A TAXI driver who ignored the night closure at Horseshoe Common and mounted the pavement to get round the barrier has been banned from operating for five weeks.

The driver was one of two to face disciplinary action at a hearing of a Bournemouth Licensing Board sub-committee yesterday.

Council officers told the meeting both drivers were caught driving in the Horseshoe Common area despite it being closed to all vehicles after midnight.

The restrictions have been introduced by the police and council as part of the improvements in the town centre area to help reduce crime and incidents of anti social behaviour, as well as improve road safety around the common.

Earlier this year chair of Bournemouth Taxi Trades Association John Tye publicly resigned from his position over rogue taxi drivers flouting the rules, which he said made him ashamed.

The hearing suspended the licence of one driver for one month for driving at the common, while the second received a more severe punishment, due, a council spokesperson said, to the "more serious safety issue disclosed".

Both drivers - who worked as independent private hire taxis - now have 21 days to appeal the decision to the magistrates’ courts if they wish.

Speaking after the hearing, Councillor Andrew Morgan, chair of the licensing board, said: “The council has widely publicised and consulted on these road arrangements, which are clearly marked, so no drivers can claim to be ignorant of them.

"The licensing board has a duty to protect the public, including those pedestrians in the closed zone, who will not be expecting vehicles in the road at that hour, and are therefore at risk.

"We are concerned that a minority of taxi drivers have apparently decided to ignore these lawful restrictions and enter the zone, thereby putting the public at risk.”

In January, dozens of cabbies spoke out against the council's decision to remove 22 taxi spaces at Horseshoe Common.

Earlier this year the chair of Bournemouth Taxi Trades Association John Tye resigned at what he called "rogue cabbies", saying there was a "blatant disregard" of the law, traffic regulations and council controls, especially at Horseshoe Common.

Today he said: "The rules are very clear. Everyone's been told the restrictions time and time again, many many times, so I don't have any sympathy for either of them."

However, he repeated his belief that the barriers at the common were a bad idea.

"During the busy hours, taxi drivers were shifting 2,000 to 2,500 bodies away from the area," he said.

"The council allowed far too many licensed premises in one stretch. It's postcode policing - I've always said it."