Mike Hughes wrote:
In message , redcat
writes
Just saw the article about London Black cab drivers being taught new
skills including when to give their fares quiet space. Head of taxi
regulation, Mr Mason told the FT: "It's a world-renowned service. The
drivers are always perceived to be some of the great characters you
come across in London.”

This was a misquote by the paper. Here is a message direct from John
Mason, head of TfL's Taxi and Private Hire Licensing

----------------------
Some key facts

The FT approached TfL as they were doing and article about the taxi
trade and the competition from private hire.

I gave them a short interview. During the interview I said we would be
looking at additional training that perhaps could be required during the
Knowledge

I suggested that perhaps TfL could do more to prepare drivers for when
they go out into the streets and start working. It's something many
people in the trade have suggested to me that we SHOULD be doing now.

We interact with drivers for a good few years, there are opportunities
for us to help them prepare for work, be it customer service training,
disabled passenger awareness or smarter driving techniques.

One thing I have been hearing loud and clear in my first six months is
that TfL should do more to help the cab trade. I am considering anything
that might do that.

Thats what I told the FT, they chose to report in the way they did.
Alas, I dont have editorial rights over such articles.

---------------

I beg to disagree. Characters, yes. But not greatest. I have a huge
beef with London cabbies. They are rude drivers. I used to think they
have eye problems until I found that they brake and give way to their
own, but not to pedestrians, even when the pedestrian is in the right
(or in danger of being knocked down).

Can you tell us just what you are comparing the cab drivers to? Have you
travelled extensively? How do they compare with New York, Calcutta,
Moscow or Tokyo for example?


I take cabs when I need them.

And do you want the taxi to get you there quickly or sit patiently in
traffic letting all and sundry pass in front of you while you sit and
watch the meter tick up?

But, you know, I'd *support* them if they would learn to be more
gentle, careful drivers. It's a crowded city, the Black Cabbies are
not the kings of the road and should not act that way.

Have you any experience of driving in London that you would like to
share with the rest of us? Perhaps you'd like to detail that then, if
it's relevant you can show me and my fellow taxi drivers exactly how
*you* think the job should be done.

When you've detailed your experience I'll let you know just where I was
trained and to what level. (hint: Hendon)


Driving in in London, or just about anywhere in the UK is a horror.
That's a given. And what I said before covers everything I wanted to
say. The BC drivers do not drive safely. I find when I'm at a small
crossing where there is no light if it's me or the BC, the BC will be
aggressive.

Please don't use that tired old saw about getting the passenger there on
time and not lest the meter tick up. That's BS and you know it. If
you're so concerned about the passenger's cost then lower the fares. And
I'm not talking about the rest of the planet. I'm talking about one
thing only, the subject of the article: black cabs.

Thanks for the actual quote. So he never said anything to the paper
about "great characters"? Then I'll stop right there. I wouldn't have
said a word if not for that description.

Imagine the FT coming up with a British Tourist Board line like that!