A text service is being launched that will let partygoers know where their nearest available licensed taxi is.

People who need a cab on a night out in the Gwent Police force area can text CAB to 83222 for numbers for the three firms operating closest to them.

The scheme, which uses mobile phone signals to pinpoint locations, aims to ensure people get home safely and do not use bogus taxis.

Participating taxi firms have agreed to prioritise calls from vulnerable women.

More than 56 private hire vehicles and Hackney carriage operators have been signed up for the initiative so far.

Inspector Terry Davies, of Gwent Police’s community safety department, said he hoped people would use the scheme over the festive period. “This is a major step forward in making sure people get home safely after a night out,” he said.

“During the Christmas season we are urging people to be responsible when they go out for the night and getting home safely is a major part of it. Ideally partygoers need to prebook a taxi or prearrange a lift and make sure they get it. But for those who find themselves at the end of the night without a cab, this service will at least provide numbers for licensed and regulated taxi firms who have agreed to give vulnerable females priority.”