SAFETY fears about cabbies getting their licences from across the Pennines could soon be a thing of the past, as a council tightens its rules.

About 200 private hire cars operating in Bradford hold hackney carriage licences from the Lancashire borough of Rossendale, where driver and vehicle checks are said to be less stringent.

Now Rossendale Council plans to stop giving licences to drivers intending to work outside its own patch, after coming under pressure from worried council bosses in Bradford.

Last year, Bradford Council deputy leader Councillor Val Slater urged the public not to get into cabs licensed in Rossendale, because of safety fears.

As well as having different rules, Rossendale cars are also immune from spot-checks by Bradford's licensing enforcement team.

Now, under the planned changes, anyone applying for a licence at Rossendale will be asked where they intend to work.

If drivers say they want to work outside of that borough, then it is likely that the licence will not be granted.

Existing Rossendale licences can still be used for up to 18 months, until they need to be renewed.

A spokesman for Rossendale Council said the change was due to be finalised later this month.

She said they would work closely with other local authorities to enforce the rules and would "consider revoking licences where there is clear evidence they are predominantly working outside of the borough".

Cllr Slater yesterday welcomed Rossendale Council's announcement, saying she had been pressing for this policy change for some time.

She said: "Our position is that the safety of taxi users is paramount and this move should eventually ensure that anyone using licensed taxis in the Bradford district can be confident that the drivers and vehicles are properly checked for safety and insured for the area in which they operate."

It is legal for hackney carriages to operate in other areas as private hire cars, but many in the taxi trade in Bradford had been unhappy at the amount of Rossendale cars on the district's streets.

But the planned rule change got a mixed reception from cabbies' groups in Bradford.

Mohammed Khan, of the Hackney Carriage Owners' and Drivers' Association, welcomed the change, saying: "We are really happy, we are behind that idea."

But both Shabir Ahmed, of the Keighley and Bradford Taxi Drivers' Association, and Stuart Hastings, of the Keighley Private Hire Association, were dubious about how effective it would be.

Mr Ahmed said drivers could simply claim on the form that they would work in Rossendale, and would still get a licence.

And Mr Hastings cited similar concerns, saying: "It is something they would have to enforce."