Terminal Upgrades
Further to the investigations and trials that have taken place to improve past problems we’ve had with signals, I’m pleased to report we are now in a position to commence upgrading the fleet. Unfortunately, this upgrade will not be as speedy as the last, which means we will be bringing drivers in to Roman Way on a strict appointment basis only.
   Our engineers have been working hard to reduce the actual time it takes to carry out the work on each cab, but it will depend on the type of taxi and meter you have that will determine the time you will be at Roman Way. We anticipate that it should take about 30 minutes for the majority of cabs and up to 90 minutes for the others, providing the engineer does not run into any surprises. It will be our aim to cause as little disruption as possible to each and every one of you. Roman Way will be open for additional hours each day during the changeover period and also on weekends.
   By the time you receive this issue of Call Sign, some drivers will have already received their appointment time and date. For those of you who haven’t yet received one, please be patient - they are on the way. The time scale for the upgrade to be completed is by the end of January. But before we can switch on the change, the entire fleet must have been fitted. This means that any driver who misses their appointment or has not had the upgrade by the end of January, will, I’m afraid, have their terminal de-authorised. The only way we can allow these cabs to sign back onto the system is for

their upgrade to be carried out. All the time a cab is de-authorised, subscriptions will still have to be paid.

Slipping Back Into the Old Ways?
Work is on the increase and it would appear we could be slipping back into our old ways with some trips in the outer areas starting to take much longer to cover.
   Despite the efforts of the Call Centre controllers to offer premiums, we have experienced certain trips taking up to an hour to cover. I’m sure you will understand when I say that this type of service cannot be allowed to continue.
   I also need to remind all drivers of the importance of keeping in contact with the DaC Call Centre once you have arrived at a pick-up address. The procedures are that you must request a ‘no show’ every 15 minutes following arrival. In future, we will not accept any reason why this procedure is not followed. You should be aware that once you have arrived, it is up to you.
   The system can only send you a late POB message, which is a reminder message only. We have no way of knowing if you have not

picked up unless the client calls us or you inform us. It may not seem that important to you to wait at the client’s instructions, but I assure you clients do everything they can to avoid paying the waiting time and full cost of the journey if they have not received telephone calls from our Call Centre. It is a complaint that I know Tom
Whitbread will process if we find drivers not following this procedure. It is totally unnecessary for you not to follow the procedure; it’s not as though it is new.

Weekend Train Work
Many of you are still chancing your luck when booking in for the weekend train work. The fleet message prior to the opening time clearly states that only drivers who have not done the work before can book in. The second message asks for drivers who have only done the work ONCE before. The time we are spending telephoning drivers telling them they have not been selected is unnecessary and we’ve made so many calls now that we have heard all the excuses! We work from three driver databases to ensure fairness when distributing this work, so please don’t force our hand to start issuing complaints. There is plenty of this work to go round and we have already held talks regarding the whole of next year’s work, which at this time is expected to be even more than this year, with talk of two nine-day blockades in early spring. Those of you who have not yet taken part in this train work, why not give it a go? The worst that can happen is you are paid to just sit and wait…

Keith Cain
Driver Operations
Call Centre Manager