TAXI driver Mr Miah thought it was a bit odd when he saw that the snooker club to which his four male passengers had asked to be taken was in darkness.

But it was only when the first punch hit the glass partition in his cab as his engine idled in the deserted road that he realised he was in serious danger.

Mr Miah - who is too scared to give his full name - managed to escape Sunday morning's attack by driving to a main road, where another taxi driver helped chase off his assailants.

But not before the men had smashed the partition and hurt him so badly he spent a night in hospital.

Now he is so traumatised by the weekend's events he has vowed never to drive a taxi again.

We still don't know what the motivation was for this attack. Mr Miah's attackers could have been out to rob him. They could have simply been looking for violence. Or they could have been racially motivated.

Whatever the reason, driving a taxi is becoming a dangerous profession after a spate of attacks in the area.

Criminals perhaps see cabbies as soft targets because they'll come to you and go wherever you tell them.

Let's hope the extremely violent men who attacked Mr Miah are caught sooner rather than later.

Meanwhile, taxi drivers would be advised to boost security and be very careful who they pick up.

Mr Miah can only be thankful that things didn't turn out worse.

Earlier this year, four men were jailed for the racially aggravated murder of a taxi driver in West Yorkshire after they lured him to an address where they could attack him.

Mr Miah still has his life. But he has lost his livelihood.

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