Bid to relax psv licensing in rural areas
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A BILL which will relax the licensing of public service vehicles in rural areas has been given its first reading in the Commons.
Under the Bill, which was introduced on Tuesday by Mr Richard Luce MP, social cars and minibuses would have been allowed to pick up hire and reward passengers.
Mr Luce said that the legislation, which was brought in under the Ten-Minute Rule, had been designed to improve rural transport services and facilities.
"There is now a grave social problem in many country areas," said Mr Luce. This was due to the paucity of bus services, high fares and in particular the non-profitability of many routes.
He went on: "Many people who do not own cars are left marooned in their villages and entirely dependent on good neighbourliness for help."
The Bill contained proposals designed to overcome these problems without putting an extra load on the taxpayer. There had been too much talk: action was now needed to fulfil an urgent social need, Mr Luce commented.
All cars seating less than nine passengers would have been excluded from the licensing system under the Bill. Minibuses would also have been exempted from road service and psv licensing.
The only condition minibuses would have needed to meet before plying for hire and reward was that their routes would be complementary to the normal operation network and not in direct competition.