York taxi drivers postpone strike after talks with LNER

The York City Taxi Association (YCTA) had planned to take strike action - involving drivers who service the station - between 11am and 1pm on Thursday, August 22.

Representatives of the YCTA told The Press that the strike was planned over concerns about Uber, the station's taxi rank, and treatment of permit holders - taxi drivers must hold a permit before they can pick up customers at the station rank. 

Arfan Asif, the chairman of YCTA, said ahead of the planned strike: "Despite the premium paid by taxi drivers to work at the station, Uber is allowed to pick up passengers next to the taxi rank at the drop-off point, which is unfair and undermines our business.

"The removal of the live stream TV screens, which were meant to update the rank, has further aggravated drivers.

"Permit holders are being overlooked, and there seems to be a consistent preference towards private hire companies for rail replacement work, even though these companies do not pay LNER or CMAC."

Permit holders, or holders of a council "hackney carriage and private hire drivers' licence" can charge customers for journeys, whether that's through pre-booked private hire vehicles - or taxis that can be booked spontaneously.

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The protest was planned to disrupt the busy Ladies Day at York Racecourse. However, station operators LNER, have met some of the YCTA's demands.

The taxi association said that LNER agreed to their demands regarding Uber and private hire pickups at the station, as well as agreeing to coordinate a meeting between taxi and Uber drivers, where both sets of drivers hope to work towards a method of coexisting.

The York Station Permit Holders Alliance said it "welcomed" LNER's decision to agree with demands, and that it looked forward to the upcoming meeting.

An LNER spokesperson said "We will continue our regular discussions with York City Taxi Association and remain committed to working with them to find a resolution."