> If you take an ordinary taxi and pay cash, it will generate no records associated with you
I think that's a foolish assumption. Standard taxis not only remember the phone number / name / address association, they are likely tracking the cabs as well these days. They also often have CCTV.
> With real taxis, you can flag one on the street
Or not. Or they'll tell you they won't go where you want.
In the UK, cabs are heavily regulated. If they refuse the trip, they may be fined or worse. Some of those bylaws and regulations are there to stop discrimination, some of them are there to ensure that they provide a service and charge fairly, not just run a business: that's an important part of how authorities view licensing somebody going around picking up strangers and driving them around for cash.
If you're covered in vomit, if you are eating food, if you are clearly so drunk you are likely about to vomit, if you are being abusive or aggressive, if they have reason to think you can not or will not pay the fare, they can tell you why they're not taking you and not take you. You can complain by making a note of the license number on the back of the car. If you are found to be right, the driver will be at fined, and may be forced to compensate you.
Generally, they're going to take you.
In London there are competitor apps to Uber for black cabs and minicabs. Some of them are great and provide drivers who provide great service (Hailo, Addison Lee), some of them less so (Kabbee).
I've used Uber a few times as an experiment and had mixed results. I see why people like it, but I'm inclined to stop using it, mostly because I think Uber is exploiting the drivers to a certain degree.
Also, most people aren't aware that Uber drivers rate you, the passenger. Support the wrong team? Don't like the route they're choosing and tell them so, and they hate you? You're going to struggle to get an Uber next time. My g/f tells me when she's in an Uber she spends so much time trying to be "pleasant" to get a good rating, it's like that episode of Black Mirror, it's ridiculous.
Says a member of the majority ethnic group. If you are not a member of that group, this is simply not true. A black man in NYC or a person not speaking Marathi in Pune simply cannot expect the same service quality.
In any case, Uber also has regulations, and in my experience they are enforced far better than any cab rules.
The last time I had a problem with an Uber it was some idiot pretending he didn't understand my Hindi and running up the meter by taking a long non-highway route to the airport. I submitted a complaint while waiting for the flight and got a "your trip has been refunded" notification when I stepped off the plane.
Will the UK regulator provide a similar level of service?
The post I'm replying to was a rebuttal to a comment about taxis in general, not the UK.
It's possible that UK regulators have solved all the problems that no other taxi regulator has managed: limited supply, high prices, and a complaint process that involves more work than taking out your phone. But I don't find it that likely.
My Hindi is bad. Nevertheless, it's exceedingly rare for a driver to fail to understand it.
It's even rarer for a driver to also fail to understand the words "MG road" spoken by a person pointing their finger at MG road (which every other Uber or taxi driver knew to take), while their Uber map also says to take MG road.
I'd love to hear about a single instance of getting a bad UK taxi ride fixed in under 10 hours with a simple text message. Could you link me to a description of how that works?
Yeah... kind of. In bigger places, maybe it has a meaning. But for example in Bath the driver literally bragged to me that people can complain that the taxi is late or never arrived, but they're just contractors renting the radio equipment. The dispatch doesn't care even if you complain to them, so they can do whatever they want. As I was sitting in his cab... so not sure what that was supposed to achieve.
On the other hand the one time I actually noted feedback on the Uber drive, it resulted in follow up questions and generally was handled well. (that was in Singapore)
> My g/f tells me when she's in an Uber she spends so much time trying to be "pleasant" to get a good rating
Interesting. I just pretty much never talk to cab drivers. Yet some make a point of telling me I got 5 stars from them, so that I give them 5 stars too...
Your taxi driver in Bath is embodying the stereotype of the taxi driver who is ignorant of the subject. Xe has alas conveyed that ignorance to you. What you state as second-hand fact is anything but.
The law that covers taxis and private hire vehicles in Bath is Part 2 of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976. It is at http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1976/57/part/II . B&NES Council is one of several local authorities to have adopted what are essentially uniform local bylaws. Other local authorities retain their own (sometimes much earlier) bylaws, but their differences from the Act are usually that they are even stricter.
It is interesting to contrast the actual U.K. law (which has been around since 1976) with discussion on this WWW page.
* It is illegal under section 69 of the Act for either hackney carriage or private hire vehicle drivers to prolong journeys.
* It is illegal under section 48 of the Act for licensing authorities to refuse to licence private hire vehicles simply in order to render licences a scarce commodity.
* It is illegal under section 64 of the Act for someone to park something other than a licensed hackney carriage on a hackney carriage stand (one of the ways that people could impersonate taxis).
* It is illegal under section 71 to tamper with taximeters.
* Section 66 of the Act prohibits the practice of charging something greater than what is on the meter just because the journey ends outwith the jurisdiction of the licensing authority, and "those rules don't apply out here, mate".
Examples of even stricter non-uniform bylaws are bylaws that ...
* ... require that the driver assist with luggage and not refuse a fare with luggage if the vehicle is designed to carry it;
* ... require that drivers carry all lost property to a police station;
* ... require that the meter not be run when not hired, not be hidden or obscured, and be lit at night;
* ... have detailed requirements on furnishing, such as cushions; or
* ... prohibit advertisements on the windows of such vehicles
>> With real taxis, you can flag one on the street
>Or not. Or they'll tell you they won't go where you want.
Which city/country? Honestly, I am surprised. Admittedly, i lived only in Europe (France/Germany/UK) - entire life - never ever has a Taxi driver refused to take me somewhere.
Wasn't "Sorry mate, I don't go south of the river." once a common response from London cabbies?
Presumably they'll not want to take someone out to the middle of nowhere, where they'll probably struggle to get a fare on the way back. Much more profitable if you're carrying passengers in both directions.
I've had it happen in NYC and in Washington, DC. And I'm a white male trying to get to the burbs. I can't imagine being a minority trying to get to a less desireable location.
London, frequently. Try getting a cab from Hammersmith out to Roehampton and you'll get a stream of "I'm not going that way" responses. Simple economic reason is that the driver is unlikely to pick up a return fare (source: talked about it with a taxi driver)
Usually it's not overt. More common (in New York, London, and Cologne) is cabs that avoid me when I'm carrying luggage, however just a few weeks ago, at George Best (UK) airport, driver asks me to get another car after I am inside the car and tell him I want to go to Newry.
happens a lot in my city (são paulo) -- if the ride is too short, they won't take it. if it's too long, won't take it (since traveling back is going to cost them gas and they won't get a passenger).
taking to a play them deem not safe (even if it's safe)? not taking you.
I think that's a foolish assumption. Standard taxis not only remember the phone number / name / address association, they are likely tracking the cabs as well these days. They also often have CCTV.
> With real taxis, you can flag one on the street
Or not. Or they'll tell you they won't go where you want.