Thurrock taxi drivers are hoping Transport for London’s decision not to grant Uber a new licence will not lead to Uber drivers looking for trade outside of the capital.

The decision has been welcomed by the Thurrock Taxi Drivers Association which has campaigned against Uber for more than a year.

Their issue with the company centred around its use of a virtual boundary in the app, known as a “geofence”. This boundary categorised Thurrock as being part of Greater London.

A Thurrock Taxi Drivers Association spokesman said: “The Thurrock Taxi Drivers Association welcomes the news that TfL have decided to not renew Uber of their London operator’s licence.

“We have been battling for over a year to highlight the illegalities of their practice particularly encroaching into Thurrock without an operator’s license to work in the area.

“Uber have been using their London license to work in over 40 boroughs outside of London without operators’ licenses in those areas.

“TfL’s decision today confirms that Uber are not a ‘fit and proper’ operator and that operating unlawfully catches up to operators of all sizes eventually.

“It has been found that TfL investigation showed that over 14,000 trips had been done with drivers who uploaded pictures to their account for which they were not registered to drive.

“With this news it will hopefully protect the livelihoods of Taxi firms, their drivers in all areas like Thurrock, Brentwood and Basildon.”

The Thurrock Taxi Drivers Association dismissed concerns about potential jobs losses, adding that “there are plenty of cab firms in Thurrock wanting to hire drivers from all backgrounds”.

Despite the association alleging that Uber has been operating illegally in the borough, a council investigation found no evidence that this was the case.