The Black Cabs' history goes back to the time of horse-drawn cabs which were called Hackney Cabs. The term comes from the French word haquenee referring to the ambling horses used to pull the original Hackney Carriages. The Hackney Carriage originated in London, England in 1625. The cabs still come under some of the old rules from the horse-drawn days. The Black Cabs are the only taxis that are allowed to pick people up from the street. There are also mini cabs in London, however they can only collect someone if they have made a prior arrangement by phone.

Before a taxi driver gets his Hackney Cab Licence he or she must pass a test called 'The Knowledge'. This is a difficult test and requires the cabbie to know the streets of central London like the palm of their hand. Mini cab drivers do not need to pass this test.
The Knowledge

Taxi drivers in London undergo a demanding and arduous testing of their knowledge of the city, its daily traffic patterns and the fastest routes between locations. Estimates suggest that gathering the basic understanding needed to acquire The Knowledge involves a full-time year of study, absorbing the information provided by street maps and travelling around the city itself.

The result is that drivers of official London Hackney Cabs are renowned for their detailed and intimate knowledge of London's streets and attractions. Strangely enough, scientific study has shown that possession and expansion of The Knowledge increases the size of the anterior and posterior hippocampi of the brain - the area that handles spatial memory and spatial navigation.

Compared with baseline controls and inexperienced cabbies, long-serving taxi drivers possessed considerable more developed hippocampi.

The Vehicles

There are currently 3 makes of vehicle licensed to ply for hire in London:

LTI (London Taxis International) - FX4 taxi, Fairway taxi, Fairway Driver taxi, TX1 taxi, TX2 Taxi & TX4 taxi.
Metrocab - Series 1 Metrocab, Series 2 Metrocab, Series 3 Metrocab & TTT Metrocab.
Eco City Vehicles - Mercedes Benz Vito Taxi.
All of these vehicles have to conform to the conditions  of fitness as set out by the PCO (Public Carriage Office).
http://www.taxi-london.net/

Most of the prospective cabbies learn the Knowledge while riding around London on a scooter, generally on a Sunday with an A-Z map strapped to the handlebars.

I often think it would be a much more impressive task to do it purely from the A-Z map, without any reference to the physical streets. I wonder if anyone's ever done that. I wonder if I should try. It would be quite a feat.

http://www.londontaxiknowledge.co.uk/General.html

"One of our ideas is to convert London taxis into electric," Li Shufu, the company's chairman, told the Financial Times. "We are doing research on this project."

Geely owns about 23 per cent of Manganese Bronze, the Coventry-based producer of black London cabs, and 51 per cent of a Shanghai-based joint venture with the UK company that will produce the cars in China starting this December.

Mr Li said that he had discussed the idea of electric taxis in London with Boris Johnson, the city's mayor, at the Beijing Olympic games in August. Mr Johnson supports the idea.

Manganese Bronze this year signed a research and development agreement with Tanfield Electric Vehicles to develop all-electric plug-in taxis. Manganese Bronze's share price has slumped in recent weeks after hundreds of its TX4 cabs were taken off the streets following a series of engine fires.

Geely, like China's other rising automakers, is developing its own plug-in hybrid and electric cars, including an electric version of its Panda city car that it may seek to sell in Europe. Mr Li said developing electric vehicle technology would be a major strategic focus for the company in future.

Geely's plan to build London taxis in Shanghai is one of a string of investments by Chinese companies seeking to apply low-cost production to iconic overseas assets.

Rival carmaker SAIC recently relaunched production of MG TF sports cars in Longbridge and makes the Roewe brand of cars in China largely based on tools and designs formerly owned by bankrupt MG Rover.

LTI Shanghai Automobile, the JV, plans to sell the Shanghai-built cabs to taxi operators, hotels, and other buyers in China and overseas, with a view eventually to building 10,000 vehicles a year.

The Chinese operation will also supply parts produced at a lower cost to LTI's flagship operation in the UK.

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/79089ff4-9e3f-11dd-bdde-000077b07658.html

How long it takes to become a licensed taxi driver depends on whether you want to be an All London driver or a Suburban driver.

London or the suburbs?

All London drivers, also known as Green Badge drivers, need a detailed knowledge of London within a six mile radius of Charing Cross.

Initially there are 320 routes or runs to learn, along with all the places of interest and important landmarks on and around these runs.

It takes between two to four years to learn and pass the All London Knowledge. Once you are licensed you can work anywhere in the Greater London area.

Suburban

Suburban drivers, or Yellow Badge drivers, need to choose from one of the nine suburban sectors and know between 30 and 51 runs in detail, depending on their chosen sector, and all places of interest and important landmarks on those runs.

