Claim's Cabbies Corner. UPDATE! Rank Rumblings

[catsinthewelder]

It's annoying to admit that the apps have their place.  If I'm driving into a city I don't know well I generally set the route on Google maps but don't switch it on until I need to, on the way back I'll use it to get out of the city then switch it off once I know where I'm going. 

This bit me on the arse recently as I was having a pleasant evening in Worcester before picking my daughter up from work.  There are two routes back, the one passing close to my house uses slightly more fuel so I took the other.  Unfortunately the road was closed for repairs after an earlier accident so I took the signed diversion.  This took me to the main road about 8 miles south of the usual spot.  7.5 miles later I found that road was also shut as the accident had been on the junction and that I could have driven straight to this point.  A few miles south and a lane I knew the existence of but hadn't used before got me to a parallel route north and I was soon there, only 30 minutes later than planned to a mildly pissed off daughter.

Following a sat nav on a route I know like the back of my hand would have been sensible (or perhaps they could have put a sign up where the two routes diverge.

[chancer]

12 minutes ago, catsinthewelder said:

It's annoying to admit that the apps have their place.  If I'm driving into a city I don't know well I generally set the route on Google maps but don't switch it on until I need to, on the way back I'll use it to get out of the city then switch it off once I know where I'm going. 

This bit me on the arse recently as I was having a pleasant evening in Worcester before picking my daughter up from work.  There are two routes back, the one passing close to my house uses slightly more fuel so I took the other.  Unfortunately the road was closed for repairs after an earlier accident so I took the signed diversion.  This took me to the main road about 8 miles south of the usual spot.  7.5 miles later I found that road was also shut as the accident had been on the junction and that I could have driven straight to this point.  A few miles south and a lane I knew the existence of but hadn't used before got me to a parallel route north and I was soon there, only 30 minutes later than planned to a mildly pissed off daughter.

Following a sat nav on a route I know like the back of my hand would have been sensible (or perhaps they could have put a sign up where the two routes diverge.

I dont see it as annoying to have to use them. I dont need them as I know my routes well enough. But the apps feed on user data and show hot spots where traffic is heavy and thats where I can use it to advantage. I can then use the app as a tool to avoid those places. Im using the apps to my advantage

[beko1987]

I usually have my Google maps running for a long trip for the traffic. If I'm going to my dad's and it goes red on the a1 I can divert before I get there, ditto coming home.

I mute the commands though, and either unmute them when I'm close and need them, then going home have it running until I know where I am then it's muted and ignored. When I'm off the m40 and near home I'll turn it off completely.

I'll have a check before leaving too. For my commute I'll quickly hit direction on maps and if it says any more than 34 minutes as an eta there's traffic 

[warren t claim]

@chancer what vehicles are you allowed to plate as a hackney?

[chancer]

1 hour ago, warren t claim said:

@chancer what vehicles are you allowed to plate as a hackney?

Very few actually. 

TX4 Euro 6 or converted to meet Euro 6 standards 

LEVC TXe

Mercedes Vito M8 allied either Euro 6 or converted if older model

Peugeot E7 with Euro 6 conversion

Ford ProCab

And a late anomaly is the Voyager FX8 Ford Tourneo

Every Hackney requires side loading wheelchair access

[warren t claim]

1 minute ago, chancer said:

Very few actually. 

TX4 Euro 6 or converted to meet Euro 6 standards 

LEVC TXe

Mercedes Vito M8 allied either Euro 6 or converted if older model

Peugeot E7 with Euro 6 conversion

Ford ProCab

And a late anomaly is the Voyager FX8 Ford Tourneo

Every Hackney requires side loading wheelchair access

No Vivaro or Trafic option?

[chancer]

5 minutes ago, warren t claim said:

No Vivaro or Trafic option?

Nope. Although the council have been really lenient lately. Pre covid the Voyager would never have been allowed, and neither would my Procab because it has the front passenger seat fitted. That was never allowed, all Glasgow hacks needed the passenger seat removed and available for luggage space. Probably get away with it as the procab has space behind the seats for 4 decent size suitcases. We have always been restricted with choice of vehicles. The vivaro/traffic would have been great alternatives. The fact that Allied Vehicles took over one of the council's larger sites including the taxi/PH test centre makes you wonder why they favoured and insisted on Allied built cabs 

[High Jetter]

Maybe restrictive, but good to see Councils are making decisions.

