Scott Cowie said the group had moved quickly to remove from its organisation the driver at the centre of a recent indecent assault charge, and that measures were already in place to ensure the safety of both passengers and drivers.

He said that in 25 years in the area, he could not think of anything as bad as the alleged attack on the girl on May 31, which police say was captured on the taxi’s camera.

A warrant has been issued for the arrest of Navdeep Singh after he failed to attend court.

But despite the incident, Mr Cowie said he believed taxis were a safe way to travel.

“I’ve got teenage daughters and I’m more than happy to put them in a cab,” Mr Cowie said.

“There are police checks on drivers which are done every couple of years, so you can’t just come along and jump in a cab and drive it.

“It is very safe.”

“When we found out early last week we took him (the accused taxi driver) off our system straight away.

“The Taxi Service Commission conferred with us and took his authority as well.

“I haven’t heard of anything like it.”

Cameras in taxis are compulsory in metropolitan cities. They have been installed in Wodonga taxis for about two years and have already proven their value.

“Places smaller than Wodonga don’t have to have them, but decided to have them put in,” Mr Cowie said.

“In this circumstance they’ve proven to be a good thing to have.

“They’ve corroborated the girl’s story, the cameras have helped out and shown that he’s done the wrong thing.

“I just feel sorry for her.

“They have been used to find people who have committed a crime.”