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from the license?-we-don't-need-no-stinkin'-license! dept.
Uber will lose its license to operate inside London. The issue may be only a temporary setback since the license expires on September 30th and Uber can continue to operate in London while appealing the decision:
London's transportation agency dealt a major blow to Uber on Friday, declining to renew the ride-hailing service's license to operate in its largest European market. [...] "Uber's approach and conduct demonstrate a lack of corporate responsibility in relation to a number of issues which have potential public safety and security implications," the agency, Transport for London, said in a statement.
[...] In issuing its decision, Transport for London, which is responsible for the city's subways and buses as well as regulating its taxicabs, declared that Uber was not "fit and proper" to operate in the city — a designation that carries significant weight in Britain. "Fit and proper" is a benchmark applied across different sectors of business and the charitable organizations in the country to ensure that people or organizations meet the requirements of their industry or specialty. Tests typically assess factors like an individual or company's honesty, transparency and competence, though there is no formal exam. In Uber's case, Transport for London said it examined issues of how it dealt with serious criminal offenses, how it conducted background checks on drivers and its justification for a software program called Greyball that "could be used to block regulatory bodies from gaining full access to the app."
Opinion: London's Uber Ban Is a Big Brexit Mistake
(Score: 0, Disagree) by dbv on Sunday September 24 2017, @01:58AM (10 children)
Probably has something to do with the price of the medallions that the cities typically issue to taxi cabs and that Uber doesn't pay. I have yet to take an Uber ride in a dirty car with a rude driver and I've taken more than a few in very different places. Disgusting taxi cabs with rude drivers are norm in my experience, regulated and all, although I've never taken one in London.
(Score: 5, Informative) by Whoever on Sunday September 24 2017, @02:04AM (9 children)
Well done posting a load of drivel that has no relevance to the story.
London gives out something to black taxi drivers (those legally allowed to pick up people who hail them), but they are a license for a specific driver, they are not transferable (not even temporarily) and have to be earned through learning "the knowledge" (a black taxi cab driver needs to know the best way to get to any street, in traffic, without aids, such as maps or apps).
(Score: 2, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 24 2017, @03:01AM (3 children)
I've read something about this (ages ago), a very difficult test to pass.
Has anyone compared the routes taken by black cab drivers to mapping/route-finding software? This seems like it could be a fun competition.
(Score: 2) by Whoever on Sunday September 24 2017, @03:17AM (2 children)
It's not clear to me that "the knowledge" is relevant any more, in these days of GPS navigation and real-time traffic data.
Nevertheless, it serves to limit the pool of black taxi drivers without creating a market for medallions.
(Score: 5, Informative) by Unixnut on Sunday September 24 2017, @09:30AM (1 child)
> It's not clear to me that "the knowledge" is relevant any more, in these days of GPS navigation and real-time traffic data.
GPS navigation sucks in London. I don't know if it is all the tall dense buildings on narrow roads, the trees, or what, but getting a fix is hard in London, getting a fix in central London is impossible most of the time. And this is with me on foot in an "open space" on my GPS unit. Let alone trying to get a fix from within a faraday cage like a car cabin.
I sure find myself learning routes and using an A to Z [wikipedia.org] More often than planned due to the poor GPS lock in London, so there is still a need to know routes.
I can't tell you how many times when I take a minicab, the drivers GPS unit loses lock. The driver just continues in a straight line, pretending everything is OK, and hoping that they eventually get a lock. They eventually do, and then do a big U turn because they haven't a clue where they are going. Thankfully I pay a fixed cost for the ride, otherwise I would get very upset at this, but it does make the route take longer than it should. Sometimes when they lose lock and I am in a rush, I just direct them which way to go.
You should use things like GPS as an aid, not as a replacement for knowing where you are going.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 24 2017, @03:51PM
isn't there like 40 gazillion cameras in London, and they can't be tapped into for navigational purposes?!?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 24 2017, @04:37AM (3 children)
So what you're saying is you have to have ten years of experience as a cab driver in London before you can become a cab driver in London. Either A) There are A LOT of unlicensed black cab drivers in London, B) Black cab drivers, since they are so scarce and have knowledge that took a large time investment to achieve, earn an average of £150,000 a year due to simple scarcity driving cost, or C) That's a load of bullshit. I tend to believe option A since heavy regulation and corruption go hand in hand.
(Score: 4, Informative) by c0lo on Sunday September 24 2017, @08:32AM
Bullshit. All you need is a scooter [wikipedia.org].
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0
(Score: 4, Informative) by rleigh on Sunday September 24 2017, @12:06PM
Er, no. You can drive a "private hire" vehicle. And then later learn and pass the test for driving a black cab. Both are taxis, but only the latter can pick up passengers off the street who have not pre-booked.
(Score: 2) by TheRaven on Monday September 25 2017, @09:25AM
sudo mod me up
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 24 2017, @03:53PM
Why are every other race locked out of this? Discrimination!