[warren t claim]

Saturday night was interesting for a couple of reasons.

Claim_Bird was meeting up with some friends over the weekend, so we booked a hotel for Fri/Sat night in the city centre. I worked the Friday but due to not wanting to be single, I took the Saturday night off.

Normally, if I need transport when on a night out with a lucky lady, I'll use Uber as the last thing I want is to be picked up by a driver that knows me and who'll spend the entire journey bitching about the job, but in this case, I thought we'd jump a cab as the rank was outside our hotel.

Liverpool hacks are at least 85% TX's so I was expecting to ride in a TX1/2/4 but first off on the rank was a 12 month old LWB Vito. I walk up to it and tell the driver where we want to go. The first thing he said to me is not to open the door as it's electric. As I'd had a few drinks in the hotel already, I managed to blow my cover and tell him I know not to open the door as I'm a hack driver myself. I need not have worried about that anyway, as the first words out of Claim_Birds mouth as soon as she'd parked her pert arse on the back seat were 'Ooh Warren, this cab is so much nicer than yours'. 

Oh well, we may as well bore Claim_Bird with some hardcore hackney talk. 

The driver was a typical old school cabbie. He told me that he buys a new cab every three years as he has plenty of corporate clients on his list. He said that this was his third Vito and before that he ran an E7 like mine. Being the curious sort, I asked him about the fuel consumption he was getting out of a LWB Vito equipped with an automatic transmission. His reply of 'no idea, I don't take any notice of my MPG' did surprise me! His opinions on the offerings from LTI pretty much echoed mine. We'd both started the job driving Fairways and spent a good part of the trip nostalgically reminiscing on the quirks and weaknesses those old dogs had!  One point he raised is that all ex London Vitos have to have their trick rear suspension removed before being allowed to work in Liverpool. @chancer is that also the rule in Glasgow?

The second notable moment of the night involved having to give a 'Warren Warning' to one bloke in our group for trying to slip his hand up Claim_Birds dress but we won't talk about that on here.

 

[chancer]

@warren t claim I dont think any of the London vitos were Allied Vehicles conversions therefore none would have come up here as they were not approved Vehicles. Im guessing it was some sort of rear wheel steer to help with turning circle? 

[warren t claim]

11 minutes ago, chancer said:

@warren t claim I dont think any of the London vitos were Allied Vehicles conversions therefore none would have come up here as they were not approved Vehicles. Im guessing it was some sort of rear wheel steer to help with turning circle? 

As nice as the Vito is, having to fetch the wheelchair ramp out of the boot would get annoying pretty quickly.

[chancer]

2 minutes ago, warren t claim said:

As nice as the Vito is, having to fetch the wheelchair ramp out of the boot would get annoying pretty quickly.

Thats the whole reason I chose the Procab. The sliding ramp and the clamps built into the bulkhead make it the easiest cab to load and unload a wheelchair. A fair percentage of our work is chairs so it saves a fair amount of time. Ive had numerous comments about how quick I can pick up and get on with the journey. Suppose it also helps the wheelchair user feel less of a burden if there is less fucking about 

[warren t claim]

4 minutes ago, chancer said:

Thats the whole reason I chose the Procab. The sliding ramp and the clamps built into the bulkhead make it the easiest cab to load and unload a wheelchair. A fair percentage of our work is chairs so it saves a fair amount of time. Ive had numerous comments about how quick I can pick up and get on with the journey. Suppose it also helps the wheelchair user feel less of a burden if there is less fucking about 

The E7 has special straps to hold in a wheelchair. Is that the same with the Procab?

[chancer]

Basically 2 seat belt reels each with a clamp under the bump seats in the rear. Button within the drivers compartment to lock them in place

[warren t claim]

Just now, chancer said:

Basically 2 seat belt reels each with a clamp under the bump seats in the rear. Button within the drivers compartment to lock them in place

Pretty much the same as the E7 then.

[chancer]

3 minutes ago, warren t claim said:

Pretty much the same as the E7 then.

Yeah it will be. The Procab was the replacement for the E7 so they probably share a load of parts from the conversion. Far easier than the ratchet straps of the TX and less hassle than the folding ramps of the M8 Vito

[warren t claim]

Tonight I took a job off the system. A posh gaff going to Liverpool. Estimated price £32 to be paid in cash.

