Hunt for funding to extend Oswestry safe taxi scheme
Tuesday 8th March 2011, 8:55PM GMT.
A pilot project to cut anti-social behaviour in Oswestry by ensuring revellers get into taxis safely has been such a success that council bosses are trying to find funding for it to continue.
The taxi-marshalling scheme was trialled by Shropshire Council over the Christmas and new year period, and it could now become a regular fixture in the town centre.
Over the festive period two Security Industry Authority registered marshalls stood at the taxi rank, ensuring people acted sensibly while waiting for a taxis.
Councillor Martin Bennett, Shropshire Council member for Oswestry East, said the idea was that the potential for trouble could be reduced by helping people to queue for taxis and combating any public disorder.
“I welcome the initiative as helping to ensure that people have a safe end to an evening out in Oswestry,” he said. “I hope that funding can be found to enable it to continue.”
Councillor Cecilia Motley, the council’s cabinet member responsible for licensing, said: “It’s pleasing to see that this scheme has been successful, and we will have to wait and see if funding can be found to make it a regular feature.”
The council is now exploring whether funding can be secured to have two marshalls stationed in Willow Street on weekend nights on a regular basis in the future.
During the pilot stewards were employed on Fridays and Saturdays in Willow Street, close to Oswestry night time pubs and clubs.
Oswestry police inspector Jim Stafford said: “The idea of taxi marshalling was to make sure the public who haven’t booked a taxi could find the next available one on the rank. It got people away from the area quickly and stopped the town centre blocking up.”
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Why not get the pub and clubs to split the cost of the service, there the ones who sometimes keep on serving people when they have had enough.
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This sounds like a good idea, just make sure the Marshals are able to be contacted by the Taxis for back-up in case of mischief.
I worry about the unnecessary long licensing hours of the new Nightclub due to open.
We in Brisbane, a City, have found such hours are trouble times.
For instance, apart from the drunkenness, Thursday night is not the END of the working week. Sunday is the night before the working week begins. Such nights people should be encouraged to be in bed at a reasonable hour.
Spare a thought for their bosses and the police.
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