Sat Nav is of absolutely no use to black cab drivers, as it is too slow to use. Many of our journey's are over by the time it would have taken for a driver to type in the info to a sat nav device. I have it on my PDA and would love to have it out to help me, but if I sat there for 30-90 seconds typing in an address/place if interest, the customer would be screaming at me.
The difference between us and Addison Lee is that they get their job sent through via a pager or similar device (I worked for Express National Carriers and they did this) so they have an exact pick up and drop immediately so they can find the address on the way by stopping and having a look in the A-Z and plan their route accordingly. With regards to Black Cabbies and their properties abroad, these drivers bought their property years ago when prices were a quarter of what they are now, whereas I, having been a cabbie for 5 years only own a small one bedroom flat, and will probably struggle to ever buy anything bigger.
With regards to driving in London and learning the routes anyway, I was a minicab driver in London for 7 years, and when I started the knowledge, I felt I might as well have never even lived in London with the amount of stuff I didn't know. I have met several controllers from several large minicab firms that started the knowledge, and said they couldn't believe just how much of London they didn't know. I have already made a video explaining why sat nav would not would not work with the knowledge, and I am putting together more reasons why for another video. If people are still unconvinced I will take my sat nav out at work and film myself with customers to demonstrate the problems. The reason why everyone from the minicab industry is disgruntled is that they have no centralised leadership or representation.
Your argument that minicab drivers should be able to get out and be the same as black cab drivers, is like saying why couldn't a nurse become a doctor but just with an internet connection so they can just look at the symptoms on line. It is those that are complaining that don't deserve to be cab drivers - why? - because they are obviously too lazy to get out there and do the knowledge, like most people in Britain today - why should I study, why should I get up off my arse, I should just bloody have put in my lap. Well I work hard, I studied hard to get the knowledge, and I know that we provide the best service in the world, as confirmed by every foreigner I have ever had in my cab. Because we know we provide the best service, we are going to defend it, that's why we have all joined to form several unions to fight any half arsed lazy upstarts that think that can destroy the best taxi industry in the world.
I will be out there on the front line too, playing my part as a video maker and photographer, so I will jealousy defend what I have worked hard for. So I say again, don't complain, go out there and do the knowledge.
This was my response to the comment below left on one of my Youtube videos--
Noone's saying you should scrap the knowledge, but every reason for keeping it can be solved by replacing it with a combination of sat nav and a 6-8 month knowledge. You only need a basic knowledge plus a satnav. Addison Lee prove that and provide good service and none of them have done 'the knowledge'. They've already taken loads of your work. They should be able to pick up at designated ranks. Try getting a cab in the west end on fri and sat nights. The CBI say it is the biggest criticism of London. But black cabs say that there would be no living in it if the knowledge was speeded up and the streets flooded with cabs. What they mean is that they wouldn't be able to make the huge amounts of money they do at present. Why should they make so much when they don't do much. Just drive people around. Any old idiot can do that. Have a 6 month knowledge, a sat nav in every cab and let 20, 000 of the minicabs become black cabs. All prolems solved. Then your supply restricted scam would be over along with your lies and arrogance and overseas properties. Once again, every reason for keeping the 3-4 year knowledge can be solved by making it last 6-8 months and using a sat nav. You learn all the routes by doing the job anyway. Any experienced mini cabbie knows where to go even without a sat nav. Black cabs and the knowledge should go the same way as water transport. ie down the river......... Your days are numbered. Black cabs and mini cabs will merge and become the same thing. The only question left is how to break the freemason conspiracy between the cab trade, the police and the politicians that keeps it going artificially.
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