It takes around two years to become a licensed Suburban taxi driver. Once qualified you can only work in the sector you are licensed for.

You can find out more about the two types of licence available on the Licence types page. 

Knowledge makes your brain grow

The brain will grow as you learn and put into practice the Knowledge, says research by the Wellcome Department of Imaging Neuroscience.

On scanning the brains of 16 London taxi drivers, who had spent an average of two years learning the Knowledge, they found they had a larger right hippocampus than control subjects.

Find out more on the study on the Wellcome Trust website.

See also: http://www.londontaxiknowledge.co.uk

Commenting on the challenge Matt Sinclair said: “I’m very glad that we took on this tough challenge and made it.  My legs certainly felt pain for the following week but because of this challenge, £15,750 will now go to the new Paul O’Gorman Leukaemia Research Facility in Scotland, where people with Leukaemia all over the world will benefit.  I would like to thank Peter and Cab Direct as without them we couldn’t have done it.”
Cab Direct were delighted that they could help out the group.  Sales Director Peter Facenna commented: “Driving the climbers around for long hours was tough and the weather certainly took its toll on all of us but myself and Cab Direct were delighted to support Matt and the team for such a worthy cause. Well done to all who took part!”
Cab Direct supplied the jumbo Ford Transit minibus with tailgate for the challenge which is just one of many vehicles available from their extensive accessible range.

To find out more on Cab Direct’s minibus range freephone 0800 916 3058, email info@cabdirect.com or visit www.cabdirect.com
 

And not only does New E7 look the part, comfort levels are second to none too as Russell has noticed.  He says: “The driver comfort is superb.  The adjustable seat really does make a difference - with the height and tilt adjustments and additional lumbar support you can get the seat exactly as you want it.  I find I don’t end my shift feeling as tired.”

Russell is also impressed with New E7’s space.  Today’s passengers often come with plenty of luggage and being able to accommodate this is crucial for the modern day driver.  That’s why New E7 brings you an amazing 70% more luggage capacity.  Even better, the celebrated EasySlide™ rear seat allows you to create even more space for loading cases out of the way.  And now with the option of the E7 plus, the long wheelbase model offering even greater room, you are sure to be able to cater for every fare.  Russell says:  “The space is phenomenal – really excellent for airport runs.  And my customers have noticed it too.  I’ve had lots of positive feedback.”

Russell, who previously owed a TX11, also finds the E7 to be first class in terms of affordability.  He explains:  “I do a combination of town and urban driving and economy wise, the E7 is much better than the TX11.  It’s unbelievable – the E7 is much bigger and yet it’s far more economical.  And with the larger tank it’s a win win situation all round - not only do you get more to the gallon but you need to fill up even less. It’s ideal for me and really great value for money.”

Russell couldn’t be happier with his new taxi and is seeing a lot of green eyes from other drivers and his area.  And he is only too happy to recommend the E7.  Not only that, he adds:  I was very pleased with the speed of delivery.  The service from Cab Direct has been excellent.”

Why not find out for yourself?

For further information on New E7 freephone 0800 916 3058, email info@cabdirect.com or visit www.cabdirect.com
 

Parvinder Singh Panesar, of Montague Avenue, Oakwood, Leeds, faces losing his home after the court in London hit him with a confiscation bill totalling more than £180,000.

Judge Michael Stokes QC ruled a judge had let Panesar off far too lightly when he ordered him to pay just £30,687, saying it would be unjust to make him pay any more.

Panesar argued his lifestyle was due not to his involvement in the drugs world but to his hard work as a self-employed taxi driver, six or seven days a week.

He said that his income as a cabbie was much greater than he had declared to Revenue and Customs.

But Judge Stokes said Panesar had paid off part of the mortgage on a previous home using £8,600 in cash "tainted" by drugs.

Sale

The money from selling that home had been ploughed into buying the Montague Avenue property, now valued at almost £200,000.

And, strictly applying laws designed to strip drug dealers of their ill-gotten gains, the judge said Panesar stood to lose every penny of equity he had in his home.

Panesar admitted conspiring to supply class A drugs when he appeared at Bradford Crown Court in October 2005. He was jailed for three-and-a-half years and later hit with the £30,687 confiscation bill.

However, prosecutors took the case to London's Criminal Appeal Court arguing Panesar had lived "a criminal lifestyle" and had not been ordered to pay anything like enough.

