Taxis in London
Many people like to get taxies in London to travel around and see the famous city. They may work in the city or go on vacation. Some may need taxis to travel from place to place.
A taxicab, also taxi or cab, is a type of public
transport for a single passenger, or small group of passengers, typically for
a non-shared ride. A taxicab is a vehicle for hire, with a driver, which conveys
passengers between locations of their choice. In most other modes of public transport,
the pick-up and drop-off locations are determined by the service provider, not
by the passenger, although demand responsive transport and share taxis provide
a hybrid bus/taxi mode.
Four distinct forms of 'taxicab' can be identified, by slightly differing terms in different countries: Hackney Carriage, also known as public hire, hailed or street taxis, available for hire and reward and for hailing on street; Private Hire Vehicles (PHVs), also known as minicabs; Private Hire Taxis, available by pre-booking, not (legally) available for hailing on street; Taxibuses, also known as Jitneys, operating on pre-set routes for hire and reward, typified by multiple stops and multiple; and Limousines, specialized vehicle licensed for operation by pre-booking.
Although types of vehicles and methods of regulation, hiring, dispatching, and negotiating payment differ significantly from country to country, many common characteristics exist.
Horse-drawn for-hire hackney carriage services began operating in both Paris and London in the early 17th century. The first documented service was started by a Nicolas Sauvage in Paris in 1640. His vehicles were known as fiacres, as the main vehicle depot apparently was opposite a shrine to Saint Fiacre. (The term fiacre is still used in French to describe a horse-drawn vehicle for hire, while the German term Fiaker is used, especially in Austria, to refer to the same thing). In London the Hackney Carriage Act (1635) became the first legislated control in English on vehicles for hire. In the 19th century, Hansom cabs largely replaced the older designs because of their improved speed and safety.
Although battery-powered vehicles enjoyed a brief success in Paris, London, and New York in the 1890s, the 1891 invention by German Wilhelm Bruhn of the taximeter (the familiar mechanical and now often electronic device that calculates the fare in most taxicabs) ushered in the modern taxi. The first modern meter-equipped taxicab was the Daimler Victoria, built by Gottlieb Daimler in 1897. The first modern taxi company was opened by Friedrich Greiner and began operating in Stuttgart the same year.
Gasoline-powered taxicabs began operating in Paris in 1899, in London in 1903, and in New York in 1907. The New York taxicabs were imported from France by Harry N. Allen. Allen was the first person to paint his taxicabs yellow, after learning that yellow is the colour most easily seen from a distance.[citation needed]
Taxicabs proliferated around the world in the early 20th century. The first major innovation after the invention of the taximeter occurred in the late 1940s, when two-way radios first appeared in taxicabs. Radios enabled taxicabs and dispatch offices to communicate and serve customers more efficiently than previous methods, such as using callboxes. The next major innovation occurred in the 1980s, when computer assisted dispatching was first introduced.
There has generally been a legal
struggle concerning the certification of motor vehicles to be taxicabs, which
take much more wear than a private car does. In London, they were additionally
required to meet stringent specifications (Metropolitan Conditions of Fitness
- MCF), adopted in entirety by a number of other large UK cities (including Glasgow
and Edinburgh), for example, as concerns turn radius, which resulted for a time
in having only one make legally usable. In the US, in the 1930s, the cabs were
often DeSotos or Packards. General Motors offered a specialized vehicle for a
time, named the General. The firm Checker came into existence then, and stopped
manufacturing cabs in the early 1980s. Its cars were specially built to carry
"double dates." But now New York City requires that all taxicabs be
ordinary cars. They are mainly long-wheelbase versions of the Ford Crown Victoria.
Toyota Sienna minivans are the alternate vehicle of choice in New York's cab fleet.
In the 1960s in Europe, Mercedes-Benz and Peugeot offered diesel taxicabs. This
form of engine is now the norm in Europe due to its superior fuel
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The FX4 is the classic London Black Cab. While the majority are black there is in fact no requirement in London for them to be black. Over the years, the FX4 has been sold under a range of brands. The FX4 was the successor to the Austin FX3 produced between 1948 and 1959 and in its own day regarded as the classic London taxi. Like the FX3, the FX4 was designed by Austin in collaboration with Mann and Overton (a taxi dealership) and Carbodies (a coachbuilder). The design team included Albert Moore from Austin’s engineering division, Jack Helberg from Carbodies and David Southwell of Mann and Overton. The original design was by Austin’s Eric Bailey with the assistance of Carbodies' Jake Donaldson. Little change was necessary to produce the outline of the production vehicle.
