The 23-vehicle O-Licence held by Dealtop (Plymouth), trading as Target Travel, has been revoked from 16 February by Traffic Commissioner (TC) Kevin Rooney (pictured) after it used buses that did not comply with PSVAR on a local service, among other matters.
Dealing with the PSVAR issue, Mr Rooney said that his office received a letter on 9 August 2019 from Devon County Council.
It raised concerns that the company has used non-compliant vehicles on public bus services on multiple occasions during June and July 2019.
“The use of an inaccessible bus on a registered service shows a clear contempt for those passengers who have mobility issues,” says the TC.
“The Disability Discrimination Act was designed to end such discrimination. In breaking PSVAR, Director Robert Risk has clearly discriminated between those who can climb steps onto a bus and those who cannot.” Mr Rooney also took account of a failure to meet the financial standing requirements.
He additionally said that he could not ignore the condition of a bus involved in an accident while in service. While its defects did not contribute to the crash, they were dangerous and could well have done so under different circumstances.
Finally, the TC said that he was minded to disqualify the company and its constituent Directors from playing any part in the control of any entity holding a PSV O-Licence for a period of between one and three years. He invited submissions on that matter.
A full account of the Target Travel case will be published in a future Court Report.