Judge Stokes, sitting with Lord Justice Maurice Kay and Mr Justice Plender, on Friday agreed, upping Panesar's bill to over £180,000 – including the £150,000 equity in his home.

Panesar had admitted his crime on the basis that he had, a few times, driven a drug dealer from Leeds to Bradford and had once agreed to store 1kg of heroin at his home. He had also been involved in "bagging up" drugs.

Judge Stokes said the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 demanded that Panesar be stripped of "the whole of the equity" in his home as the price of his involvement in the drugs trade.

http://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/news/Drugtrade-Leeds-cabbie-faces-180000.4305436.jp

The woman, said to be an executive who earns £70,000 a year, had been at a party on a Thames boat and was spotted by passers-by, slumped on a south London pavement.

They alerted two Pcs and asked them to assist the woman, who was wearing only a black T-shirt.

'It should have been clear that she may have been sexually assaulted,' a source said

But instead of driving her to a hospital or a police station, the officers took her to a taxi firm close to Southwark Tube station. After it was found no one could collect her, the taxi firm agreed to take her home.

The woman reported the incident, which took place on 4 July, the next day but investigators fear important forensic evidence may have been lost.

A senior source said: 'It should have been clear that she may have been sexually assaulted. To top it off, they put her in a cab with another strange man.'

Police think the woman may have been raped by an unlicensed taxi driver who dumped her in the street.

The Met insisted the officers who were asked to help the woman were unaware she may have been raped.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1036892/Police-half-naked-rape-victim-minicab-pay-fare-home.html

It is understood a number of cabbies are retraining as bus drivers, while others who have passed the city’s taxi examination are choosing not to take up work.

And with fuel prices up by a third in the last year alone, drivers are also now sticking to the ranks rather than cruising the streets looking for fares.

Council chiefs have agreed to a 20p rise on all starting fares after pleas from the trade but taxi drivers have called for a wider review of fares to get under way. The most recent fares review took place last November, when prices were frozen at May 2006 levels.

Murray Fleming, secretary of Central Radio Cabs, said: “There has been a definite change over the last few months. There are more and more shifts available and a lot of the guys are struggling to get cover for holidays.

“It is the first time I can recall in my time in the trade that we have seen significant numbers leaving.

“The other thing we have noticed is that a lot of the guys who have gone through their taxi brief have decided to stay in their current jobs for now.

“I think there is a public perception that cabbies are all rolling in it, but there hasn’t been a fares increase since 2006 and they don’t have the fringe benefits of normal jobs, such as sick pay.”

Taxi fares currently start at £1.50 before 6pm on weekdays, and £2.50 at night and at weekends, rising in increments of 25p based on time and distance.

Although the taxi fares review is likely to begin by the end of this year, the council has no legal obligation to carry out another review until May next year.

Eric Shade, chairman of the Edinburgh Taxi Association, which has close to 400 members, said: “There has definitely been a slip in the numbers of drivers operating.

“Those I’ve spoken to who have left have just quit the trade completely.

“It is particularly hard at the moment and it is not just the fuel prices.

“You have a general economic downturn and when you throw in the roadworks, then people are just thinking it’s not worth it.

“The fuel costs are really hurting – this is why you are not seeing people cruising for fares because it is just not economical to do so.”

Phil Capaldi, a city taxi driver for 25 years, said: “You definitely can’t afford to go cruising around like you could in the old days.

“A lot of the guys are just parking up at the ranks now and that can cause problems because of the space available.”

http://www.toomanytaxis.com/2008/07/21/cabbies-driven-out-of-work-as-rising-fuel-costs-hit-taxi-trade/

The poll of over 7,000 Brits was carried out by the hotel chain to find out the 50 things people love most about Britain.

The instantly recognisable black cabs ranked the highest vehicle on the list ahead of the Aston Martin, Mini Cooper and Jaguar E-type. Fish ‘n’ Chips topped the overall poll, followed by the Queen in second place and old fashioned pubs in third.

Rob Laidler, Sales Director for LTI Vehicles said: “This survey sums up everything we love about Britain and is yet another accolade for the London Taxi. It’s not hard to see why our cab is loved by millions of Britons and this result serves only to reinforce its iconic status. Visitors to this country always quote a ride in a London Taxi as one of their favourite activities. This helps make London a unique city in the world with the best taxis and taxi drivers by far.”

Andrew Smith, spokesman for Holiday Inn, commented on the findings: "As a nation, we are rightly patriotic. This list gives a fascinating insight into exactly what it means to be British – our food, history, Royalty, our many wonderful characters and all the fabulous places we love to visit."

http://www.autoindustry.co.uk/news/22-07-08_1