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Taxi Statistics UK
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Taxi Statistics UK
According to NimbleFins analysis of data from the Department for Transport, in the ten years leading up to 2023, the number of taxis and private hire vehicles (PHVs) on the road in the UK has increased by a third. Powered largely by the rise of cab-hailing apps like Uber, there are now more vehicles carrying paying passengers than at any other time in British history.
We’ve analyzed the past ten years worth of data sourced from the Office of National Statistics to see how the market has evolved, breaking down vehicle types and driver licencing both nationally and regionally.
Number of Taxis in England
In 2023, there were 289,393 total taxis and PHV’s licenced to operate in England. This represents a roughly 33% increase in the numbers licenced in the past ten years. While PHV licencing has continued to accelerate (growing by over 90,000 in the ten years to 2023, representing growth of 64%), driven by the growth of companies like Uber and Bolt, taxi licencing has started to decline, down nearly 20,000 in ten years, a drop of 25%.
| Year | Taxis | PHV’s | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 76,600 | 141,800 | 218,300 |
| 2015 | 79,500 | 158,300 | 237,800 |
| 2017 | 75,400 | 202,300 | 277,700 |
| 2018 | 72,800 | 211,900 | 284,700 |
| 2019 | 70,600 | 221,400 | 292,000 |
| 2020 | 67,900 | 230,900 | 298,800 |
| 2021 | 58,320 | 192,786 | 251,106 |
| 2022 | 57,991 | 202,569 | 260,560 |
| 2023 | 57,225 | 232,168 | 289,393 |
Number of Taxis in London
There were around 114,900 taxis and private hire vehicles in London. This is almost a 90% increase in total numbers since 2005. Like the rest of the country, PHV licencing has continued to grow rapidly—adding over 33,000 licenced PHV’s since 2015.
Taxi licencing, however, has shown rapid signs of decline, down 3,500 in the last 5 years. There’s no doubt that the growing popularity of ride-sharing apps has put the squeeze on black cab drivers.
| Year | Taxis | PHV’s | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 22,200 | 49,900 | 72,000 |
| 2015 | 22,500 | 62,800 | 85,300 |
| 2017 | 21,300 | 87,817 | 109,100 |
| 2018 | 21,026 | 88,413 | 109,400 |
| 2019 | 20,136 | 88,113 | 108,200 |
| 2020 | 18,961 | 95,955 | 114,900 |
| 2021 | 13,423 | 77,529 | 90,952 |
| 2022 | 14,625 | 80,495 | 95,120 |
| 2023 | 15,120 | 89,575 | 104,695 |
It's probably fair to say that London has led the UK-wide trend in the declining popularity of taxis, with a number of popular taxi and ride-sharing apps available to residents.
Number of Black Cabs
The LEVC is now the most popular black cab in the UK. As of September 2023, thee were 8,904 LEVCs licensed in Great Britain, followed extremely closely by 8,874 TX4s. Next most numerous are TXIIs, with just 420 registered, and 230 TX1s. Only 33 Metrocabs are still licensed to drive.
| Types of Black Cabs in the UK | Number |
|---|---|
| LEVC | 8,908 |
| TX4 | 8,874 |
| TXII | 420 |
| TX1 | 230 |
| Metrocab | 33 |
In addition, some black cabs are Mercedes Vitos. There are over 100,000 of these licensed in Great Britain, but they aren't all operating as black cabs.
How many taxis are there in each region of England?
