Cabbies' fury over stone-throwing attacks on Bradford taxis

Now frustrated taxi drivers are planning strike action on Nelson Street in the city centre next week.

Taxi drivers are angry about stones being thrown at their vehicles in Bradford (Image: Newsquest)

One driver, Sajid Akram, told the T&A of his shock after his car was hit by two stones thrown by youths near the BP Petrol Station and Winston Churchill pub on Wakefield Road.

Mr Akram said: "They threw two stones, one that shattered my windscreen and one that broke the passenger side window.

"They threw two stones and then just disappeared," said Mr Akram. "I had three passengers in the back of the car. We all got a shock.

"What if someone had got hit in the head and crashed into a barrier? They could end up killing somebody."

A spokesperson for West Yorkshire Police said: "We’ve recorded a crime of criminal damage. Enquiries ongoing."

Damage caused by a stone thrown at a taxi (Image: Newsquest)

Habib Nawaz, a member of the Bradford Taxi Association, said: "We're going to do a strike action at 10.30am next Tuesday (October 11). The hackney carriage drivers will be taking strike action on Nelson Street.

"The police are not helping taxi drivers," said Mr Nawaz. "We've reported incidents that are happening on the emergency number, but then we've been told we should ring 101. By the time police show up the person is gone. If police are not taking any action, what's the point of going to police?"

The taxi drivers said stone-throwing incidents have been a problem on Wakefield Road and in the Holme Wood area.

Mohammed Kamran Khan, who works for Zip Cars, on Tong Street, said: "These incidents have happened several times in the Holme Wood area and now they're happening on Wakefield Road.

"Taxi drivers are sick to death of this," said Mr Khan, whose car was hit by stones on Wakefield Road on the evening of September 25.

“We report these incidents to police, but they never ring back to follow it up.

"All of the drivers are stressing that they can't work at night. It's affecting out livelihood and lifestyle.

"They target taxi drivers because they can see our vehicles coming from far away. Last night I was scared to work."

Ken Ives, owner of Zip Cars, said: "I've started to compensate drivers whose cars have been vandalised to offer them an incentive to continue serving the area.

"If all my drivers would leave because of these incidents, it would be even more costly for me."

"They're treating us like third class citizens," said Mohammed Arshad, a taxi driver who had a windscreen broken. "We are scared to go to these areas."

Taxi driver Nijabat Ali said: "I'm disappointed with police but what can you do?"

Another driver Umar Ayub added: "We look out for people throwing stones in case they're hanging about, and sometimes we take longer ways around."

Driver Mansha Khan said: "A few weeks back a stone was thrown at my car and I had a passenger in the vehicle.

"The frightening thing for me is the passenger's safety. If it caught them in the head, it could have caused some serious damage."

Driver Azhar Iqbal said: "My car was badly damaged when it was hit by a stone on the ring road at Bierley roundabout.

"It was a heavy stone and I had a passenger in the car at the time they would have been injured."

Cllr Abdul Jabar, portfolio holder for neighbourhoods and community safety, said: "Any form of anti-social behaviour is completely unacceptable. As ever it’s a small number of people causing a significant amount of damage and stress for the law-abiding majority.

"Everyone should have the right to live free of anti-social behaviour and we strongly support the police in tackling it wherever it appears.

"We will be discussing these latest incidents with our partners to ensure every possible action is being taken to crack down on this behaviour and support people to go about their daily business in peace."

Cllr Hassan Khan (Lab, Bowling and Barkerend) said: "They're targeting taxi drivers, so there is concern from councillors about this sort of behaviour.

"If anything goes wrong, somebody could get killed. Police need to take action.

"There needs to be more patrols in the area. Police should write a letter to local households, and give some type of warning.

"The taxi drivers are right to be upset when no one is listening to them.

"We need proper action on this matter. Their lives and vehicle are being threatened."

A spokesperson for West Yorkshire Police acknowledged the incident reported on Wakefield Road last week, but added: "We haven't recorded any criminal damage incidents in the Holme Wood area in the last six weeks."

Have you got a story for us? Email newsdesk@telegraphandargus.co.uk or contact us here.

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to keep up with all the latest news.

Sign up to our newsletter to get updates sent straight to your inbox.

You can also call us on 01274 705292.