London-style taxi cabs in Australia

[Falcman0o7]

I thought london taxis were 100 year old black POS...

Oh they are

[Jastel]

A lot of %$#% in this post, some corrections

Cab drivers DONT buy cars, operators/owners do.
They will buy whatever car suits their needs. Ford, Holden, Toyota or Geeley.
Fuel efficiency is only one part of the equation. Not all cars work in all markets.
Drivers have the choice of which owner to work for, if they want a particular type of car.

There is nothing stopping any "hard working" Aussie driving taxis, but they don't exactly line up for the job, so we have to hire whoever will. I have no control of who the government lets into the country or grants a taxi drivers license to. I have lost count of how many times an Aussie says "I'm not working for $4 an hour" which is what we make sometimes...sometimes we make more obviously. I am not stupid but I do know you have to take the bad with the good.

Yes licenses are expensive, if licenses had NO value, there is NO incentive to operate and make profit to repay the bank, cars will be crap buckets, if it breaks down who cares, taxis would only work a few hours each day when they felt like it and never go to the outer suburbs or pick up drunks. Government regulations for your safety and Insurance eats up a lot of money too. I don't like all these extra costs but they are there for the Passengers benefit and protection.

There would be no safety problems if people could control their temper and alcohol intake and act like humans instead of animals.

I have no problems with Uber etc coming into the industry, so long as they PAY all the same fees and operate under the same rules I do. Wait until you end a quadriplegic in a Uber car accident and see how much insurance money you get...

Not all cars can be taxis, they must meet Transport Department Standards.

We have taxis that take 6 (or more) people, they are called vans.

If you think vehicles/service are bad now, deregulate (remove the license value and rules)the industry and see what happens. There are complaint numbers in most taxis I have been in, dial them, write letters to Transport or the company...don't just say "They should..." and do nothing. I don't want bad drivers/operators in the industry any more than you do.

And for those that say all taxis should be (insert brand here), what if I told you what type of office you had to have, what computer to use or what brand of tools to buy...this was a democracy last time I checked. If you don't want to ride in a (insert brand here) you don't have to, you wait until one you like comes along.

Back on topic...the Geeleys are not my cup of tea but others may like them.

[Riksta]

I will never ride in any taxi that is not Horn.



VNs are Horn.

[malazn mafia]

Originally Posted by Riksta

I will never ride in any taxi that is not Horn.

image

Says he who drives a mondeo. A couple of nice original and restored VN SS up for sale these days, time for a new set of wheels perhaps?

[malazn mafia]

Originally Posted by Jastel

There is nothing stopping any "hard working" Aussie driving taxis, but they don't exactly line up for the job, so we have to hire whoever will. I have no control of who the government lets into the country or grants a taxi drivers license to. I have lost count of how many times an Aussie says "I'm not working for $4 an hour" which is what we make sometimes...sometimes we make more obviously. I am not stupid but I do know you have to take the bad with the good.

Yes licenses are expensive, if licenses had NO value, there is NO incentive to operate and make profit to repay the bank, cars will be crap buckets, if it breaks down who cares, taxis would only work a few hours each day when they felt like it and never go to the outer suburbs or pick up drunks. Government regulations for your safety and Insurance eats up a lot of money too. I don't like all these extra costs but they are there for the Passengers benefit and protection.

There would be no safety problems if people could control their temper and alcohol intake and act like humans instead of animals.

I have no problems with Uber etc coming into the industry, so long as they PAY all the same fees and operate under the same rules I do. Wait until you end a quadriplegic in a Uber car accident and see how much insurance money you get...

Not all cars can be taxis, they must meet Transport Department Standards.

We have taxis that take 6 (or more) people, they are called vans.

If you think vehicles/service are bad now, deregulate (remove the license value and rules)the industry and see what happens. There are complaint numbers in most taxis I have been in, dial them, write letters to Transport or the company...don't just say "They should..." and do nothing. I don't want bad drivers/operators in the industry any more than you do.

And for those that say all taxis should be (insert brand here), what if I told you what type of office you had to have, what computer to use or what brand of tools to buy...this was a democracy last time I checked. If you don't want to ride in a (insert brand here) you don't have to, you wait until one you like comes along.

Back on topic...the Geeleys are not my cup of tea but others may like them.

So given the reasons for the high costs, insurance, liability etc Lets say in the instance of, lets say giving a lift to a stranger, a new business client, or an aquaintence or relative is not advisable (or illegal) because insurance or TAC will not cover the passengers of the vehicle, only the driver because there was no taxi license or taxi insurance involved

But at the end of the day 8/10 taxi drivers I have encountered hate their jobs so much and always ask me if I have a job for them I reckon taxi driver and police officer would have to be the worst jobs in this country and nobody with other options would choose such a job, judging from the attitudes of people working in these occupations...

[Jastel]

No insurance problems so long as passenger doesn't PAY you and it is not a business.

Point 2 I agree with, see my post on people acting like animals. Police at least have guns and tasers and backup. The downside of a Policeman is he is supposed to go into the trouble, whereas a smart taxi driver should be heading away from it. Most people do not drive taxis long term simply because of the way some of the public abuse them.

