Review black cab and taxi services in London
by Ben Rogers
In the run up to the Greater London Authority elections on 3rd May, Centre for London will publish ten policy proposals for London – one a day over ten days.
In selecting these, we have identified policies that are:
- Significant ideas that would make a substantial contribution to tackling London’s challenges;
- Practical – could be introduced over the next four years, before the next election;
- Cost-neutral – could be introduced without significant increased spending
- Innovative – new ideas that have yet to be widely proposed;
- Broadly devolutionary – in keeping with our belief that Parliament should continue to devolve more responsibility to the GLA and downwards to local government.
PROPOSAL #9 THE NEW MAYOR SHOULD UNDERTAKE A FUNDAMENTAL REVIEW OF CAB AND TAXI SERVICES IN LONDON.
It might seem strange to argue that we need a fundamental review of London’s taxi and mini cab service. After all, London black cabs are internationally recognised icon, and a byword for reliability.
Yet the whole cab sector feels increasingly outdated. The rules that allow black cabs to drive in bus lanes but not mini-cabs – rules that have been publicly challenged by John Griffin owner of Addison Lee - are one of the many oddities. London transport is now increasingly cashless, yet most taxi drivers still demand cash. New technology should maker it easier (and cheaper) to share cabs, yet black cabs remain apparently untouched by the age of ‘collaborative consumption’. New technology should also make it easier to integrate London’s cab services with public transport. There could be big gains for instance, for passengers and the public purse, in creating an Oyster Card that could be used in cabs. Yet possibilities of integration are not being seriously explored.
Finally, the rise of sat -navs must at least raise the question: do we still need the Knowledge or is this just an increasingly unjustifiable barrier to entering the cab market, so making London’s taxi service one of the most expensive in the world?
True, it will be a brave mayor who undertakes a fundamental and independent review of cab services in London. Black-cab drivers are one of the most powerful of all lobby groups in capital – not least because of their power to bend the ears of their hapless passengers. The mayoral manifestos go out of their way to praises the taxi service and offer nothing by way of challenge. But a brave mayor is what London needs.
Mike
You would like to believe that wouldn't you not all of us are no nothing idiots like you perceive us to be And taking a black cab from tottenham court rd to fenchurch st on rate 3 shouldn't cost £23.40 at 1am if the driver knew the proper route mini cab half price
Thank you I rest my case
Kevin
London Councils approach, http://www.londoncouncils.gov.uk/policylobbying/londonmatters/publications/towards2016.htm
tony
the other thing for ben to remember is that gps systems are not a alternative to the knowlegde. imagine you are east facing in oxford street and a water mains spurts up the gps will leave you stuck but the london cabby will have many different ways to get around this. or at any one time their may be twenty persons hailing a cab at trafalga square what situation would you have if all the cabs had to wait for the gps to work out the route the answer is traffic mayhem. and the true deciding factor is the documentary which a driver challenges a black cab to go from one point to another across london well if you watched it you will know that the black cab beats the gps driver by a long shot. so the gps should never replace the knowledge. i find that the only people who complain about the black taxi buisness are normally very frustrated in their own lives. after all you would not replace a doctor with a nhs app ??
Tony
"making London’s taxi service one of the most expensive in the world". It is cheaper to use a black cab than it is to book a minicab. So do not try and put down the service that black cab drivers offer London.
Could you get into a minicab and ask them to take you to the Hempel hotel, without knowing the address? No, you couldn't. Black cab drivers train for years to learn the smallest of places that passengers might need to go to. They do not need sat navs, because they have worked so hard that all the information is in there head.