Conditions of licensing
The conditions for taxi licensing in over four hundred local authorities vary right across the UK.
The London Conditions of Fitness
The London Conditions of Fitness issued by the Public Carriage Office (PCO), part of Transport For London (TfL), do change regularly to reflect changes in technology.
In December 2005, TfL/PCO announced the latest review of the London Conditions. Further information can be found in PCO Notice 43/05 on the PCO website (this is a PDF document).
Type Approval
Type Approval is a system for testing and approving motor vehicles and for controlling conformity of production to be consistent with the approved type.
Since Type Approval deals primarily with vehicle safety, it is a relevant consideration for taxi licensing authorities.
It is not straightforward and knowing the differences between European Whole Vehicle Type Approval and Low Volume Type Approval can be difficult. Moreover, knowing what is not covered such as rear facing seats and wheelchair restraints is important.
Age Limits and emissions levels for different models of taxi (see Environmental issues).
Approving different types of accessible taxis
The outcome of the Conditions of Fitness 2003 details the Government's requirements for all new taxis. You can compare these to the accessibility features of the TX4.
Andrew Overton, LTI's Market Development Director who has been dealing with Local Authorities throughout England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland for over 15 years, would be happy to talk to you by phone, email or in person on any licensing condition issue.
Andrew Overton
Market Development Director
LTI Vehicles
Holyhead Road
Coventry
CV5 8JJ
024 7657 2264