Judges overthrow “flawed” low traffic scheme ruling, Taxi orgs to pay costs

Transport for London will now be due payment of all legal costs on the case brought by the Licensed Taxi Driver’s Association and the United Trade Action Group. The cab body was unhappy that road space was handed to cyclists, yet now finds itself seemingly unable to appeal further, liable for all legal costs and lumped with an initial bill of £50,000, due within a fortnight.
“They were not universally popular, but we think it would be extraordinary and not right for a court to condemn them as extreme or ill-considered, especially during the pandemic.”
The Bishopsgate scheme in particular maintained taxi access to transport hub Liverpool Street, but gave buses and cyclists rights to use dedicated new spaces on weekdays, to which the taxi org drew ire. The Standard reports that around 6,000 cyclists use the stretch daily and around 700 per hour at peak times. The scheme’s intention was to encourage greater levels of active travel as Covid spread in order to limit contact on enclosed transport forms.