Taxi Driver Online

Well the thread title is my take on this, but the black cab angle is just a throwaway line at the end of the article, effectively.

Plenty of light-hearted bantz here, but not much really on the trade angle, although obviously the target audience is the general public, and they probably don't know so much about what's going on. So plenty going round the houses here before getting to the nitty gritty.


'Taxi nightmare in Leeds after night out as Uber and Amber left stranded us in the cold'

https://www.leeds-live.co.uk/news/leeds ... t-22356500

Intrepid reporters Jasmine Norden, Jessica Coppins and Joe Pagnelli find out just how difficult it is to get a taxi from Leeds city centre


Image: Leeds Live

The Covid-19 pandemic hit taxi drivers hard, with lockdowns slashing their earnings as people didn't need taxis and pubs and clubs were shut.

Then September brought the fuel crisis, with petrol prices skyrocketing to record highs, stations left empty long queues to fill up.

Roving reporters will have felt the weight of fuel pumps this month knowing journeys will require a hefty cost as petrol prices surged to a record average of 142.94p per litre.

But while some of us who cover God's own County - the largest region in the country spanning 7,500 square miles - will have felt the pain we weren’t the only ones.

The rising fuel costs have seen cabbies impacted severely as they rely on every cent to make ends meet - as they spend most days and hours navigating through cities and towns.

GMB, the union for private hire drivers, has called for taxis to be classed as an essential service as the sector crumbles under the fuel crisis.

Uber said they were forced to hike up prices by up to 25 per cent down in London in a bid to attract more drivers and people have widely reported having difficulties finding taxis.

The situation is dire. There are no two ways about it.

Intrepid reporters Jasmine Norden and Jessica Coppins joined me to find out just how difficult it is to get a taxi from Leeds city centre back to our respective homes in [redacted].

We all live in Leeds postcodes and our taxi fares typically range from between £5 and £10 on a night out.

Our editors, who always have our best interests at heart, asked us to go out for a few drinks and see what the reality of hailing a taxi home is like for punters in the city.

Despite a 6.30am start the following day, I immediately accepted because I am a committed and competent reporter. And I love cocktails.

Jasmine and Jessica headed into town by train, while I was running late and decided to get a taxi in.

It took about seven minutes for the Uber to arrive at my home after about 10 minutes of searching.

We were supposed to meet at around 7.40pm, and I was running late. Although, admittedly, I did only start booking the taxi at 7.34pm - so maybe that's on me.

After a couple of colourful cocktails near Call Lane we decided to head home and order our taxis. This was around 11pm.

Jasmine fired up the Uber app on her phone, while I was on the local Amber taxi app looking for a rapid ride home.

But as we stood outside there was little hope in sight. We got colder and colder, and our homes seemed further and further away.

I was sure Amber would come through, but despite a booking confirmation, the wee loading bar was an endless loop of disappointment.

Jasmine tried to re-order her taxi a few times but sadly it was the same result each time - no taxis in sight.

Although, after the third time, she was notified that there was a surge in prices due to high demand.

But unfortunately, even with the commitment to spend company dime on an expensive cab, she was unable to find a driver.

After nearly 30 minutes we still had no matches - which took me back to my only experience speed dating. Although getting rejected by a taxi conglomerate hurt significantly less.

I think we all expected high prices and long wait times but we were all surprised that no taxi was available on what was a quiet Wednesday evening.

Jasmine said: "It's been a nightmare for me to get a taxi out of Leeds city centre every time I try recently, especially Thursday to Saturday - so this is kind of what I expected.

“But I did think it might be easier on a Wednesday. It makes it difficult to get out of the city centre once the trains have stopped"

We decided to waddle towards the train station in a last-ditch effort to get home, and thankfully there we were all able to catch a black cab home.

I paid £15 to travel about three miles, and Jasmine forked out £20 for her eight-mile journey.

But the question still remains, where have all the taxis gone?

On the HC tariff

First trip seems well OTT, second run (presumably out-of-area) seems on cheap side.

This is the Leeds HC tariff below. Not the most straightforward tariff structure, but I make it around £8 for the three miles, and the reporter paid £15?