Torbay Council wants views on a proposal to remove the taxi rank on Vaughan Road, Torquay, and re-establish Victoria Parade as the principal harbourside rank. The Vaughan Road taxi rank review is open until 22 November 2026. Residents, businesses, visitors, taxi drivers and operators, community groups and other interested stakeholders can take part.
The rank was introduced as a temporary measure during the Torquay Harbourside improvement works. Construction displaced existing taxi facilities or made them less accessible. The works are finished, and the temporary rank has remained for almost two years. It was always intended as a short-term arrangement, with a commitment to review it and consider removal once the harbourside works were complete.
Concerns on Vaughan Road
The concerns recorded since the rank opened are over-ranking and the enforcement that goes with it, passengers unsure where to find a taxi, extra pressure on night-time economy taxi marshals, traffic flow and access to the Marina car park, the concentration of vehicles on Vaughan Road, and feedback that the temporary arrangement has changed the character and function of the area.
The original reasons for the temporary rank no longer exist. The harbourside improvement works have been completed, improvements have been made to the Victoria Parade taxi rank, and alternative ranks remain at Victoria Parade, Fleet Street and outside the Princess Theatre.
The proposal
The proposal is to remove the temporary rank on Vaughan Road, re-establish Victoria Parade as the principal harbourside taxi rank, and keep using the ranks at Fleet Street and outside the Princess Theatre. A no loading at any time restriction would be applied to the former rank area, consistent with much of the wider harbourside restricted parking zone.
Drivers would still be able to stop briefly so passengers can get in or out, provided they do not cause an obstruction. Existing loading restrictions on Palk Street would remain unchanged. At this stage there is no plan to remove the existing tarmacked pedestrian path adjacent to Cary Green.
The expected benefits are a return of taxi services to their established and recognised locations, clearer places for residents and visitors to find a taxi, more efficient taxi operations, fewer vehicles concentrated on Vaughan Road, and better access to and from the Marina car park. The change is also expected to help create a safer, more accessible and welcoming public space, and to support future activity associated with the restoration of the Pavilion.
What happens next
No final decision will be made until the responses have been considered. If the proposal proceeds, the next steps are to formally advertise the removal of the relevant traffic regulation order and to seek Cabinet approval before the rank could be permanently closed. The process could take approximately 12 weeks.