Taxi Driver Online

Please can someone come up with a decent voice system.

I know Data is the in thing, and those that critisise it are old fashioned. But there has to be a better way than data.

A Dino

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IDFIMH

I have done shed loads of research into this and quite frankly unless you want to be restricted to very local coverage with your own frequency there is very little choice apart from moble phones.

I also know a few people in the business.

There used to be some really good radio networks, in the old days I used to use one called Wavelength when I was in the courier business, £20 per month and you could talk as much as you liked good coverage of the southeast also. The government did away with the licenses for this type of system years ago, they said they were going to replace this analogue technology with digital, to a point they did, the replacement was Dolphin.

They went tits up unfortunatly.

The only other option you may have, providing you are really serious about only wanting voice is to go for a repeater also known by the name of CBS. They are wide area single site shared systems.

BEWARE YOU CAN NOT HAVE DATA ON THIS SYSTEM.

Some company's that rent them don't want taxi's though too much congestion. It works like a queing sytem and if you hog it it will lock you out, but if you use it correctly, and do not abuse it you should not even notice that.

You could be lucky, try asking the radiocoms agency if there are any in your area and who operates them.

Once you have found one, check out who owns it before you rent the airtime and equipment, if there are any familiar associations with certain Radio companies mentioned on here stay well clear. Keep searching.

I am certain you will find one that suits.

Also get them to let you have a trial for coverage first.

Purcell communications would be a good place to start, he knows shed's about the Radio business and where all the best sites are as well as who owns them, All providing he hasn't retired that is, or what about London Communications, wrong area but they should be able to give you some leads and phone numbers which may lead onto something more local to you. All the operators know each other because they sub rent the sites to each other.

Most of these guy's have more than one site that covers more than one area. No unfortunatly they canot be networked for wider coverage.

Pls do not be tempted if you find one to buy the eqipment as is it common knowledge the government want to close the sites, they have been saying this for the last ten years and it it almost certain the equipment will only operate on that particular repeater, because of the frequency banding each of which will be different.

Let us know how you get on.

Regards

Eric

What do you want too achieve then Sussex Man? Do you want good coverage over a wide area or do you want to concentrate your system in one particular area?

There are various voice radio solutions that can be used including a system this will allow you to use multiple voice channels but have one unit keying up these base stations.

You can also use an ident so that when the vehicles key up they will send thru their callsign (good for stopping mic keyers etc).

There is a site in Cumbernauld using this sort of system with Tait radios.I have programmed up the 4 main buttons so that the drivers can press them too send back simple status messages i.e logged on.....telephone....bid.....

Also when they key the mic the callsign comes up on the computer screen.

How many cars do you want to operate on the voice channel and what coverage do you want? The idea of using a CBS (or community repeater) will work normal working hours if you have courier companies etc on it then it can get very busy and you will have to wait to try and get on and use the transmitter. At the weekend it will be better due to the fact that when your at the busy time of the week then other companies are not using the system.

You can also use a "RFW" (reverse frequency working). This is a way to run a base station at a remote site without having to spend the money on a BT landline.

Anyway, let me know and I will look into it for you.

regards
RadioMan

Maybe I just want the past back to where I knew what was going on, because I could hear it going on.

I also think that data is over-hyped, and suppliers are trying to get the latest thing to out do one another, when I think most people are happy as they are.

The costs involved are massive, and I really can't see a justification for it all.

Perhaps a system using PDAs showing all the jobs going out would put driver's minds at rest. But I suspect you are going to say that would cost fortunes.

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IDFIMH

I do not know of an office where all drivers get what they should 100% of the time ......... thats working data or voice.

I consider getting bumped for some work like getting no jobs ............ a nasty part of the trade that no-one can do anything about.

As long as I do my money then I really couldn't give a stuff what anyone else takes.

Not to long ago I heard a driver complaining about another getting a £40 job when he believed it should have been his, he looked a little shocked when I pointed out that becasue it was 11pm on a Saturday night he had made more than £40 in the same time as it took the other driver to return, and for less milage.

Personally I prefer working with data, but only because it is quiet in the car, I can really do without desk clerks screaching constantly, repeating pick up addresses, giving me a headache. Plus, on most systems, you can see where the work is coming up, particularly if there are no cars in the zone.

Yet again you have turned you question about voice into an ANTI-DATA thread. PLEASE STOP THIS.

WE ALL KNOW YOU HATE DATA but you started another thread asking about VOICE. Keep it to VOICE. I did NOT mention DATA.

Now if you want to answer the questions I have put forward then please do so, this will enable this discussion too move forware.

Well said and some very valid points.

no doubt data has far less stress for all outside Sussex.

constant requests for the door number, and certain drivers blocking airwaves, more can be done on data.

best thing Sussex is have your own despatcher on voice

let the rest progress

I started this thread because the other one was a debate between two members that had nothing to with the thread's issue.

As for this being an anti-data thread, well I wouldn't be asking for voice otherwise.

Still if it can't be done, then so be it.

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IDFIMH

What exactly are you asking for in terms of "system"? Booking and Despatch, or some mechanism whereby the controller can talk to a particular driver exclusively when he wants to? Something that also reports the location of drivers when they radio in? As an owner you don't want your drivers to spread rumours about how much each is earning.

The "anti-data" dimension of this reminds me of a TV programme I saw about air traffic control, where a move from voice to data is under consideration. The problem that pilots had with data was the fact that on voice, they could build up a picture of what else was going on around them on the runway. Hence they would have a good idea if the controller had made a mistake that was going to lead to a collision. On data they'd be "blind".

Perhaps this is another instance of the "quiet mode" / "busy mode" paradigm; if the operation is quiet enough during "quiet mode" there may be some advantage to having the circuit on voice, but on data when busy. The *problem* with voice will be "rookie" controllers; they are great at giving work out on data, but have a nightmare controlling on voice. I've witnessed both good and bad voice controllers, the good ones are those that rabbit on continuously, and know the streets very well. On data it's often more a question of how well the owner has configured his system.

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Next time you wave, use all your fingers.

very interesting Jason, are you saying that if we all go on data we will crash into one another?

tenefiffe air disaster was caused by a voice controller, who signaled to a plane to take off and two moved.

and there are several near misses every month

I would not use that example

please please tell me that Air Traffic Control are not using diplomat software, that would be a disaster.

The firm I work with have auriga data. But when there is work outstanding they always call it.
Drives some drivres mad. But it does clear the work.

Jason cole wrote:



How loud does anyone have to say voice only?

"System" is an abstraction that conveys no indication of scope.



Any comments, Sussex?

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Next time you wave, use all your fingers.