat fare structure, it was the taxi bosses who called for the overall hike to cover rising petrol costs, insurance and replacement vehicles.

Transport and General Workers Cab Section chairman Perry McMillan said many drivers only learned of the news by reading it in the Daily Echo on Monday, August 20.

"Clearly there has not been enough consultation," he said.

"We need to contact all the drivers before a decision is made with the council because it is the drivers who are on the frontline and have to explain the rise to customers.

"However, if the drivers care enough they have to be prepared to take time off work, attend the meetings and get involved in the decision-making themselves."

Mr McMillan said the union would not object to the proposal as the trade "had to keep a united front" over the issue. He added that an overall fare increase was needed, as drivers were "entitled to a wage increase like everyone else".

Fares have risen every year in Southampton since 2001, when the flag fare was just £1.40 during the day and £2 at night.

No two tariffs are the same in Britain as the 377 authorities each set their own.

Based on an average two-mile fare, Southampton currently sits 52nd in the National Tariff League Table, which is updated each month by Private Hire and Taxi Monthly.

Based on the proposed rise, Southampton would leapfrog Eastleigh to have the 34th most expensive tariff in the country.

Councils in Bournemouth, Basingstoke, New Forest, Poole, Portsmouth, East Hampshire, Gosport and the Isle of Wight all set cheaper fares. However, costs vary over longer and shorter distances.

Private Hire and Taxi Monthly editor Bryan Roland congratulated the council on changing the "confusing" flat fare structure.

"This is not a dramatic increase. All they are doing is sorting their tariffs for the public. The current system is ludicrous, it's conning passengers. I mean how many people get in a taxi to travel 110m?

"Tariff sheets are supposed to advise and protect the public from overcharging, but they are so difficult to understand that the average member of public would have to take a professor of mathematics with them to work it out."

The new maximum fare will only apply to hackney carriages. Private hire vehicles are free to set their own charges - although most choose to follow the hackney carriage table of fares.

Southampton Taxi Trade Council (STTC) chairman Clive Johnson, who negotiated the rise, said the council asked for the simplification of the flat fare structure and admitted some drivers had not been consulted.

"The council requested this change and rather than hold up the fare increase we decided to go along with it," he said.

Mr Johnson added that most drivers would "struggle to make ends meet" if fares did not increase annually.

"We have to have (a rise) every year because the cost of living increases and the cost of fuel increases," he said.

"I'll guarantee that the guys complaining are the ones down on Town Quay. They don't get involved, they just cause problems. I've got no time for them to be honest. Our main concern is looking after the public."

The STTC represents the interests of the city's major taxi and private hire firms including Radio Taxis, ATC, Streamline and Shirley Cars.

Mr Johnson is also chairman of Radio Taxis - the biggest firm in Southampton - which has a mixture of hackney carriages and private hire vehicles.

According to the company's June newsletter, Radio Taxis increased its job figures by seven per cent in the first four months of this year. Mr Johnson said the business boom was down to more taxi and private hire cars joining the firm.

Drivers told the Daily Echo that the STTC did not reflect the interests of independent drivers and called on the council to consult drivers before making the new maximum fares a bylaw.

A statement from the city council said: "We are currently in a period of consultation on the proposed increases in taxi fares for hackney carriages, so it is inappropriate for us to comment further until the outcome is known. In the meantime we welcome people's comments. Please send them to licensing@southampton.gov.uk."

The new charges have been put out to consultation and, if there are no objections, will come into force on October 8.