And another question about Taxis.

[Puggie]

There are very few places outside London that still have the black hackney carriages, (London Taxi.) Sheffield is one of them.

 

They are very expensive, come with hugely expensive license plates, expensive testing and mechanical standards to maintain, and a huge list of regulations they have to conform to. How they are expected to compete with private hire and Uber I don't know.

 

I doubt they will survive.

 

The funny thing is the regulatory framework which was designed to keep the taxi trade protected is actually now beginning to cause them harm. The automatic knee-jerk reaction of many taxi drivers is to call for tighter rules and more regulation, however we know from experience they'll just end up regulating themselves out of existence.

[Cyclone]

How they are expected to compete with private hire and Uber I don't know.

 

I doubt they will survive.

 

That's market forces for you, it's not like we should deliberately skew the market to ensure that something that is no longer competitive survives. That would just cost the customer more for no good reason.

[SheffTF]

The funny thing is the regulatory framework which was designed to keep the taxi trade protected is actually now beginning to cause them harm. The automatic knee-jerk reaction of many taxi drivers is to call for tighter rules and more regulation, however we know from experience they'll just end up regulating themselves out of existence.

what a bizarre statement? since when have taxi drivers called for tighter regulations on themselves? they have been calling for equal treatment for all and for some drivers not to be able to flout the law whilst they have to abide by them. You seem to have totally misunderstood the situation and pigeonholed all taxi drivers into being a single entity. That is perhaps the tragedy of the trade that people who are ignorant of the trade are making rules to govern and regulate the taxi trade.

[Puggie]

what a bizarre statement? since when have taxi drivers called for tighter regulations on themselves? they have been calling for equal treatment for all and for some drivers not to be able to flout the law whilst they have to abide by them. You seem to have totally misunderstood the situation and pigeonholed all taxi drivers into being a single entity. That is perhaps the tragedy of the trade that people who are ignorant of the trade are making rules to govern and regulate the taxi trade.

 

I'm not getting involved in another argument over regulations. But I would encourage you to look beyond your trade, look at the wider transportation industry that you are part of. Postal & courier services, rail services, aviation, maritime.. do you think they operate under 100 separate rules governed by 100 separate councils? They are all regulated nationally under a single umbrella framework.

 

Without reforming the system you won't have growth, you won't have higher earnings, you won't have new entrants or proper competition like the rest of the industry.

 

SheffTF - we argued these points on another thread so I don't want another repeat on here.

[SheffTF]

I'm not getting involved in another argument over regulations. But I would encourage you to look beyond your trade, look at the wider transportation industry that you are part of. Postal & courier services, rail services, aviation, maritime.. do you think they operate under 100 separate rules governed by 100 separate councils? They are all regulated nationally under a single umbrella framework.

 

Without reforming the system you won't have growth, you won't have higher earnings, you won't have new entrants or proper competition like the rest of the industry.

 

SheffTF - we argued these points on another thread so I don't want another repeat on here.

lol so it seems you haven't learned anything from the interaction and those of us in the industry see the changes and development from within rather than being compared to curriers and lorry drivers etc, each industry has it's own regulations and as you wouldn't want your plumber to be qualified by watching YouTube videos we don't want the travelling public to be transported by sat nav jockies, so as we are so far away in our approach we have to agree to disagree

[ECCOnoob]

lol so it seems you haven't learned anything from the interaction and those of us in the industry see the changes and development from within rather than being compared to curriers and lorry drivers etc, each industry has it's own regulations and as you wouldn't want your plumber to be qualified by watching YouTube videos we don't want the travelling public to be transported by sat nav jockies, so as we are so far away in our approach we have to agree to disagree��

 

Regulation and control to keep passengers safe is one thing. But dont try and make out that a skilled trade such as plumbing is in the same category as driving a car with passengers.

 

A driving licence is all any lay person needs to do the practical parts of what a taxi driver does. That is a licence which is obtained by millions of us ordinary citizens.

 

I have been in plenty of regulated taxis driven by those so called "sat nav jockies". I have also had plenty of cab journies where I have had to direct a subsantial part of the route. You are deluded if you think that behaviour is solely limited to world of Uber drivers.

 

Sat Nav is just a tool. Its no different to a driver using power steering or parking cameras. The more common it becomes the more it will be a "standard" feature. Why are you so against it?

 

There needs to be a sensible balance between regulation (on vehicle standards, safety and driver checks) and free market (pricing competition, online applications and ride services).

Edited May 1, 2017 by ECCOnoob

[AmberLeaf]

Uber have a passenger star rating, apparently.

[Cyclone]

I'm perfectly happy to be driven by someone using satnav, particularly if it makes it a few quid cheaper.

[Bodie]

As long as I get to my destination in one piece I'm not bothered.

[*_ash_*]

As long as I get to my destination in one piece I'm not bothered.

 

Great attitude. I assume you are capable of joining in forums, writing out thoughts, and looking after yourself in general?

 

Many of my fares are account customers who have quite severe impairments and require more than just a-b.

 

 

Who cares though, as long as it's cheap?