06:35PM, Thursday 05 February 2026
Councillors will be asked to make a final decision on plans to increase daytime taxi fares in the Royal Borough – after the proposals were ‘misunderstood’ by some drivers.
The Hackney carriage drivers’ tariff was last increased in 2022.
A group of drivers put forward a petition calling on the council to approve a 10 per cent price increase for the day fare.
They also wanted to see an increase for the minimum day fare from £6 to £7
There would be no change in price for the nighttime fare, which is in effect from 11pm to 6am and on bank holidays.
At a Royal Borough licensing panel meeting in October last year, councillors voted in favour of the proposed increase before it went out for a 14-day public consultation.
The tariff for a two-mile journey was lower in the borough than in all other Berkshire local authorities and most other neighbouring authorities, a report said.
But a handful of residents objected to the tariff changes during the consultation.
One objection said: “The wider RBWM strategies require a modal shift towards walkable towns. For this to succeed, there will need to be a greater use of taxis and public transport, as well as walking.
“The minimum fare is pricing people like myself out of the market unfairly. It sends a signal that affordable taxis are not generally available.”
It added the previous increase to the minimum fare from £3 to £6 put taxis ‘out of daily reach’ and turned them into ‘a luxury on any day’.
A report due to go before councillors at a licensing panel meeting on Monday (February 9), also said some drivers ‘misunderstood’ the changes to the fares.
It said some drivers believed that the minimum fare when using the 1b or 2b tariff – a higher price that applies to carriages carrying larger groups of people – should be 50 per cent higher than the standard minimum fare.
But Royal Borough officers said a 50 per cent rise in the minimum fare, on top of the 50 per cent surcharge for journey rates when carrying more people, would be ‘excessive and unfair’ on passengers.
The report added: “The intention was that the minimum fare, currently £6, would be the same for all vehicles and should not be 50 per cent more for people carriers carrying five or more passengers, i.e. £9.”
The report also acknowledged that people with mobility problems, who are more likely to use Hackney carriages, would be ‘disproportionately affected’ by an increase in the tariff.
Councillors will make a final decision on the fares at the meeting.
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