by News Desk | Jan 20, 2015 | London News
Taxicode’s Jonathan Kettle explores why this year is set to be a pivotal one for the taxi market
Last year was a big year for the UK taxi industry. Uber has had phenomenal growth in London, but the black cab industry has been hit hard as a result.
Due to recent technological advances the taxi industry is in a crucial and interesting position, with no one company having a real majority of the market.
It leaves us questioning what’s going to happen in the industry in 2015. Here are my predictions for the next 12 months:
The tech taxi market’s rapid expansion will continue
We’ve not seen Lyft enter the UK market yet but you can be sure it will happen soon. And Lyft is unlikely to be the only overseas entrant trying to get into the market. If you’re trying to grow a worldwide taxi app, you cannot ignore the UK.
A price war is doubtful
There are limits on how much taxi drivers can work for. The maximum rate, which in London is set by Transport for London, is fixed, meaning black cabs have no control over the price.
This means a large proportion of the market is set at an upper limit, and it’s unlikely Uber or any of its rivals will look to lower prices. With average fares at around £7, 5% discounts are unlikely to win anybody any extra business.
Availability will be the key battleground
Brand loyalty is almost non-existent in the taxi industry; people just want a cab as soon as possible. As long as the price is competitive it matters very little.
The key is not making people wait; if you offer a 10-minute wait, more people will hail a black cab or switch to another app. The reason for this is that every cab is unique and every driver is an individual. It’s pot luck who we will get.
Uber’s legal battle will largely be a sideshow…
Uber is going to the high court in 2015 to see if its app is indeed legal. It’s pretty obvious to most people that the app is performing the function of a meter, which only black cab taxis are allowed to use – so how Uber was allowed to operate a minicab licence is quite unclear.
My feeling is that Uber will be found to be breaking the rules, but it will make no difference. The company will either change the app, appeal against the ruling, or both. Whatever happens, Uber is here to stay.
If I’m right, it will be a shame to see money winning over the common man. If a smaller company had done this I’m fairly certain they would have been shut down.
…but it could hit Transport for London’s pockets
Let’s say Uber did break the rules and Transport for London failed to uphold them. London cabbies would be entitled to some sort of compensation for lost revenue, would they not?
Hailo and Get Taxi will struggle to grow
Hailo and Get Taxi are stuck at the most expensive end of the market and they can’t offer anything extra for the money. They will maintain the market share they have, but struggle to attract both drivers and passengers without adding minicabs to provide cheaper alternatives – a move that would alienate black cab drivers.
Smaller players will become targets for acquisition
We may well start to see some of the smaller minicab-based apps being acquired. Based on most recent accounts available through Companies House, Kabbee and Minicabster are both spending more money than they are making, and Taxicode, the only non-funded player in the group, is the only one turning a profit. One or more of them may well be taken over in 2015.
The innovations will keep coming
I don’t think we’ve seen the end of new ideas in the taxi industry. Uber’spartnership with Spotify, which allows passengers to play their own music in the vehicle, is a nice idea, but is just a gimmick in reality. I think we will see more impressive and innovative new ideas developing in 2015.
The black cab market will hit reverse
We may start to see a big drop in black cab numbers. In San Francisco, the Uber effect caused traditional taxi rides to drop by 65%, putting many drivers out of work.
Combine that with the impending ultra-low emission zone for London and it casts a dark shadow over the future of the drivers.
Black cab drivers whose vehicles are due for replacement may decide to retire or change career, rather than fork out thousands on a new taxi. It’s not logical to invest in your business if it’s already in decline.
Source: TTG Digital
by News Desk | Jan 20, 2015 | London News
St Austell Brewery has launched a London-based taxi advertising campaign, promoting their flagship beer Tribute Cornish Pale Ale.
The full livery advertising campaign will run for 12 months on taxis across Central London.
The campaign informs taxi users where they can pick up a pint of the traditional Cornwall favourite in the capital
, without the need to take a ‘five hour cab ride’ down to the South West.
The eye-catching purple exterior will stand out amongst the hustle and bustle of the city centre traffic, while the interior tip seat adverts feature a handy map, directing passengers to their nearest thirst-quenching pint of Tribute.
St Austell beers are now available in over 350 pubs and bars within the M25.
Tribute Cornish Pale Ale is a traditional South West favourite, as well as being one of the fastest growing premium cask ale brands throughout the rest of the UK.
Its unique purple-coloured branding and bottles help set it apart from the competition.
St Austell Brewery marketing and
communications director, Jeremy Mitchell, said: “London is a key market for our beers and it is very exciting to see Tribute being advertised on the iconic London taxis.
“This campaign will help introduce Tribute to more consumers in the capital while also giving practical advice on where in London you can enjoy a pint of this Cornish classic.”
by News Desk | Jan 20, 2015 | World News
With the number of black and yellow Premier Padmini taxis dwindling with each passing day, the iconic vehicle is set to ride into the sunset; those remaining are being dismantled at the Tardeo RTO office
The rugged Premier Padmini black and yellow taxis popularly called as kaali-peeli might be on its last legs. With just 1,500 of these relics plying across Mumbai, Padminis might soon go off the city streets forever.
The remaining 1,500 Padminis, currently plying on the city streets, will be scrapped soon. Pic for representation
Presently, about 36,000 black and yellow taxis ply across Mumbai. Of these, over 21,000 cabs are Hyundai Santros. The remaining models include Wagon R, Maruti 800, Zen and Omni, among others. “Just about 1,500 Padmini taxis remain in the city. These too will be scrapped eventually,” said A L Quadros, Mumbai Taximen’s Union leader.