As this address is semi rural and has a house name instead of a number, I use Waze to take me there. Waze takes me to a house with a different name so I phone the punter for further advice.

WTC. Hello it's your taxi driver here....
Snotty Bitch. I know and you're at the wrong house!
WTC. Yes, that's why I'm phoning you.
SB. It's over the road! Are you blind or stupid?

It's dark and pissing down. Normally I'd fuck them off, but it's a decent job.

I pick her and her husband up. She's continuing to be obnoxious, but he's trying to calm her down. Half an hour later we arrive at their destination.

WTC. Here we are. That'll be £31.40 please.
SB. No, it's on my account.
WTC. It says here it's a cash job. 
SB. Why has it changed?
WTC. I don't know? But if it helps I'll take a contactless payment.

Snotty Bitch thrusts he card through the glory hole in the cab's bandit screen and I take payment. Just to piss me off, when she storms out of the cab she leaves the rear door slid open knowing that I'll have to get out in the pouring rain to close it.

I ponder over trying to use the drive off and emergency stop trick to close the rear door, but this E7 has a pretty strong detent to hold the door open so I jump out to close it. When I walk around to the NSR door something on the running board step catches my eye. It's a £20 note that Snotty Bitch has clearly dropped when putting her card back into her purse. Bingo! I pick up my Brucie Bonus only to discover that it's actually two £20 notes she's dropped! 

Karma is a bitch. And so was she.

[chancer]

I fuckin love a happy ending 😂 

[warren t claim]

And on the darker side of the news.

https://www.phtm.co.uk/news/8265/phtm-news/birkenhead-cabbie-jailed-for-six-years-for-selling-ecstasy-and-coke-in-100k-drug-sideline

I know Paul and although we all knew he was a bit of a stoner, this surprised us all on the rank.

[Knotty Ash Towers]

2 hours ago, warren t claim said:

And on the darker side of the news.

https://www.phtm.co.uk/news/8265/phtm-news/birkenhead-cabbie-jailed-for-six-years-for-selling-ecstasy-and-coke-in-100k-drug-sideline

I know Paul and although we all knew he was a bit of a stoner, this surprised us all on the rank.

Mr Baxter from Grange Hill has let himself go...

[big_al_granvia]

mentioning allied vehicles , the facenna bros have done alright for themselves , cornered the motability market, flog tons of mobility scooters and living aids. at least they have done a bit of regeneration in possil with ashfield stadium and the tigers... 

[chancer]

2 hours ago, big_al_granvia said:

 at least they have done a bit of regeneration in possil

You've never been to Possil have you? Theres nothing regenerated about it

[NorfolkNWeigh]

17 hours ago, warren t claim said:

Tonight I took a job off the system. A posh gaff going to Liverpool. Estimated price £32 to be paid in cash.

As this address is semi rural and has a house name instead of a number, I use Waze to take me there. Waze takes me to a house with a different name so I phone the punter for further advice.

WTC. Hello it's your taxi driver here....
Snotty Bitch. I know and you're at the wrong house!
WTC. Yes, that's why I'm phoning you.
SB. It's over the road! Are you blind or stupid?

It's dark and pissing down. Normally I'd fuck them off, but it's a decent job.

I pick her and her husband up. She's continuing to be obnoxious, but he's trying to calm her down. Half an hour later we arrive at their destination.

WTC. Here we are. That'll be £31.40 please.
SB. No, it's on my account.
WTC. It says here it's a cash job. 
SB. Why has it changed?
WTC. I don't know? But if it helps I'll take a contactless payment.

Snotty Bitch thrusts he card through the glory hole in the cab's bandit screen and I take payment. Just to piss me off, when she storms out of the cab she leaves the rear door slid open knowing that I'll have to get out in the pouring rain to close it.

I ponder over trying to use the drive off and emergency stop trick to close the rear door, but this E7 has a pretty strong detent to hold the door open so I jump out to close it. When I walk around to the NSR door something on the running board step catches my eye. It's a £20 note that Snotty Bitch has clearly dropped when putting her card back into her purse. Bingo! I pick up my Brucie Bonus only to discover that it's actually two £20 notes she's dropped! 

Karma is a bitch. And so was she.

I used to call these “Shy tippers”

[big_al_granvia]

39 minutes ago, chancer said:

You've never been to Possil have you? Theres nothing regenerated about it

aye, seen worse. 

