EFFORTS to relax rules on how much experience cab drivers need to get a licence in Stockton have been rejected to keep “boy racers” away. 

Stockton Council requires motorists to hold a full driving licence for at least three years to become a private hire driver – or ply for hire in a Hackney Carriage.

But councillors were asked to consider reducing this to 12 months at Stockton Town Hall on Tuesday morning after concerns from four Teesside firms about a lack of drivers coming through.

Other authorities in the Tees Valley only require drivers to hold a licence for a year to drive a cab. Stockton is more stringent. 

Cllr Norma Stephenson, member for Hardwick and Salters Lane, wanted to see the rules relaxed – with fears drivers were opting to get cheaper licences from other councils like Wolverhampton. She added: “We’re the only council which does this and I think it’s part of the reason people are going to places like Wolverhampton (Council) to get a licence. Looking at the background, we’ve got enough security there to deal with boy racers. 

“It’s not as simple as saying if you’ve had a licence for a year, you can drive a car – there is more to it than that.

"But if we don’t want to do ourselves out of trade, we cannot continue to make ourselves the most difficult place to get it. 

"I don’t think there’d be many boy racers applying to be a taxi driver – if they’ve been driving for a year and have no convictions, I think we should give them a chance.”

StationCars, Skyline, Teesside Cars Ltd and Tees Valley Cabs Ltd lodged the request for the three year edict to be eased. Their letter stated it was causing problems in recruiting new drivers – and was a reason why operators were getting their licences elsewhere. 

It added: “Making entry into the taxi trade easier will not only help relieve the financial pressures on operators but will also encourage them to obtain licences from Stockton.”

Former policeman Cllr Ken Dixon disagreed with the move. “Experience of driving comes with driving,” he said. "They don’t take the test on a night-time – they don’t park properly and you need to know the etiquette of the road and the Highway Code. Three years is adequate.”

The chamber heard data hadn’t been collected to gauge whether the one-year policy had any impact on accidents or the number of licences revoked elsewhere in the Tees Valley. The council set the three year rule in 2014.