London black taxis plan congestion chaos to block Uber

94 点作者 sp8大约 11 年前

17 条评论

casca大约 11 年前

The Black Cabs in London have a long-standing monopoly on picking people up on the street and providing a metered journey. This is mandated by law. To become a black cab (not always black in colour) driver, it is necessary to take an advanced test called The Knowledge where you are expected to know every London street and landmark along with best routes based on random street closures. It takes about 3 years to study for The Knowledge and there is evidence[1] that they have increased brain size as a result of memorizing all that information.The other option for people wanting a car journey is the "mini-cab" which can be booked to collect from any specific location but must offer a fare in advance of the journey. In order to transport people for money, mini-cab drivers are licensed and have a background check done.Uber drivers in London must have the mini-cab license so this is a question around the black cab monopoly. As with any government-provided monopoly, the incumbents are keen to maintain the status quo while the newcomers are fighting for change. Any advances that Uber makes will benefit all mini-cab companies and most importantly, passengers.[1] <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/677048.stm" rel="nofollow">http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/677048.stm</a>

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sheberight大约 11 年前

Punter: traffic is bad today eh?Cabbie: me mates are making a point about UberPunter: Uber? What's that? <tap-tap-tap> Cool! Let me out here.Cabbie: tom tit! :-(

marksbrown大约 11 年前

They also brought Southwark (near London Bridge, London) to a complete standstill on Tuesday because TfL (Transport for London) is not ensuring enough well placed taxi ranks. The Shard for instance has a space for a single taxi.Frankly this new protest and the former reek of an unwillingness to change. Given the monopoly black cabs generally possess, it's not they're ever going to be short of customers.

fidotron大约 11 年前

If you think protectionism about Uber is bad just wait for self driving cabs and trucks. This kind of thing is going to get a lot bigger.

brianlweiner大约 11 年前

Ridiculous behavior. I'm glad the black taxis seem to have their customer's well-being at heart."Uber, funded by Google, Goldman Sachs and others, has a stated aim of challenging legislation that is not compatible with its business model," said Mr McNamara."This is not some philanthropic friendly society, it's an American monster that has no qualms about breaching any and all laws in the pursuit of profit, most of which will never see a penny of tax paid in the UK."Besides the ridiculous attempt to conflate Uber with evil bankers, it seems strange to suggest "most" of the profit will never be taxed in UK. Aren't all the UK drivers paying taxes?

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6d0debc071大约 11 年前

I wonder how legal that is.'If a person, without lawful authority or excuse, in any way wilfully obstructs the free passage along a highway he is guilty of an offence and liable to a fine not exceeding [F1 level 3 on the standard scale].'- Highways Act 1980 <a href="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1980/66/part/IX/crossheading/obstruction-of-highways-and-streets" rel="nofollow">http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1980/66/part/IX/crosshea...</a>

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jcampbell1大约 11 年前

I can't imagine a scenario where this doesn't backfire. This is going to put Uber on the front page of every local London newspaper for a week. At most the black cabs will force uber to make a minor programming change to the app, and the most likely outcome is a massive expansion of Uber in London. I imagine the folks at Uber HQ are giddy right now.

hobolobo大约 11 年前

The impression is that Uber are somehow freeing customers from unscrupulous and gouging taxi drivers. Taxi customers aren't being freed, they're simply under new management.

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stuaxo大约 11 年前

So - >> TfL told the association last month that it believed Uber's vehicles were not strictly "equipped" with taximeters since there was not "some sort of connection between the device and the vehicle".Instead there is a device used for calculating how far it has gone, e.g. "metering"... this is a bollocks distinction.

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bananas大约 11 年前

Screw the black cabs.I didn't realise what a rip off they are until I started driving around the city myself regularly with Google Maps which to be honest with traffic aware routing destroys "the knowledge" instantly. Black cab drivers know how to make cash, not the most efficient journeys in time and money. That meter hurts you badly.So they'll cause some chaos; good for them but it'll raise more awareness on the issue and hang them faster.More competition is required in this sector for the passengers.

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tragic大约 11 年前

Well, if the end result is I can travel a mile in a London cab without selling a kidney, I can't say I'm too worried about Uber coming in.

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aspidistra大约 11 年前

Two other Black Cab app startups:Get Taxi <a href="http://gettaxi.co.uk/" rel="nofollow">http://gettaxi.co.uk/</a>Hailo <a href="https://www.hailocab.com/london" rel="nofollow">https://www.hailocab.com/london</a>I believe these have faced some resistance in some cities even with a strategy of working with licensed taxi operators.

switch007大约 11 年前

I've used Climate Cars a few times and they're great. Mostly on time, their drivers are courteous and well-dressed, and they have a fleet of nice cars (I've mainly been in Prius and hybrid E-class cars).Every time I get in a black cab, I wish I had booked with them. Most mini-cab firms are atrocious - staff are rude and they have no idea where they're going.There's already good competition, but if there's more coming then I'm all for it. Black cabs have a bad reputation.(Edit: no, I don't work for them or have any affiliation.)

nakedrobot2大约 11 年前

What a deplorable, luddite attitude.The black taxis should be banned for some period of time for this behavior."The Licensed Taxi Drivers Association complains that Uber's drivers are using a smartphone app to calculate fares despite it being illegal for private vehicles to be fitted with taximeters." So using this website in your car is illegal?! <a href="http://www.worldtaximeter.com/" rel="nofollow">http://www.worldtaximeter.com/</a>

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btbuildem大约 11 年前

And you can laugh at the havoc, for the entire duration of your bike ride.

calinet6大约 11 年前

You can't block progress.

raldi大约 11 年前

Note that the rank-and-file taxi drivers aren't complaining; they'll all get a chance to become Uber drivers. It's the incumbent taxi organization that's upset, because it's about to become a lot less powerful.

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