November 4, 2008
Taxi-London.Net
The History
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).
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Comments on Taxi-London.Net »
Very interesting article. I wasn't aware Hackney Cabs have such a long history
Nice Post….keep it up !!!! Good job
John Lochrie
Hi can anyone out there help.I have bought a retired london taxi to use as a family runaround and cannot find a company to insure it as a private car.Does anyone know of a company that does this.
Thanks for any help
Jamie
I would like any comments the taxi community or passengers may have concerning the use of CCTV in hackney/private cab/cars.
Do driver support their use to help stop false accusations the passenger may make and provide passenger confidence in using taxi's etc.
Is the use of CCTV a positive move or not
On 1st February 2009 at a meeting of the Hackney Carriage & Private Hire Forum in Peterborough they discussed possible use of CCTV, following driver attacks in Peterborough, Following a further meeting of Peterborough Council, the council have proposed a new package of safety measures that will see taxi and private hire drivers in Peterborough require to fit CCTV cameras in their vehicle and complete an NVQ training course as part of the license.
Do you think this is a positive move !!
If you are looking for cheap Taxi Insurance then visit this website I found called Quotesearcher. Try it and see how you get on.
CCTV can be very useful, but there are always downsides to this kind of thing. With CCTV you can prevent crime, and provide evidence if there is ever a nasty accident with a cab or a privately hired car. If the incident is recorded there is little doubt about who crashed into who. Also if there are cameras inside the car and the driver is attacked, the people who did it can be recorded. the downside to this is that peoples privacy is invaded, and after all, whats the point in having darkened windows if somebody can see you through a camera? and for those of you who like a bit of suspicion, there is the risk of a "big brother" environment where everybody is watched 24/7! but then again, almost evey day you are caught on camera. personally i think CCTV is a good idea so long as it isnt over-done.
Hi
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Thanks
Chris
Interesting post. I didn't know the history of the black cabs. Are you still blogging? Maybe somewhere else?
thanks you for the very informative post
Hi,
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Thank You
Jai
Thanks - really useful article about the history of our great profession!
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