fatnuggit wrote:
The Light at the End of the Tunnel - Part 1
"A can of worms!" they cried. "A hornets’ nest!" they said. "Another fine mess!” the result.
Indeed.
That's right, the end of the Taxi Trade as we know it, is on the horizon. Or is it?
Surely it depends on which side of the fence you are sitting.
If you are the owner of one or multiple taxi plates in a limited Borough, then your retirement plans may well be in tatters, as the Law Commission prepare to open the flood gates for any Tom, Dick or Harry to be able to buy a Taxi and get a plate from the Local Authority, in order for him or her to become a cabbie.
Then yes, the time and money spent on 'buying in' will seem exactly like the end of the world.
It could even cause one to descend into depression, under the weight of all the stress brought about by such a situation.
I can hear the violins now, resounding from the ranks of all the disillusioned jockeys, as they consider not having to pay settle anymore, on a six day collar, with no contract of employment!
However, if you are one of the 'waifs and strays of society', as the Institute of Licensing once condescendingly described the average cabbie, then you may just be rubbing your hands together and relishing the fact that you may, at last, be able to run your own show.
You see in a Borough where there is 'no unmet demand', there are definitely two sides to every story; winners and losers.
The winners wave the rules while the losers graft for 80 hours a week trying to help the winners pay for their fat mortgages.
In areas where 'demand surveys' are not carried out, a natural balance exists, where market forces control numbers, not the local trade inner circle. At least that's the theory.
The Local Authority waves the rules while the cabbie grafts to pay his own mortgage, fat or otherwise.
The difference is opportunity pure and simple. Cut out the middle man.
Your only risk is that of buying a suitable vehicle for the job in hand, not spending a king's ransom on a six inch square piece of plastic which has its value set by some self serving leech who has his hand firmly in the pockets of power. However, the problem currently, is that no matter which side of the fence you find yourself on, there still isn't enough money around to make a decent living.
With prices and unemployment having soared in this recession, it is the existing drivers who have suffered the most, while the taxi trade has been used to cushion the unemployment blow, as Local Authorities delimit numbers and encourage those out of work to become cabbies. Cash cow!
In London it is the badge that gives the driver opportunity, not the size of his bank balance.
So the first National Standard should be built around that ethic. Make all knowledge testing a real qualification, something worthwhile having, rather than it just being a means to an end.
If the new legislation is to have any constructive use to the trade, it must surely begin with higher driver standards and the protection of those who are already employed within it. NVQ anybody?
That way it wouldn't matter whether numbers were limited or not, once a licence was obtained, the reward would be worth having.
Career cabbies with decent wage expectation.
I am aware that utopian views like mine don't necessarily wash with most proprietors and yes, I have been stung and I am bitter, but I've always been of the opinion that the taxi trade has to face the facts.
Its decline is not down to recession or technological advances; it is down to the greed and complacency of those who have benefitted from the current system of plate ownership and closed shop.
Drivers are the key, not plate values, as it is they who generate the money within the trade in the first place. If drivers had a real opportunity with quality vehicles to drive, then maybe the standard of service would improve. Quality not quantity.
Two Tier System
The two tier system is the favourite option in the Law Commission’s view.
Which begs the question, why bother?
The Transport Select Committee’s report recommendation to deal with Cross Border Hiring fell at the first hurdle, which would point to less regulation not more. Yet still there seems to be a need for wholesale changes.
Whilst I agree that the legislation needs modernising, it will be the Private Hire that will benefit, as it has been affected more by technological and social advances, which have left taxi law behind the times.
The obvious differences between the two sides of the trade must remain, but the law is only effective when enforcement is carried out. Too many of the Bye Laws and Conditions are left to trust, which let’s face it, is where the legislation falls down. Come Saturday nights there is a free for all anyway.
Enforcement is where the unemployed should be placed not the drivers' seat.
Again the finger points at the taxi inner circle. Why, with all the changes in social behaviour and technology, didn't the clever proprietor types move with the times? Taxis have the best of both worlds within the current legislation, yet it was the Private Hire who saw the future; and their numbers will never be limited. Still it was they who took on the changes mentioned above and were rewarded for their foresight and courage to improve standards of service.
Where were our trusted custodians of the taxi trade?
Encouraging fare and settle increases, which encouraged service charge hikes and vehicle costs to rise, that's where. Inflating their egos and bank balances to a point which could never be sustainable in the long term, until pop. The bubble burst and the Private Hire took their chance, leaving the poor cabbie with nowhere to turn and no one to turn to.
So, the Private Hire are now definitely in the driving seat, so much so that even the Law Commission can recognise that it is they who have embraced new ideas and it will be they who will reap the rewards.
Even if no changes are made they will be the beneficiary, as the taxi trade has now priced itself out of the market, all because of the Luddite attitude of those in control, who incidentally, will be in charge of the training of drivers. The blind leading the blind, springs to mind.
So while they sit around the table during the Law Commission consultation period, let's all hope that the Luddites don't lead the taxi trade down a long dark tunnel, where the only light, is that of an oncoming train.
©fatnuggit2012
An interesting point of view... although I feel that you failed to factor in the fact that one private hire company has a great deal more money to spend than the average taxi-driver. In fact they can spend thousands on advertising... yet getting £1 per week from a hackney is impossible.... the ordinarily driver on the ground .
now what should happen next.... what should the trade be doing.... what is important....
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