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Cameras offer to town taxi drivers
Taxi drivers will be given the chance to buy discounted CCTV equipment to help keep them safe in their cabs.
Nine mini CCTV systems are being bought by Wellingborough Council and cabbies will be able to pay just over half the cost to have one in their car.
Money generated from cabbies buying the nine systems will be put back into buying more CCTV systems to offer to other taxi drivers in the borough.
The systems cost around 500 and drivers will be asked to put up about 280.
The news of the new CCTV systems comes against a background of attacks on taxi drivers locally over the past few months.
Last month a driver was hit in the face with a glass bottle and had his car window smashed. The private hire taxi driver had picked up three men from Burton Latimer who asked to be taken to Wellingborough.
In February a taxi driver was taking a man to Wellingborough when he had a knife held to his throat and his takings stolen.
Taxi driver Shahid Ahmed escaped injury when a petrol bomb was thrown
at his car in December.
And in November cabbie Samuel Obeng was beaten so severely that his family and workmates could barely recognise him.
Chairman of Wellingborough Hackney Carriage Association Barry Liffen said: "The drivers think it's extremely good value but they say at the moment they can't afford it.
"That may be a false economy because of the amount of robberies.
"We are pleased that the council has really pushed this and got a really good price for us.
"There are some drivers considering it."
Mr Liffen said he believed drivers who used the CCTV systems would have to display a sign indicating this, which he said could also act as a deterrent.
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Sunday 27 May 2012
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