Wheelchair Accessible
London is by far and away England's leader in wheelchair accessibility, with local licensing authority Transport for London mandating that all taxis must be wheelchair accessible. PHVs, popular with lift-hailing app drivers, lag behind considerably—probably as most PHV vehicles are non-modified road vehicles, like a Toyota Prius.
| Region | Wheelchair Accessible Taxis | Wheelchair Accessible PHV’s | Total Wheelchair Accessible Vehicles |
|---|---|---|---|
| North East | 714 | 294 | 1,008 |
| North West | 4,716 | 647 | 5,363 |
| Yorkshire and the Humber | 1,646 | 477 | 2,123 |
| East Midlands | 1,301 | 421 | 1,722 |
| West Midlands | 2,850 | 559 | 3,409 |
| East | 1,640 | 864 | 2,504 |
| London | 15,120 | 451 | 15,571 |
| South East | 2,202 | 975 | 3,177 |
| South West | 1,274 | 397 | 1,671 |
| England | 38,900 | 4,700 | 43,600 |
Total Taxis/Vehicles
Unsurprisingly, London again leads the way, with well over double the number of taxis and triple the number of PHVs as the next closest regions. The North East has under 10% of the total number of taxis and PHVs, which speaks to the capital's affinity for fast and convenient transport.
| Region | Total Taxis | Total PHVs | Total Vehicles |
|---|---|---|---|
| North East | 3,274 | 7,150 | 10,424 |
| North West | 7,414 | 27,257 | 34,671 |
| Yorkshire and the Humber | 3,461 | 19,332 | 22,793 |
| East Midlands | 4,385 | 8,948 | 13,333 |
| West Midlands | 4,298 | 37,365 | 41,663 |
| East | 5,656 | 13,513 | 19,169 |
| London | 19,000 | 96,000 | 115,000 |
| South East | 8,418 | 18,971 | 27,389 |
| South West | 5,199 | 10,057 | 15,256 |
| England | 57,225 | 232,168 | 289,393 |
How many taxi drivers are there in England
There are around 365,000 licenced taxi and private hire drivers in England as of 2020. This is made up of roughly 130,000 taxi drivers and 315,000 PHV drivers (keep in mind that some licensing authorities allow drivers to hold both, or offer combined licences). This represents over a 50% increase in the number of registered drivers since 2005.
| Year | Taxi Licences | PHV Licences | Total Licences |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 131,700 | 223,700 | 285,800 |
| 2015 | 133,600 | 235,700 | 297,200 |
| 2017 | 138,900 | 295,800 | 356,000 |
| 2018 | 137,900 | 303,800 | 361,400 |
| 2019 | 135,819 | 309,105 | 362,700 |
| 2020 | 131,194 | 315,028 | 364,900 |
| 2021 | 123,634 | 296,787 | 420,421 |
| 2022 | 116,054 | 290,375 | 406,429 |
| 2023 | 114,298 | 309,482 | 423,780 |
How many taxi drivers are there in London?
There are just under 105,000 licenced taxi and PHV drivers in London. This is made up of roughly 15,000 taxi drivers and 90,000 PHV drivers. Unlike other licencing authorities, Transport for London requires drivers to obtain separate licences for each, meaning a PHV driver couldn’t just step behind the wheel of a traditional black cab and vice versa.
| Year | Taxi Licences | PHV Licences | Total Licences |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 24,500 | 117,700 | 142,200 |
| 2020 | 22,400 | 111,600 | 134,000 |
| 2023 | 15,120 | 89,575 | 104,695 |
How many accidents do London taxis have per year?
In the first three quarters of 2023, London-based taxi and PHV drivers were involved in an average of 970 collisions. Of these, 619 collisions involved a taxi and 351 involved a PHV.
Overall, give there are around 105,000 taxis and PHVs in London, the accident rate for taxis and PHVs averages to 9.3 collisions per 1,000 vehicles.
The accident rate appears to be much larger for taxis than PHVs. With 619 collisions and 15,120 registered vehicles in London, taxis have an accident rate of 40.9 collisions per 1,000 vehicles in the first three quarters of 2023. The rate for PHVs is only 3.9 collisions per 1,000 vehicles. Perhaps the large discrepancy is driven by taxis logging more miles per vehicle.
| London Taxi & PHV Collisions | # Collisions | # Registered Vehicles | # Collisions per 1,000 Registered Vehicles |
|---|---|---|---|
| Taxi | 619 | 15,120 | 40.9 |
| Private Hire | 351 | 89,575 | 3.9 |
| Taxi + PHV | 970 | 104,695 | 9.3 |