Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Sir Tigger KC]

Uber have lost their licence to operate in London after TfL decided the company were not fit and proper on security and safety grounds.  This decision will affect the livelihoods of some 40,000 drivers.

Obviously the black cabbies are delighted, but have TfL made the right decision for the right reasons?  Or is it a case of good old fashioned protectionism? 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-41358640

[Migv6 le Frog Fan]

I can only assume the cab drivers association bunged the relevant people more dosh than Uber did.
Or a focus group told Sadiq Khan that this option was worth more votes.

[2boxerdogs]

Good ,lot of mates in the city who were & are black cab drivers pleased for them.

[Rods2]

#vestedInterests&Luddites 1 #cheapTransportProgress 0 Pretty standard vested interests excuses by TfL given.

The vested interests have won this round, but I suspect that the courts or Parliament will have the final say.

This is only an opening round in the transport progress disruption, by 2025 there will be no Black Cab drivers as driverless vehicles including taxis don't need them.

[zirk]

Good, Uber needed a good kick up the arse, there not playing by the rules, theres been ongoing reports of rape and sexual abuse by some of there drivers, complaints by the Police over some of the Drivers activities and reports and complaints that have not been followed up correctly by Uber, they pay the drivers pittance, there out there to try and rid all the local compitition outside of the London Boroughs where they shoudn't be operating in the first place, they employ and strike there drivers off without reason and with no driver resolution, Uber's profits go Off Shore with min Tax involvement, there a joke.

The only people that will lose out will be the majority of the honest hard working Drivers trying to make a half decent wage working for this outfit.

[2boxerdogs]

Good, Uber needed a good kick up the arse, there not playing by the rules, theres been ongoing reports of rape and sexual abuse by some of there drivers, complaints by the Police over some of the Drivers activities and reports and complaints that have not been followed up correctly by Uber, they pay the drivers pittance, there out there to try and rid all the local compitition outside of the London Boroughs where they shoudn't be operating in the first place, they employ and strike there drivers off without reason and with no driver resolution, Uber's profits go Off Shore with min Tax involvement, there a joke.

The only people that will lose out will be the majority of the honest hard working Drivers trying to make a half decent wage working for this outfit.

     






Well said , the hoops my mates have to jump through to keep their black cab licences & these cowboys think they can just take over.

[Migv6 le Frog Fan]

The decision could be connected to the fact that the black cab drivers union donated £30,000 to Khans election campaign. 
Imo, competition is a good thing, but Uber play by a different set of rules to everyone else, so the competition isn't fair, and allows the problems about their drivers to occur.
I think their licence should be suspended until they come up with a decent plan to run their business to the same standards as the black cabs run theirs. Then they should be allowed to carry on, if they think they can still make a profit.

[biggriffin]

Glad uber, have been fooked off,  using illegal drivers, with no checks, no licence's, dodging tax's and that's just the drivers.

[Gaffers]

Do not underestimate the black cab lobbying power or their links to momentum.

[Doctor Gollum]

The decision could be connected to the fact that the black cab drivers union donated £30,000 to Khans election campaign. 
Imo, competition is a good thing, but Uber play by a different set of rules to everyone else, so the competition isn't fair, and allows the problems about their drivers to occur.
I think their licence should be suspended until they come up with a decent plan to run their business to the same standards as the black cabs run theirs. Then they should be allowed to carry on, if they think they can still make a profit.

I would never use a black cab in London. Not sure I would use uber either tbh.

[Gaffers]

The decision could be connected to the fact that the black cab drivers union donated £30,000 to Khans election campaign. 
Imo, competition is a good thing, but Uber play by a different set of rules to everyone else, so the competition isn't fair, and allows the problems about their drivers to occur.
I think their licence should be suspended until they come up with a decent plan to run their business to the same standards as the black cabs run theirs. Then they should be allowed to carry on, if they think they can still make a profit.

I would never use a black cab in London. Not sure I would use uber either tbh.

I use uber a fair bit. It's fast, convenient and reliable. I have never had an uber drive past and refuse a pickup because I didn't look like a decent tipper, or arrive late despite being prebooked well in advance.

Some people are too set in their ways or too far invested in maintaining the status quo/monopoly to let market forces do what they do best and cut out the chaff.

[Doctor Gollum]

Addison Lee would be my prefered choice.

Black cabs are licenced to rip you off... the driver has free choice over any metered route regardless of distance*.

This is utterly contrary to Hackney carriage licensing outside of metropolitan London where the driver must know,and use the shortest distance for any metered journey... any agreed fare must be less than or equal to the metered shortest routed. Applying the Uber model to TfL licenced taxis would make them more efficient and protect customers from over charging. In its current guise, as a hailing service using private hire drivers, uber circumvents alot of the licensing regulations.

Although several councils now seem to be addressing this issue by obliging Uber to establish local hubs using locally registered and licenced drivers... without applying it is difficult to see whether the Operators licences are held by Uber or if the drivers must have their own If the former, then Uber are embracing their legal responsibility for their customers and drivers... if the latter, then it's all on the drivers, in which case the drivers have no protection from Uber and their terms and conditions or charges...

*Private Hire fares are different in this regard as they must simply be pre advised/agreed at the time of booking if no meter is used.

[Rods2]

All disruptive new technologies create change and normally boost efficiency and reduce costs. It is interesting that there have been over 500,000 petition signatories on change.org in 24 hours protesting the suspension of Uber. Apparently, it is a much-preferred method of transport by many women where the journey can be tracked by family etc and they find black cabs late at night not available and/or too expensive, waiting at bus stops, using buses and tube means running the gauntlet of drunks etc.

I don't think Tfl have expected this backlash and the next 3 weeks are going to be interesting, especially if Uber call for a judicial review.

Any shortcomings are as usual the fault of lazy politicians where they don't set the rules and conditions for passengers and drivers so all are sufficiently protected. Never forget that politicians set the rules, conditions and enforcement that all businesses have to comply with, the exception being IME when the government or local authorities employ people and operate services.

[zirk]

All disruptive new technologies create change and normally boost efficiency and reduce costs. It is interesting that there have been over 500,000 petition signatories on change.org in 24 hours protesting the suspension of Uber. Apparently, it is a much-preferred method of transport by many women where the journey can be tracked by family etc and they find black cabs late at night not available and/or too expensive, waiting at bus stops, using buses and tube means running the gauntlet of drunks etc.
.

Well, all I can say is Addison Lee seem to have managed it.

[Sir Tigger KC]

I've only used Uber once when I was with a mate who uses it a lot.  We were going to the pub, he ordered the cab on the app and then tracked it as it made it's way to us while we waited in the warm and dry.  We went out just as it pulled up outside his house. 

It seems like a great service to me, but if they arn't able or willing to comply with regulations then it's only right that they lose their licence.