TAXI drivers will install 'spy cameras' in a bid to discourage violent customers.

Two black cabs in the Preston area have already been fitted with mini cameras, in an attempt to stop the spiralling number of attacks on taxi drivers.

If the scheme proves successful, many more drivers are expected to invest in the sophisticated equipment, which includes a minute camera, drivers' monitor and video recorder.

It is kept in the boot and will tape the actions of all passengers.

The move is in response to several incidents, in which taxi drivers has been hurt or threatened by passengers. Many cabbies now avoid certain parts of Preston when possible and say they are nervous about working nights, particularly at the weekend.

Sandra Chesters, secretary for the Preston Hackney Carriage Drivers Association, says drivers face a barrage of physical and verbal abuse every night.

She said: "Every weekend cabs are kicked and bottles thrown at them in Church Street by people who have tried to flag them down.

"What they don't understand is that cabs can't stop for them because they already have fares.

"People need to realise we are not a charity, but a business. This is one way of making sure they don't abuse us.

"By the nature of the job, we are in a very vulnerable position and easy targets. Hopefully this new equipment will make people think twice.

"We are acting now before someone's life is put on the line; before it is too late."

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