Cab fares in the Lewes area are likely to rise after plans to fit taxis with meters were approved.

All 231 licensed taxis in the district will be metered at charges set by Lewes District Council.

At the moment, the fees charged by cab firms are not set by the council and vary widely. Many firms use meters, but some don't and instead have scales of fees for different journeys.

The council is one of the last in Britain not to set mileage rates and says it is following drivers' demands for more regulation.

At present, charges in the district are among the lowest in Sussex and there are fears that many pensioners who rely on taxis for transport will not be able to afford price increases.

The Lewes District Hackney Carriage Plate Holders' Association has been lobbying for the changes and says it wants a level playing-field to enable fair competition.

A council report said: "One possible disadvantage is that overall fares may rise.

"The association, however, states that it is well aware of customer demand for reasonably-priced local trips and would not wish to see a significant rise in the cost of such journeys.

"Fare-setting would assist the trade by raising costs on longer journeys and charging waiting time on pick-ups."

Victor Plows, association secretary and owner of Newhaven Taxis, said the lack of set fares meant many operators tried to undercut eachother and took short-cuts on the safety of their vehicles.

He said many taxi firms were struggling to cope with large increases in fuel and insurance costs.

Mr Plows said: "The way we work out fares at the moment is absolutely crazy. Now fuel is so expensive, it is really unfair to give the same blanket charge for the little old lady who is going down the road to collect her pension as someone who is going much further.

"The bottom line is we want the market to be competitive on service, not on fares, which can mean a drop in standards."

He said there could be an increase of between 10 to 15 per cent on local journeys.

Gilly Cowdrey, a member of the council's interim cabinet, said metering would be good news for customers because it would mean fixed prices instead of drivers charging what they wanted.

The council will work out the maximum fare per mile and waiting times, but taxi drivers can charge less for the journey if they choose.