Hundreds of London taxi drivers have been demonstrating against a council scheme which allows licensed minicabs to queue for passengers around Leicester Square.
Minicabs are normally only allowed to accept bookings via a licensed office, however a scheme endorsed by Westminster City Council and the Metropolitan Police allows cars to wait at a bus lane in Whitcomb Street, Leicester Square and accept rides booked in a nearby booth.
Today’s protest was organised by the London Taxi Drivers Association (LTDA) and the London Cab Drivers Club (LCDC) and is expected to be the first of several.
Traffic around Trafalgar Square and Whitehall was disrupted as hundreds of cabs conducted a “drive-in” protest.
Westminster Council said the marshall scheme “is about getting people home safely at night”, adding: “there is no room for protectionist trade measures where this kind of safety is concerned.”
