Taxi drivers have accused a council committee of ignoring police advice and government regulations to grant permission for a three-wheeler Tuk Tuk taxi service.

Members of the Windermere and Ambleside Taxi Association are angry that the vehicle, common in Far Eastern cities, has been awarded a Private Hire licence.

Mark Routledge, of Churchill's Hotel and Bar, in Ambleside, won permission to use the three-wheeler as a taxi from South Lakeland District Council's licensing committee.

Mr Routledge said this week the Tuk Tuk was as "safe as houses" and that any criticism was "sour grapes."

The taxi association said the Tuk Tuk did not comply with the requirements for Private Hire vehicles, which state:

l The vehicle must have two doors for passengers and a third for the driver.

l It must have four road wheels and be a right-hand drive.

l The engine capacity should be 75bhp and 150cc.

l A luggage compartment is required.

A spokesman for the association, who asked not to be named, said that the Tuk Tuk, already licensed in Bath, had three wheels, no doors, a 650cc engine and no luggage space.

"They have re-written the rules. The rules and regulations stipulate four wheels, two doors and 1500 cc engine. If I was to take a Robin Reliant and try to get a licence they would laugh at me.

"The crux of the matter is that it is there in black and white that it must have doors and it needs to have four wheels - something seriously seems to have gone amiss."

Roger Mallett, road traffic management officer for Cumbria Police, had expressed his concern about the vehicle in his representation to the committee,

Mr Mallett wrote: "I would have serious safety concerns for passengers travelling in this vehicle in the event of a collision."

He explained this was due to the lack of doors and "proper" roof protection.

The committee granted the application providing the Tuk Tuk passed Department of Transport Single Vehicle Approval tests, was fitted with seatbelts, does not travel over 30mph, does not carry unaccompanied children under 11 and does not carry more than four people in the back.

Mr Routledge said the vehicle was a novelty ride and that it would be used for shorter scenic journeys.

He said the concern expressed by the police was "one person's opinion," and that he was satisfied it was safe because of the tests it needed to undergo.

Mr Routledge explained that it was tested as a foreign vehicle, and also had to undergo the Single Vehicle Approval test run by the DVLA, along with an SLDC Private License vehicle MOT.

Licensing committee chairman Dave Miller said the committee had initial concerns about the vehicle but, having seen it close-up, decided it was more robust than the photograph showed.

Coun Miller said the issue was discussed at length and the decision was not taken lightly with additional stipulations attached that traditional taxis do not have to adhere to.

Coun Miller said: "He is not going to be running around in it at midnight. It will be on summer evenings down to Waterhead. It has still got to come up to certain standards."

Of Mr Mallett's concerns, Mr Miller said: "If he had come and had a look at it, he might have changed his views."

February 13, 2003 12:01