[Rightnider]

I’ve followed this and other taxi-related threads on this forum with interest, since I worked as a taxi driver when studying in here Sweden, and a few years more, from 2000 to 2009.

It’s the most interesting job I’ve ever had, I always had something to tell when I got home from work.

In Sweden, the taxi trade was deregulated in the early 90s, so all taxis are ’equal’, but I was working mostly for a one car owner-driver affiliated with  the taxi central in Uppsala that had organised the drives who were licensed when the trade was regulated, with approximately 100 cars and maybe 50 owners. There was a constant demand for temps, and we were were quite often students. I was working on commission, with no need to hire or insure the vehicle.

I mainly worked weekends and night shifts in the beginning, and later a mix of daytime and weekends. Days were quite busy sometimes, with Stockholm international airport some 25 miles away, and university hospital resulting in quite a few fares around mid-Sweden, and to top it off, travel service for the disabled. I found the pay quite good back then, but on the other hand I didn't really consider the amount of hours I put into it. On the other hand, it was a nice way of getting out and about, but earning rather than spending, so to speak.

This was back in the good old days, when more than 50% of the fleet were Mercedes, and my main employer had a W210 E 290 turbodiesel estate when I started in 2000. In 2001 it was replaced with an E 270 CDI estate. That was something, back then! After a while I needed to work more than he wanted to get time off, so I worked for a lot of owners within the same central, which gave me the opportunity to drive many cars. Mostly run-of-the-mill E 220 w210s and w211s. Some owners had even E 320 CDIs which led me into buying a few later in life when they were rusty and cheap. Some owners had Volvo V70s obviously, this being Sweden. I really liked the first one based on the 850, but the 2000-2007 model wasn’t very good for taxi traffic, with its enormous turning circle. One owner had an E39 BMW 530d, another a couple of Chrysler c300 diesels. I remember one owner who had a Cadillac CTS with a large engine, it was a bit of an oddball. Never worked with that though  

The last two years I was ferrying a Sprinter which could be used for up to eight passengers or four in wheelchairs. It wasn’t as fun, but gave a steady income and less hassle with obnoxious people from night clubs.


I found a bad picture on the web of what a typical taxi in Uppsala looked like, between 2000 and 2006. 

[Tenmil Socket]

On 14/11/2025 at 20:42, warren t claim said:

Tonight I took a job off the system. A posh gaff going to Liverpool. Estimated price £32 to be paid in cash.

As this address is semi rural and has a house name instead of a number, I use Waze to take me there. Waze takes me to a house with a different name so I phone the punter for further advice.

WTC. Hello it's your taxi driver here....
Snotty Bitch. I know and you're at the wrong house!
WTC. Yes, that's why I'm phoning you.
SB. It's over the road! Are you blind or stupid?

It's dark and pissing down. Normally I'd fuck them off, but it's a decent job.

I pick her and her husband up. She's continuing to be obnoxious, but he's trying to calm her down. Half an hour later we arrive at their destination.

WTC. Here we are. That'll be £31.40 please.
SB. No, it's on my account.
WTC. It says here it's a cash job. 
SB. Why has it changed?
WTC. I don't know? But if it helps I'll take a contactless payment.

Snotty Bitch thrusts he card through the glory hole in the cab's bandit screen and I take payment. Just to piss me off, when she storms out of the cab she leaves the rear door slid open knowing that I'll have to get out in the pouring rain to close it.

I ponder over trying to use the drive off and emergency stop trick to close the rear door, but this E7 has a pretty strong detent to hold the door open so I jump out to close it. When I walk around to the NSR door something on the running board step catches my eye. It's a £20 note that Snotty Bitch has clearly dropped when putting her card back into her purse. Bingo! I pick up my Brucie Bonus only to discover that it's actually two £20 notes she's dropped! 

Karma is a bitch. And so was she.

Regarding your trick above… when the rear hatch on my old MK1 Focus wasn’t shut properly, driving over a speed bump a bit faster than normal would make it close properly.

[angle]

Wolverhampton plates.

[High Jetter]

4 hours ago, angle said:

Wolverhampton plates.

FFS!

[Pieman]

Wolverhampton would plate a fucking unicycle if asked.

[Noel Tidybeard]

6 hours ago, angle said:

Wolverhampton plates.

i am lead to believe you can get one in exchange for 10 bar codes off any Kellogg's cereal boxes