Think of taxi cabs in London and you visualise the traditional London hackney carriage; think of taxi cabs in New York and you visualise the yellow Medallions. No two cities have such iconic modes of transport, and many believe that that is where the difference between these two taxi services ends. Think again; look deeper than black and yellow and you see much bigger contrasts, from their tools of the trade to the cabbie culture.
But let’s start with a similarity; London and New York’s taxis are owned by private companies which provide licences for cabbies’ vehicles with the respective city’s government - London’s is the Public Carriage Office; New York’s is the Taxi & Limousine Commission. In New York, cabbies apply to be a Yellow Medallion Taxi driver (or a Street Hail Livery driver who work in the outer boroughs). However, drivers must hold a valid New York (or New Jersey, Pennsylvania or Connecticut) State chauffeur’s licence before applying. In London, there is no official ‘chauffeur’s licence’; however, the distinction is made by the driver’s badge – a Yellow (suburban) badge allows the driver to operate in any of Outer London’s nine ‘sectors’, but they must choose a sector, whilst the Green (All London License) badge allows the driver to operate throughout Greater London, all six hundred square miles of it!
The application to be a taxi driver in New York requires proof that you have taken the Defensive Driving Course, enrolled at the Taxi School, taken an English Proficiency Exam, completed a fifty-question ‘hack test’ on geographic knowledge and TLC rules. In London, the application process is extremely rigorous and can take three to five years to complete; learning around three-hundred and twenty general ‘runs’ and thirty thousand points of interest on mopeds, completing a two-stage exam with a required minimum of 60% to pass, plus three Appearances oral exams which often take several attempts to pass!
Medallion taxi drivers have more rules and regulations as far as where they can drop off and pick up fares but customers are able to pre-book a Medallion taxi, can negotiate on price, and the drivers are able to utilise GPS to help them in their navigation around the city. In London it is very different; ‘black cab’ drivers famously are not allowed to use GPS or any form of satellite navigation, either during their application process or while operating. They are required to rely on what is known as “The Knowledge, their own ability to recall this virtual map of London when required… now that’s some feat!
By Oliver Derek