Taxi Driver Online

This new Uber-style app will 'revolutionise' Hull taxis

A former Ibiza nightclub manager has vowed to revolutionise the taxi industry in Hull after investing £200,000 in a “state-of-the-art” call centre and a new booking app to rival Uber. Chris Davidson’s Anlaby Road based Hull Cars is launching a new global app designed to make the booking of everyday taxis easier, safe and personalised depending on your preferences.

Customers can retain their favourite drivers and just like Uber, clients can see a picture of their driver prior to the arrival of their taxi.

Mr Davidson, who set up the firm eight years ago, said: “We are hoping this system will make people’s lives a lot easier. “It’s quite difficult to get a taxi in Hull on a Saturday night and it will be an awful lot easier if people pre-book through this app.

“It’s also going to be a hell of a lot safer, especially for the ladies, because a picture of the driver comes up and they can put him under their favourites if they want that driver all the time. “I hope this will revolutionise how taxis work in Hull and we hope that more companies can get on board with it.”

The app has been produced by Riide – an alliance of large UK private hire and taxi operations which have come together to develop an app which can be used in multiple cities. Mr Davidson, who has 130 drivers on his books, believes there is no other booking app like his firm’s in the city.

However, although Hull Cars is introducing snazzy technology through the app, the company will be retaining its traditional phone service many people still use and love. “I think Uber has got its place and I do use it myself but I don’t think it has got its place is in Hull because people prefer local companies,” the 50-year-old said.

“We’ve still got a point of contact and we have still got that personal touch with someone at the end of the phone. “If the customer has any sort of problem whether it’s a query about a job, a complaint or lost property we are still there to take care of them personally and sort out whatever they need.”

Mr Davidson used to manage a nightclub on the Spanish island of Ibiza before retiring and entering the taxi trade. The entrepreneur started Hull Cars as a one-man band before taking on more personnel which helped him to expand his fleet. He hopes the booking system and the new hi-tech call centre in the Anlaby Road office will help modernise his company he has spent almost a decade building up.

“It’s a much nicer environment for staff to work in and they’ve all got their own work stations in the new call centre, which is state-of-the-art” Mr Davidson said. “Everything is much more streamlined and we have invested in ATM machines for drivers so they can keep their money on debit cards. “We’ve really brought the business into the 21st century which the drivers are loving and we just hope our customers will love it too.”

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IDFIMH

Was a time when an option like the above would miff me right off, but actually I think it's a good move.

Stop drivers giving out their personal mobile numbers and keeps everything legal.

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IDFIMH

Don't like the sound of that at all - does it mean that the popular drivers will be getting all the work while the grumpy drivers are sitting around doing nothing?

Sounds like recipe for setting driver against driver, and making the grumpy ones even grumpier.

In my view that's how it should be.

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IDFIMH