Taxi Driver Online

Interesting article this, and some excruciating stuff from the driver. He may have a case of sorts, but I'd guess the council will just double down after reading some of this


Angry Northampton private hire driver slams WNC's 'ludicrous' new rule to scrap yellow 'bubble' roof signs

https://www.northamptonchron.co.uk/news ... ns-4506288

“Even if they say it’s illegal, I’ll put my bubble back on my vehicle.”

A private hire driver has slammed the council’s plans to get rid of the iconic yellow ‘bubbles’ from hundreds of cars in Northampton.

West Northants Council (WNC) has recently approved a policy to make it a condition that all licensed private hire vehicles must display door signs instead of roof signs. This new rule will come into force on April 1.

A council spokeswoman said: “This will ensure that it is easier for people to differentiate between taxis and private hire vehicles, and ensure it is clear that vehicles are licensed by WNC.

“There will be a transitional period to allow for this change for those that currently have roof signs. WNC will work with the trade and the local community to raise awareness of this change and what to look out for.”

One private hire driver of 20 years has slammed the new rules as ‘ludicrous’.

The driver, who wishes to remain anonymous, said: “If you’re thinking of the safety of the public, I think this is ludicrous to get rid of roof signs for plastic strips along the side of private hire vehicles.

“To me, anyone can nick a sign off the side of a vehicle and pop it on theirs and appear to be a taxi.

"If you’re on the Wellingborough Road, for example, you can see if your taxi is coming by the sign.

"Or imagine a doorman waiting for a taxi to pick a woman up. Someone could just drive up with stolen signage on the side and pretend to be a taxi. The bouncer doesn’t know. The yellow bubble is the most obvious thing you look for.

”Most people won’t see the plate, but they see the bubble.”

This change is reportedly set to affect nearly more than 800 drivers in West Northants.

The private hire driver said: “I just find it ludicrous that 850-odd cab people have got to get rid of the yellow bubble, which does the job perfectly fine, to put this flimsy magnetic strip on. It just doesn’t make sense. I just don’t know what to think in this industry at the moment.

"I don’t see why they couldn’t just buy 50 bubbles, which I think are £55 each, for the taxis without.

"Like most things with the council, they just do what they want. You’re dealing with people who know nothing about business. I doubt any councillors know anything about the private hire and taxi business.

“If I’m going to an airport or a concert or Silverstone, for example, even if they say it’s illegal, I’ll put my bubble back on my vehicle because I don’t want to be waiting hours for somebody to come out and not be able to find me.”

Transitional period? What does that mean, precisely? Surely you just introduce the new rule from a specific date?

I mean, it's just getting rid of a rooflight - it's not a new WAV policy nor mandatory EVs, or whatever


I mean, you couldn't do that with a rooflight....


I wonder how 99% of the rest of the UK manages?

One reason most councils won't allow PHV rooflights is because they would facilitate illegal plying for hire. The driver's comments here (and below) are (ironically) making the case against the roofsigns





For a start, you've repeatedly used the t-word to refer to PHVs


Plying for hire, much? Certainly wouldn't try that without a booking, particularly if he's going to the likes of the Henley Regatta

Looks legit

Surprised they've gotten away with it for so long. The signs do seem to say 'Advance Bookings Only', but, I mean

now elsewhere in the uk PH firms send their punters a text with the drivers name and car registration which seems to work quite well

or is this driver one of those that just loves to wind up the authorities

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lack of modern legislation is the iceberg sinking the titanic of the transport sector

Well then you will lose your license.

I'm a fan of PH roof lights, but not a fan of breaching council rules even if I find them daft. We are called 'fit and proper' for a reason.

Sadly even the DfT want them banned, as set out in the latest Best Practise Guidance.

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IDFIMH

Just noticed that the rooflight in the first photo above actually says 'ADVANCED BOOKINGS ONLY', when it should read 'ADVANCE BOOKINGS ONLY'

Or maybe it means an app booking or similar, in the sense of advanced meaning 'modern and recently developed' or 'using the most modern methods, technology, etc.'

But not the first time such signs have been mentioned on here, so I suspect it's just an error.

But photos of other rooflights in the area suggest that most are spelt correctly, so there aren't really 850 rooflights in Northants with incorrect wording

(Strictly speaking it's not a spelling error - think that's what's called a 'malapropism', ie using an inappropriate word rather than misspelling it

Saw one on the news yesterday when someone in the street was commenting on the king's 'prostrate' issue, when it should be prostate...

But Charles would almost certainly have been prostrate when he was having the operation on his prostate

Or at least I assume he'd be prostrate during such a procedure, but I'd prefer not to think about it. Just like that other, er, procedure which is routinely used to check for an enlarged prostate

But which prostate examination procedure uses the word 'digital' (as in using a finger ), thus plenty scope there for another malapropism )

but once the booking is placed it has been advanceD so don't think the sign is wrong really

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lack of modern legislation is the iceberg sinking the titanic of the transport sector

On this you are wrong Stuart.

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Chris The Fish

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gdlyi5mc ... re=related

Well there are two different signs knocking about Northampton, Edders, so if [whatever] is the ONLY kind of bookings they'll accept, then logic dictates one of them must be wrong

Will have a look into it after I hang out the washing. Chilly day here, but light winds for a change, wall-to-wall sunshine and low humidity, so great drying weather!

Chris, I thought it was fairly cut and dried that 'advance' rather than 'advanced' was the correct word in the specific context, so would have to disagree with you

However, Google actually suggests plenty of councils do used 'Advanced Booking Only', and also the Mogo signs people

On the other hand, plenty evidence of other councils etc using 'Advance Bookings Only'

So had a look at some online dictionaries.

Dictionary.com specifically provides this under 'advance', although it's way down the list at definition, ie the last on the list:


https://www.dictionary.com/browse/advance

However, can't really see anything appropriate under 'advanced':
https://www.dictionary.com/browse/advanced


Collins specifically mentions 'advance bookings' on its page:


https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dicti ... sh/advance

Again, however, the Collins definition of 'advanced' doesn't really have anything specific relating to advanced bookings, or similar:
https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dicti ... h/advanced


The Oxford dictionary is behind a paywall, but the Cambridge dictionary also includes bookings as a specific examples on its 'advance' page, under the definition:

https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictio ... sh/advance

But can't see anything appropriate on its 'advanced' page:
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictio ... h/advanced


So the evidence seems to suggest that the correct usage is 'Advance Bookings Only'

In fact, rather than looking at definitions of 'advance' and 'advanced', I should have looked for specific definitions of 'advance/advanced booking'

Indeed, the Cambridge definition is quite straightforward, and is 'advance booking' as regards tickets, hotel rooms etc

https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictio ... ce-booking


This on the Grammarist website is also reasonably straightforward, and is worth reading in full via the link. But here's an extract:


I certainly notice it when it's on a roofsign or council website, though

https://grammarist.com/usage/advance-advanced/


Here's another perhaps better explanation contributed to a website called English Language & Usage:


https://english.stackexchange.com/quest ... ly-correct

Which, in essence, is more or less what I said last night.

I rest my case

No they don’t Stuart. They say ADVANCED bookings only. Not proper england that, is it?

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Former taxi driver

Bit late on this one, obviously!

But if it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it’s a duck.

A private hire with a roof light looks like a hackney carriage.

Anyone else never heard them described as a bubble?

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Former taxi driver

It's a new one on me.

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Grandad,

Every morning and afternoon on my school run I have to stop to allow over 100 ducks to cross the road. It is unbelievable. They wont stop, they wont fly, they just waddle across the road at their own pace, they will not be hurried.

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Grandad,