A disabled woman was left angry and upset after a taxi driver ignored her calls to be picked up at a rank before pulling away with a different passenger.
Glasgow licensing chiefs have suspended Dalbir Singh for six weeks following complaints from horrified onlookers, who blasted his actions as “completely unacceptable”.
Witnesses said Mr Singh drove off to avoid taking the woman, leaving her sitting in her wheelchair at the roadside where she was “getting irate”.
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She had been at the front of the taxi queue and reports to Glasgow City Council said she was calling to the driver, who crawled out of the rank and put his hazard lights on.
He then got out of the car to open the door for another lady on the rank, a complainant said.
They added the woman getting into the car was “hesitant” as she knew something was wrong.
One complaint to the council said: “For a person to treat a vulnerable person in this way is completely unacceptable.”
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Licensing convener Alex Wilson said: “This, if true, makes for shocking reading, that you would leave a disabled passenger on the rank.”
Another witness added: “All in all, it was not a good image to present to the public.”
The next driver on the rank picked up the woman.
Mr Singh insisted he had planned to take her but the licensing committee ruled in favour of suspending his licence with immediate effect.
He said he moved forward to make room for the ramp and signalled for the woman to move to a dropped section of kerb.
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“When I came out, another passenger jumped in my car. I seen the other driver coming to pick up the wheelchair lady.
“The wheelchair lady didn’t come to me.”
However, Mr Wilson said: “You could have got out and said you needed to move forward.”
Councillor Gary Gray added: “One of my parents was in a wheelchair and the same thing happened.
“To my 46 years today, I do not forget the upset my parent felt because of an ignorant taxi driver.”
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