“Many of the cabs will soon be seen parked on the premises of Tardeo, Andheri and Wadala RTOs.” Majority of the outdated black and yellow taxis, mostly registered with the Tardeo RTO, are being dismantled at the office. Officials are using welders, who crudely cut taxis into pieces following which they are sold as scrap.
“Padmini taxis are sturdier than other makes and even the spare parts are cheaper and can be found anywhere,” said a cabbie whose vehicle was recently scrapped. The driver has now applied for a new taxi using his permit.
RTO officials said new vehicles fitted with more than 1,000 CC engines would be plying on the road as taxis. Even the Hyundai Santro taxis are said to be replaced by the i10, the carmaker’s next model for the black and yellow cabs.
36,000
No of black and yellow taxis plying on the city streets
7,500
No of dead permits revived by the transport department
Source: Midday.com
by News Desk | Jan 20, 2015 | London News
Question : Who do you think was actually first to bring to TfL’s attention the fact that Uber were using meters?
Was it the LTDA…………………..no!
Was it The LCDC…………………no!
What about Unite the union….no!
Or even the LPHCA…………….no!
Actually, it was Addison Lee.
According to Sir Peter Hendy’s letter to the TfL board posted on the MayorWatch blog, Addison Lee registered the complaint that Uber were using a meter to calculate fares, on 24 August 2013.
Fearing no action would be taken the LPHCA instructed solicitors on the 10th of December 2013, followed then on the 17th December 2013 by the LTDA.
In regards to Addison Lee’s letter, TfL were only aware that the issue was raised in August 2013. But what did they do about it……nothing as usual.
On the 10 December 2013 the LPHCA instructed solicitors to formally raise at a senior level within TfL, an alleged potential breach of Taximeter prohibition, in relation to smartphones being used by Uber.
Well done TfL boardmember Steve Wright.
Surely that’s the whole point of being a board member.
Bringing up the rear like the poor relation, came our caring sharing, representative trade org general secretary, the one with over half the trade as members. He then puts in a complaint about Uber’s operation after being completely overshadowed by Addison Lee and the LPHCA.
TfL then supported Uber by stating they had looked at this matter and in their opinion it wasn’t a Taximeter.
The LTDA then took out private prosecutions against a number of Uber drivers and to everyone’s amazement, Leon Daniels, appeared in an interview on BBC London and announced that TfL couldn’t “proceed” with their quest for a legal definition, because of the LTDA’s case being bought in the magistrates court.
But actually at that stage, TfL have not actually sort high court action. It’s all been smoke and mirrors.
Hendy and Daniels both said they want the LTDA to “drop” their cases so they can “procede” with their action.
Bob Oddy has now, on behalf of the LTDA (without consulting members) asked TfL to take over the Uber driver summonses, which would then be sent back to a magistrates court.
But even if TfL do take on the cases, any defence lawyer worth their salt will tear their prosecution to pieces. In fact even I could tear this prosecution to pieces, using this section of Hendy’s letter to the board of TfL.
TfL have clearly stated in the past (and in Hendy’s letter), that in their opinion, a smart phone used to record details of a journey and calculate a fare, is not a “fitted Taximeter”.
This whole case has been a farce, designed to make us take our eye off the ball.
After TfL’s statement, the case on this issue became unwinnable.
It probably never was. In the process of the trip, Uber’s smart phone shows a sat nav page and does not show a progressive total that the passenger can clearly see. A total read out and breakdown is only available on conclusion of the journey.
Chasing the wrong criminal:
The fact that Uber drivers are accepting instant hirings that are not pre-booked, which have not been taken in accordance with PH regulations such as, over a landline by a third party operator, is the real problem.
A problem that could easily sink Uber’s ship.
A blind eye has now been turned to this section of the PH legislation and this aspect of Uber’s modus operandi, is now completely off the radar.
Everything is there, in Hendy’s letter to the TfL board, posted on the MayorWatch blog.
The letter should have been confidential, but suddenly appears on a blog. This letter itself has the potential in part, to destroy any case against Uber concerning the use of a metering device.
Why has it taken 18 months for this issue to come to a head?
If Uber’s licence had been revoked, they would have appealed. The case would then have been heard within days in the appeals court, as has happened all over Europe and North America. But TfL have no backbone and ran scared, passing the blame onto the LTDA.
Uber themselves are currently telling the world’s courts they are a technology company and not a private hire operator.
If this is true, who is the operator accepting pre-bookings?
Is it the drivers, as this would definitely be illegal!
And what happens if their licence is revoke, a licence they say they don’t need….will they carry on regardless?
Why would TfL issue an operators licence to a company that states it’s not an operator?
Would they allow me to start up my own bus company, stating I don’t want to be part of TfL’s surface transport, set my own time table and fare structure? Of course not, so why licence a PH non operator?
In a recent court case in Philadelphia, the prosecution alleges this company is taking no notice of Taxi regulation world wide and are acting like organised criminals similar to the bootleggers of the roaring twenties. The company CEO, Travis Kalanick has been accused of being a racketeer.
This whole business stinks of corruption.
Instead or taking out prosecutions against Uber drivers, the LTDA and LPHCA should be suing the arse off TfL.
The United Trade Group (UTG) has again allowed themselves to be sold a pup.
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