Actual serious assaults are fairly rare but always make the papers. Other industries injury and Worker Comp rates are many times taxis. You never see the paper say builder falls of roof, builder hurts back etc.

[Davehoos]

work has a fleet of vehicles for volunteer drivers. These are not Taxi or could be used instead of a Taxi.

There are insurance issues as we all know that they wont want to pay if they can get out of it.

Volenteers are no longer exempt from legal B/S only people helping people on rare occasions[cant think of a word to describe it legally--minefield]

NSW

[NTF6]

They look slow and poxy..!!!!

[eb2fairmont]

So when do the Australian episodes of fake taxi start?


Actually no scratch that the ferals wouldn't make good viewing

[RAREV8]

I've been in these taxis in Perth- they are a poor and smaller imitation of the proper London cab. Very disappointing.......I didn't see these in London last Feb when I was there- just the traditional full size ones- are they introducing these small Chinese knock offs there too?

[Falcman0o7]

Originally Posted by Riksta

I will never ride in any taxi that is not Horn.

image

VNs are Horn.

Oh hi Riksta! VN's are *** AZ BRUV

[Franco Cozzo]

Originally Posted by Jastel

If you think vehicles/service are bad now, deregulate (remove the license value and rules)the industry and see what happens. There are complaint numbers in most taxis I have been in, dial them, write letters to Transport or the company...don't just say "They should..." and do nothing. I don't want bad drivers/operators in the industry any more than you do.

If you deregulate anything it turns into a crapfest. Thats why I don't believe in "free market economy".

[Jastel]

Originally Posted by Davehoos

work has a fleet of vehicles for volunteer drivers. These are not Taxi or could be used instead of a Taxi.

There are insurance issues as we all know that they wont want to pay if they can get out of it.

Volenteers are no longer exempt from legal B/S only people helping people on rare occasions[cant think of a word to describe it legally--minefield]

NSW

In Qld there is a class of Drivers Authorisation for Courtesy Coaches, there would be something similar in NSW I guess. Basically only customers of the business or service can use the bus, not general public.
It is less training than a taxi driver basically checks you are not a criminal, (pedo/sexual assault/violence) being the main things they look for.

Giving a mate a lift, car pooling, loaning a friend a car, chipping in for fuel etc will not cause insurance issues.

Picking up and charging people for profit on Uber type thingos will.
Hiring out your fancy car for weddings/formals etc maybe caught as well...depends on exact circumstances.

[tweeked]

Have these things been ANCAP tested?

With the driving skills of the last two taxi drivers I was thankful to be in a 5 star vehicle

[Phildo]

Originally Posted by johnydep

If I was a Taxi driver I'd want the safety features.

Front brakes: 278mm discs.

Rear brakes: Drum brakes.

On a car that weighs around 2,000kg (ie more than a Falcon).

But hey, who needs brakes when you've only got 175 width tyres? Yep, true.

The 1960s called. They want their safety standards back.

The current London taxi, the TX4, is the third version of the since sometime around the 1950s.

These are not modern, well developed cars.

I'm hearing that drivers in Perth that have signed lengthy contracts are looking for ways of getting out of the contracts.

Besides, where are the parts? It's Friday afternoon and you need some front brake pads. Something that every corner parts shop has for a Falcon/Camry/Prius/etc.

Nup, no brake pads for a London taxi.

Ah well, just drive the weekend with stuffed pads and we'll figure it out when the next shipment of parts arrives from China in a few weeks.

[jpblue1000]

Originally Posted by Phildo

Front brakes: 278mm discs.

Rear brakes: Drum brakes.

On a car that weighs around 2,000kg (ie more than a Falcon).

But hey, who needs brakes when you've only got 175 width tyres? Yep, true.

The 1960s called. They want their safety standards back.

The current London taxi, the TX4, is the third version of the since sometime around the 1950s.

These are not modern, well developed cars.

I'm hearing that drivers in Perth that have signed lengthy contracts are looking for ways of getting out of the contracts.

Besides, where are the parts? It's Friday afternoon and you need some front brake pads. Something that every corner parts shop has for a Falcon/Camry/Prius/etc.

Nup, no brake pads for a London taxi.

Ah well, just drive the weekend with stuffed pads and we'll figure it out when the next shipment of parts arrives from China in a few weeks.

Nothing wrong with drum brakes if sized appropriately.
Dont the vast majority of trucks run Drum brakes and they weigh a shed lot more then 2 tonne. and more weight per axle than a Cab
I agree with parts availability if that is an issue but believe they are made up of many OEM parts from many manufacturers? Still may not be readily available here.
Plenty of London Taxis in London dont end up dead with narrow tyres and drum brakes.
and no matter what you argue they are a good taxi

JP

[Davehoos]

I thought a 278mm disc and rear drum for a 2 ton city transport was overkill, kept quiet as I havnt seen if it vented or the style of drum shoe.

My 1988 skyline taxi had 4.5 inch rims 155 78-14, factory option of 80 or 105Km speed limited. it was only 1750Kg 250 mm disc with a 9 in drum.