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City's £3000-a-week taxi bill

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Published Date: 11 June 2008
CITY council officials are spending nearly £3000 a week on taxis, new figures have revealed.
Officers attending meetings on council business spent a total of £147,565 on taxis last year – with the services for communities department accounting for a third of all journeys.

Councillors' expenses only make up around three per cent of the overall taxi bill.

The taxi bill for council staff has dropped from £166,427 in 2006/07 but opposition politicians and environmental groups today hit out at the expense and called on officials to start using public transport.

The spend on taxis was revealed after a question by Labour's Lesley Hinds at the last full council meeting.

Jim Inch, Director of Corporate Services said: "Council officers may use taxis when attending meetings or carrying out other essential council business, provided there are no other means to get them there."





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  • Last Updated: 11 June 2008 11:19 AM
  • Source: Edinburgh Evening News
  • Location: Edinburgh
 
1

Hmm ...,

11/06/2008 12:32:37
... I understood that the City Car Clubs main customer was council workers who need the use of a car.

Is that only for low grade employees, their bosses being permitted to use taxis as a status issue?

Or is the City Car Club once again defunct?
2

Bring Back Poll Tax,

11/06/2008 12:34:19
Jim Inch, Director of Corporate Services said: "Council officers may use taxis when attending meetings or carrying out other essential council business, provided there are no other means to get them there."

But don't we have the UK's best bus service? - what bits of Edinburgh are therefore inaccessible - we should be told!

never mind, in a few years they can all have tram passes - oh no wait, that only covers the No 22 route.

I say, if taxis are good enough for council staff then they're good enough for the rest of us - why not spend the £500M (and climbing) on providing taxi vouchers to Edinburgh's Council Tax payers instead.
3

,

11/06/2008 12:34:55
Comment Removed By Administrator
Reason:
4

Busy bus user ,

Edinburgh 11/06/2008 12:44:44
£147,565 is an awful lot of taxis. I wonder where all these meetings are? With an excellent bus service and a lot of Council corporate transport as well it is quite remarkable that officials consider that a taxi is the only means of getting to a meeting.

Come to think of it, I regularly see people wearing Council ID cards around their neck on the commuter trains, but I've never seen one on a bus..........
5

JulesF,

11/06/2008 12:54:58
I propose all future council engagements should be held within walking distance of the tram line. And that ALL council employees should be forced to take the train set.
That should save a few quid!
6

steve 1511,

aberdeen 11/06/2008 14:01:58
is it only meetings when alchol and other such perks are served and consumed by council workers at the expense of the taxpayer,are they allowed a taxi to take them home due to them being to blootered to get there on their own,or are they allowed a taxi when consuming alchol supplied by private firms who get them blootered trying to gain favour from council staff
7

KIRKY COOK,

Kirkliston 11/06/2008 15:15:36
As one of the cooks from a MOTHBALLED kitchen I only get 12.05p per mile to run my private car to get me to my new place of employment,8 mile per day!!
And there is no bus to arrive on time to start work.
Hardly seems fair to me.
Do the council know how much fuel and wear and tear cost?


8

Alternative (High Octane) Fuel Head,

Edinburgh 11/06/2008 17:22:39
I wonder how much it would have cost if they had used their private cars instead? Assuming or course, that there was somewhere to park once they got there, that would be a feasible alternative.

However, the council are anti-car and therefore there is unlikely to be any parking available, which means they have to take taxis as the alternatives are too slow.

One stupid restriction leads to another expense. When are they going to wake up, see sense and stop this mindless war against the motorist?
9

Finbarr Saunders,

11/06/2008 19:17:35
Most of the Council workers who use taxis to get to meetings are bang out of order. It's far too easy to call a contract taxi to travel to another office for a meeting. 99% of these journeys could be made by bus or on foot. The Council's auditors should take a much closer look at this wastage.

#7 - Kirsty Cook - I see that your name matches your occupation. I wonder how many other people are lucky enough to have an occupation that matches their surname?


 

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