Call Sign March 2012
Page 3
from the editor's desk
swig their Typhoo out of, but £2500? Nope, not
First cab first job?
even £500. Or am I just old fashioned???
Officially, passengers can walk up to a rank and
select whichever cab they want.Taxi drivers don't
White? No, Wong again!
like it and feel that as every one of our vehicles
His logic was always Chinese, but how on earth
has to pass the same stringent tests, that every
can someone expelled from Dial-a-Cab many
London taxi on the road is fit for purpose that
years ago still give views that are so wong er
being the carriage of passengers from one place
sorry, wrong! Fortunately for me, I do not sub-
to another.
scribe to the online London Taxi Drivers
Of course we live in an imperfect world and
Forum even though someone apparently uses a
there will always be exceptions. Street hails for
version of my name. But several drivers have sent
example. Tony Arnold (F03) has taken his taxi
me some of the ramblings of Mark White,
around the world in his other life of teaching
because he enjoys talking about people behind
other taxi drivers from around the world how we
their backs as that means he will always be right!
London types do it. With the best will in the
Sadly, it seems his views are often totally incor-
world, you wouldn't want to take a Fairway or
rect, but as I'm usually just told of his comments
Metrocab to Nigeria where temperatures can
rather than see them, there is no point me saying
and did reach 125°F for poor Tony. Poor, because
anything. But as drivers have sent me his latest
even in his new cab at the time, the aircon still
efforts, I can now confirm that as per usual, he is
packed up (see May 2005 for the story)! Strangely
times when it would normally be rate 1.
totally wrong again.
enough, you can read more about Tony inside this
In reality, then-General Secretary Bob Oddy
The question involves this column and the sub-
issue and it has nothing to do with travelling! But
had been asked of ways to ensure how a good
ject of demutualisation. In my Editorial of last
back to the subject...
turnout of licensed taxi drivers could service pas-
January, I wondered whether demutualising could
There was the time when Dial-a-Cab driver
sengers and he said that upping the rate might
help us compete against the likes of Addison Lee
Mark Thurbin (M96) was driving along Pall Mall
help, but he told Call Sign at the time that it was
who are expanding in size all the time, by infer-
in his then-top of the range Gold TXII and follow-
never put down as a definite answer and was only
ring that it would give us the option to double the
ing several other empty taxis. Suddenly and sur-
spoken of as one possibility as no other trade
fleet size and work by taking over another taxi
prisingly - as they had let all the other cabs go past
organisation had come up with any suggestions.
company.After all, we could easily afford it. But we
- a hand shot out with a waiting camera crew ask-
Drivers came out as being against it, realising that
couldn't do it under our rules. But I said at the end
ing that obvious question:"Driver, can you please
the heavy traffic that the Olympics will bring on
of the piece:
take us to Marrakesh!" The passengers had been
rate 2 could do far more damage to the reputation
Could I also add that this view is purely
waiting for a taxi with aircon in the back. Mark
of this business with its outrageously high meter
mine and no one has put me up to it
took them for the ride of his life (see the August
readings, than any good that a few weeks on rate
including members of the DaC Board.
2006 issue).
2 would achieve for our bank balances. So the end
And that was 100% true.The only comment I got
But in general, it's usually first cab first job
result is that for the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity
from the Board was Chairman Brian's after he had
and my question to you is what you would do
of working during an Olympic month, we will be
read it. His comment, said with a huge smile on his
under the following circumstance?
working for the normal rates and hoping that it
face:"You're going to get me into so much trouble!"
It was in early February. I was second to go on
will be busy.
There were no wild anti-comments in Call
the Marble Arch M&S rank, sitting behind a series
But then, in early February, Metro, LBC and ITV
Sign, in fact most of the drivers I spoke to said it
3 Metrocab. A couple came out and walked past
all reported that the Mayor had "turned down" taxi
was worth looking into although two former
the Metrocab and came up to me and my TX4. At
driver's demands for a 22% fare increase during
RTG drivers were vehemently against it for obvi-
first I assumed they wanted to pay by credit card
the Games. New Gen Sec, Steve McNamara had
ous reasons. But it hasn't happened and as I said
or had a DaC chargecard the Metrocab wasn't
to go on TV to tell the world that we hadn't asked
at the time, it was just my view as one way we
fitted for either. But no, it was can you take us to
for the increase and that nothing had changed
could compete against a minicab company who
Westfield at Shepherd's Bush please. Quite a nice
since the original misunderstanding.The taxi trade
will soon be double our size.
ride but sadly it belonged to the cab on the point
needs to make a living, but we are not greedy and
But apparently Mark White thinks that I only
and I told the duo that they had to walk back to
certainly didn't appreciate the suggestion that "the
write what Brian Rice tells me to and after all
the first taxi. But they said they didn't like
Mayor had turned down our claim for a 22%
these years of saying that I edit the mag, I can't be
Metrocabs as they tended to bounce quite a lot.
increase. Untrue statements such as those could
bothered denying it anymore especially to
However, I explained that they had probably just
do much damage to a candidate's credibility dur-
someone who was expelled but refused to return
been unlucky in the past, but had to take the first
ing an election.
his terminal and who still has it somewhere or
cab. They were having none of it and walked
Sadly, not all transport organisations are dis-
was that the terminal that made an appearance
along to the third cab which happened to be a
playing our work ethic and I hope that those com-
some years ago on eBay?
Vito. I saw the doors slide open and the passen-
ing to London as visitors during the Games will
So this time, after telling LTDF readers that Brian
gers jump in. The driver wouldn't have known
know that any excessive demands do not come
Rice has now proposed demutualisation, he has
what had happened so I got out and explained. He
from us.
challenged any DaC driver to put a copy of the
said he couldn't care less, reversed so that he had
I don't know how much extra cash tube train
Chairman's Report within the Annual Report onto
space to get out and just drove away towards
drivers will finally get for the privilege of just
the website where Mr White says that Rice, as he so
W12.
going to work because they certainly won't have
charmingly refers to him, will include details of a
As I said earlier and I stand to be corrected I
any horrendous traffic conditions to work under.
possible demutualisation. Of course I may have
think passengers can select any taxi from a rank,
All I know is that their union, the RMT under Bob
missed it, but I failed to see even the word, let alone
but tradition dictates that it's a first cab first job
Crowe, turned down a £500 bonus for just doing
the subject.
scenario that we usually follow. Has the fact that
their job and guaranteeing not to strike that
Mark White apparently refers to me as Lord
it's fairly quiet out there turned us against each
month, as not being enough! Their job is obvious-
Haw-Haw, after the Germany Calling radio station
other? If so, then we are further along the road to
ly a responsible one, but the DLR shows that
that pushed out Nazi propaganda in English dur-
destruction than I thought. Would you have
trains can actually run without drivers although
ing the war. From some people, I could count that
agreed with me or just taken them? All answers
the 500+ workers at the Dockland system are still
as an insult, but with Mark White, you feel like just
are published...
getting a whopping £2500 for doing whatever
patting him on the head and feeling sorry for him.
they do during the Games! So the RMT say that's
Olympic greed?
And as the terminals are about to be replaced, you
what their 14,000 LU members should all get as
can keep your one Mark!
Last year, drivers thought that the LTDA had recom-
well!
mended to TfL that there would be far more drivers
I'd like to know why London Underground
Alan Fisher
going out to work during the forthcoming Olympics
workers should be paid extra for guaranteeing not
callsignmag@aol.com
if we were to have the meter working on rate 2 at
to strike? Ok, perhaps a commemorative mug to
