Gateshead Metropolitan Borough Council

Taxi Licensing

 The Council provides licensing of all taxi drivers and their and has 722 licensed drivers and 690 licensed vehicles.

The problem is the process is virtually entirely paper based and time consuming for officers and many taxi drivers are reluctant to engage digitally.

However, taxi drivers are frustrated with the need to provide identification and submit paper forms in person.

The application process is time consuming for staff and so public safety which is the purpose of the licensing regime can be compromised.

We want to:

Find out why many taxi drivers are reluctant to engage digitally. Typically, many drivers don’t provide mobile numbers, email addresses, bank account details and pay by cash.

Review the process for licensing, which is currently largely paper based, to identify how a digital process could assist back office efficiency

Produce assets that will be reusable by other local authorities. In particular, we aim to produce:

• A user research report that gives us an understanding about the most effective way to engage with taxi drivers digitally through applications, payments and license renewals
• A report that will provide recommendations for improving the application and renewal process
• A to-be user journey map