LCDC responds to Call Sign
We are always happy to publish responses, but Alan Fleming’s attack on this magazine is ridiculous. We were sent a press release by the PCO just before our deadline, which claimed amongst other things that: "It is clear that all four of the taxis tested by these proprietors had some degree of maladjustment and / or defects that would have caused them to fail." The PCO also criticised the small number of independent tests carried out by the Club as against the 43 taxis that the PCO had running around.
   Call Sign tries to publish an interesting magazine for its readers and the insinuation of possible "maladjustments" of the retest cabs did make an interesting story. If the LCDC have a problem, it is with the PCO and not us. We ended by agreeing with the Club that the policy was rushed into, but that we hoped the LCDC had an answer to the PCO claims.
   Had we gone to the LCDC for a response, we’d have missed our publication slot so I had to make a choice as to whether I should go ahead with publishing the PCO information - and I did. In a perfect world, everyone would have to opportunity to respond to every claim made against them, but this world isn’t perfect and sometimes you have to wait until the next issue – and as you can see, we had no problem in allowing Alan Fleming to respond.
   And then there is the article in issue 143 of The Badge where a DaC driver goes into print with misleading figures about this radio circuit. I asked Brian Rice whether Alan Fleming had phoned him first to clarify the truth of the figures, but he hadn’t. I asked Alan Fleming on the phone whether he had contacted anyone at DaC for confirmation of the article he’d published, but there was no response. Obviously one rule for one…
   I then forgot about it because it wasn’t the first time - and no doubt won’t be the last time – that someone inaccurately quotes stats about this Society. It isn’t difficult to do – all you need are two stats, the best and the worst and you can "prove" how poorly we are doing! You don’t need to worry about results of the following years, even if they do show the Society again doing remarkably well. If it gives the author an article – then he’s happy. As I said, this world isn’t perfect and

until it is, events such as those above will take place.
   So, if the charge from the PCO is untrue, then the LCDC should take the matter to its logical conclusion, if it isn’t, it will cost this trade’s drivers even more money than it was going to before because the PCO are said to be ready to ask SGS to perform regular emission checks on all cabs – not just those with the new anti-emission systems fitted. That could apply to TXII cabs that didn’t need to have an emissions-busting system fitted, but which could possibly still be above the Euro 3 limit.
   Alan also asks me to remember that "…to sin by silence makes cowards of us all." However it is also worth remembering that if you want to do something well, you should do it properly and that includes preparing the cabs that were sent for testing to a proper standard. If they did do so, then again it is no good just arguing the toss. If indeed the cabs were not in as good a condition as they should have been, then that in itself not only makes the results worthless, but could now cost drivers even more money.
   As yet we’ve seen nothing from the LCDC other than denials and their versions of what they call "the truth." That is hardly proof against the accusations any more than the lack of proof the LCDC is accusing the PCO of, so why should anyone believe the Club rather than the PCO?
   My only hope is that the PCO do not use this exercise as an excuse to try to show who is boss and bring in the automatic emissions testing out of spite…

The DaC driver, the London taxi… and West Africa!
Dial-a-Cab driver Tony Arnold has been on this circuit for many years and is a great supporter of not just the Society, but also Call Sign. That’s why in 2002, when he drove his TXII from Beijing to London’s Trafalgar Square for Chinese TV as they headed towards their Olympic Games and in the full glare of world publicity, he only sent the exclusive photos as the trip went on to one magazine – this one.
   He is now doing something even more amazing and again Call Sign will be the place you heard about it first. He went to Nigeria in West Africa to teach the local taxi drivers how to be more professional and also how to drive the TXII. Yes, you read that correctly! He was asked to go to Africa to teach taxi professionalism in the most taxi-suited vehicle the world has.
   This issue has photographs of his trip and tells how he worked in temperatures of up to 125°F with

The strength of the London taxi?
Like most trade magazines, Call Sign is always getting information about LTI and their taxi. We tend to publish only items that affect our drivers, so that the first person in Leeds or Barnsley to buy a TX4 probably would be out of luck if they looked for their name in this magazine!
   But one story from Edinburgh did catch our attention this month and that was the astonishing tale of the lady taxi driver and her three passengers – two of whom were children – who had a builders skip fall on top of the TXII they were travelling in!
   While the driver had to be cut away – well you couldn’t really see her lifting the skip off – her injuries weren’t too bad while the passengers suffered more shock than anything. The story made me realise how lucky we are to have such a strong vehicle around us. Yes, no one could ever call it cheap, but there are some things that money can’t buy and the incident made me wonder whether any of the cheaper alternative vehicles could have provided such strong protection…?

Chance wasted?
The last issue of Call Sign printed the CVs of candidates standing for the Board at the next AGM and offered readers the space to ask any of them a question. Ok, I needed them by 12th December in order to give me time to get a response and still lay the mag out in time for the printers who wanted it by the 18th of the month, whereas it would normally have been the 28th. But other than a few general comments, not one question arrived.
   At the last voting AGM, I was asked to print CVs one month earlier to give drivers the chance to ask questions, so I did it and the answer was a resounding "no thank you…!"

Dr David Moss
In August I wrote about the 100th birthday of Linda’s brother-in-law from her first marriage, Dr David Moss. It was a wonderfully moving event and the first time either of us had ever met anyone who was 100. Many subscribers also knew David from his days as a doctor in the Clayhall area of Ilford. Now I have been to his funeral.
   Sadly, David was admitted to hospital midway through his 101st year and he died painlessly the following day. His last actions of this world were to take his wife Alma’s hand, squeeze it and tell her he loved her. Then he died.
   A sad occurrence but worthy of the celebration for an amazing life…
                                Alan Fisher
               callsignmag@aol.com