Like the FX3, the FX4 had a separate chassis (which was in fact barely changed from the FX3 chassis) with a body stiffened by a divider between the driving and passenger compartments.
The first FX4, registration mark VLW 431, was delivered in July 1958 with an official launch later that year.
Taxicabs are regulated throughout the United Kingdom, but the regulation of taxicabs in London is especially rigorous both with regard to mechanical integrity and driver knowledge.
Horse-drawn hackney carriages began providing taxicab service in the early 17th century. In 1636, the number of carriages was set at 50 - an early example of taxicab regulation. In the same year, the owner of four hackney carriages established the first taxicab stand in The Strand. In the early 19th century, cabriolets (cabs for short) replaced the heavier and more cumbersome hackney carriages. Battery-operated taxis appeared briefly at the end of the 19th century, but the modern taxicab service took off with the appearance of petrol-powered taxis in 1903. In 1907 meters were first introduced to calculate the fare and were set at 8d for the first mile. Today, taxicab service in London is provided by the famous black cabs (the distinctive FX4 depicted in the photo above) and by minicabs.
Chinese carmaker Geely Automobile has been in talks over the possibility of converting London’s black cabs into electric-powered cars. The company, which co-owns black London taxi-maker Manganese Bronze, says it has held talks with UK government officials about the plan.
The taxicab driver is required to be able to decide routes immediately in response to a passenger's request or traffic conditions, rather than stopping to look at a map, rely on satellite navigation or ask a controller by radio. Consequently, the Knowledge of London' Examination System, informally known as 'The Knowledge', is the in-depth study of London street routes and places of interest that taxicab-drivers in that city must complete to obtain a licence to operate a black cab. It was initiated in 1865, and has changed little since.
It is the world's most demanding training course for taxicab-drivers, and applicants will usually need at least 12 'Appearances' (attempts at the final test), after preparation averaging 34 months, to pass the examination.
A taxicab-driver must learn these, as well as the 'points of interest' along those routes including streets, squares, clubs, hospitals, hotels, theatres, government and public buildings, railway stations, police stations, courts, diplomatic buildings, important places of worship, cemeteries, crematoria, parks and open spaces, sports and leisure centres, places of learning, restaurants and historic buildings.
The Knowledge includes such details as the order of theatres on Shaftesbury Avenue, or the names and order of the side streets and traffic signals passed on a route.
During training would-be cabbies, known as Knowledge boys (or girls), usually follow these routes around London on a motor scooter, and can be identified by the clipboard fixed to the handlebars and showing details of the streets to be learned that day. In order to pass the Knowledge, applicants must have a clean driving licence and no criminal record, then first pass a written test, which qualifies them to make an 'appearance'. At appearances, Knowledge boys must, without looking at a map, identify the quickest and most sensible route between any two points in metropolitan London that their examiner chooses. For each route, the applicants must recite the names of the roads used, when they cross junctions, use roundabouts, make turns, and what is 'alongside' them at each point.
In the Up Series documentary films, Tony Walker is seen on his motor scooter learning "The Knowledge" before becoming a cab driver.
Since 1600 public carriages for hire have been a feature of London life. The discarded coaches of aristocratic families, complete with their coat of arms, were among the first hackney carriages to ply for hire. They were the forerunners of the French hackney carriage or cab (cabriolet) which first appeared in London around 1820.
The first horseless cab, the Bersey electric powered vehicle, appeared in 1897, followed by the first internal combustion engine cab in 1903. At that time London still had more than 11,000 horse drawn cabs. The last horse drawn cab was removed from service in 1947. There are now over 20,000 licensed vehicles on London's roads.
Regulation
of the trade passed to the Metropolitan Police in 1850 and was undertaken by the
Public Carriage Office, which was originally located in an annex to New Scotland
Yard in Whitehall called the Bungalow. It moved to 109 Lambeth Road in 1919, remaining
there until 1966, when it moved to Penton Street, Islington.
london
taxis
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