BOUT THE 2011 DAC AGM
Page 19
Call Sign March 2012
istorical surroundings of the Honourable Artillery Barracks on City Road.
not a full record and neither should it be taken as including every word said or indeed the exact wording spoken. Some paragraph
pproximate attendance taken by Call Sign was 30, not including the 7-man BoM.
g they couldn't get off their driveways. Even this mag's photographer, Alan Green (E52), couldn't make it and the Editor had to use
our point was missed out, you will know why!
ic reports could be helpful to
premises. He said that no one could know what would hap-
becomes difficult to
put out no reports outside of
pen when the Lewis Day branded cars were rebranded with
stop that. Brian also
th Cain could leave decisions
the Addison Lee name, but said that AL's aim was to provide
made the point that dri-
only messages that were rele-
cars to clients that wanted them and Galaxies to those that
vers
subscriptions
greed with that point.
requested taxis. One thing AL did have lots of was money!
bring in finance to the
Brian said that the two Griffin boys had said that in addition
Society.
to buying Lewis Day, they had also bought a local golf
Ray Sorene (A53):
course! He joked about whether those taxi drivers that
played there would still do so if they knew who the owners
Ray made a second trip
were!
to address members
Returning to John's point, he said that no one liked the sit-
and gave examples of
uation and that Brian, like John, was "old school" and that we
how terminal traffic
still saw them as minicabs. But he also said that we were in
messages had saved his
the service industry and that sometimes you had to let your
passengers huge amounts of time and how grateful they had
head rule your heart and go with what the customer actual-
been. Naturally, Ray was very much in favour of keeping
ly wants. And in order to get our taxi work, we sometimes
them. Brian cracked a joke at Colin Jenkins saying that he
have to give a bit.
was getting outnumbered! The editor's finger was by now
Brian jumped to the next question before it was asked!
going a dark shade of mauve!
He said that suggestions DaC put taxi work into cars was
Neil Brewer (E16):
"absolute rubbish!" He said that if it wasn't for the
hat each zone has up to eight
Concierge platform in some of our customer's premises, we
Neil also made a return visit to the lectern and said he now
d be looked at to see whether
might not be getting any taxi work at all. He went on to
realised re his original question about not picking up cash
it could be changed.
explain about some of the benefits that DaC offer clients
clients, that we did not take bookings from wine bars and
d that by default, DaC were in
and which help to make us almost indispensable.
having spoken to dispatcher John Connor, who was one of
dding that he had "real prob-
John came back and reiterated about his historical dislike
the 30 drivers present, he now understood why his col-
sked Brian what was happen-
of Addison Lee and Brian gave an account of their almost
league's request for a cab had been refused.
é of the situation. In a rather
dictatorial working practices regarding drivers and added
Alan Fisher (F07):
ave a brief rundown saying
that in a way, the takeover of Lewis Day could work in our
Possibly just to give his
ver Lewis Day's car business
favour as they were extremely cheap whereas AL will
finger a rest,Alan Fisher
o CitySprint. Lewis Day (who
undoubtedly increase prices.
then went to the
nagement buy-out following
John also raised the point of cash and credit card trips,
lectern. His first prob-
usly had with their National
but by then the editor's typing finger was getting sore and
lem was who could
e medical side from Addison
he gave it a 60 second rest!
take HIS photo! He
ne cars, who in turn had
went on to ask Mike
Laurence Kelvin (W88):
e time previously.There was
Tovey what advice he
tOne from Burgundy. The
Laurence asked about
would give to Brian
away from WestOne Cars to
the new terminals and
Rice should Brian ask
the MD was someone called
queried whether con-
whether he thought
irst cousin of Addison Lee's
tactless cards were the
buying Radio Taxis was
then went on to say that he
same as Oyster cards?
a good idea? Alan added
ons who ran most of the AL
Brian said there was a
that as RTG's market capital was just £223,000, we could
that AL had bought the Oscar
similarity and explained
afford to buy it fairly easily and double the fleet size while
ly been touted by its makers
what contactless was
at the same time increasing our market share of accounts.
ly independent. In reality they
and also described
Mike gave an overview of the situation and said that whilst
that as a selling point in that
what the card looked
you should never say never and it would be worth consid-
r they wanted cars or taxis
like. Laurence didn't
ering, the question should be whether there was any advan-
the first corporate to go onto
think he had seen one,
tage to be gained from any such deal. Alan reiterated his
ly for DaC, none of the three
so the editor took
point about doubling our fleet size and account base to
nto the platform so any users
(another) rest from typing and taking photos and showed
make us competitive to Addison Lee. Mike said that he could
t had now happened was that
him his card! Laurence also disagreed with Colin Jenkins in
see the logic but that we would really have to look closely
ould no longer advertise it as
that he found traffic messages to be very useful, giving an
at why we would attempt such a move and that there was
example of horrendous traffic hold-ups along New Kings
always the possibility that we could become infected with
o what the future could turn
Road the previous evening and A40 shut. "Thank goodness
their problems. He added that we should give ourselves a
could be a straight choice of
for our traffic reports," he said as he stepped down.
huge pat on the back at the way we have managed our busi-
radio circuits and their plat-
ness through recent quiet times and how we have
Adrian Landau (T14):
oth have their versions of
re-equipped the fleet with a very low amount of risk, where-
e client's preferred car com-
Adrian asked why DaC had been advertising for new dri-
as borrowing to re-equip was one of RTG's initial problems.
ddison Lee and that could
vers. Brian said that when conditions became very quiet, we
Brian Rice then came in and said that he agreed with
favour. Brian went on to add
had allowed the numbers to slip down but that things were
Mike's synopsis of the situation before comparing the two
elieved, not every customer
a bit better now and coverage at times had suffered. We
capital values, putting ours at £13.2million.Why would we
bstantial animosity from some
needed to bring it up to an agreeable level adding that if ser-
want to put that at risk, Brian said adding that we would
n spoke of two of our current
vice struggled, customers suffered and may then not rely on
cars from picking up at their
us so much. As a result our income would slide and it
continued on page 20
