During the first lockdowns, business was so slow that hackney cab driver Yucel Polat, 44, had to work in a warehouse for eight months to support his family.
Although happy to get back behind the wheel in May, he’s not looking forward to running the gamut of the Christmas party season - especially amid rising infection rates and new mask-wearing legislation.
Yucel, 44, from Chadderton, says that since the law on mask-wearing was reinstated by Boris Johnson this week, most of his passengers are complying, or need just a gentle reminder when they forget. READ MORE: "Some people get abusive": The challenges for bus drivers as mask-wearing becomes the law again It’s when they’ve had one too many that problems can arise .