gremlin wrote: ↑Fri Oct 27, 2023 4:09 pm
Being taken for a mug.
Being a lazy git, at around 11pm last night, I hailed a black cab at the top of East Smithfield, near Tower Bridge, and asked to go to London Bridge Station. Now, being a proper cock-er-nay geezer, with knowledge of the City having worked in it for years, I knew that a cheeky left over Tower Bridge, followed by a right into Tooley Street would bring me slap-bang outside the entrance.
For reasons I couldn't fathom, Mr. Taxi Driver went straight on and down Lower Thames Street. 'Which route you taking, mate?' I asked. The mumbled reply was that Tower Bridge was busy (which it wasn't) and that he couldn't turn right onto Tooley Street (being a licensed taxi, he can). Hence we took a lovely tour of that part of the City, including crossing Southwark Bridge and then the big loop back to London Bridge Station.
'£15.80' he chirpily informed me when we pulled up.
'No it ain't', said this wise old owl, 'It'll be £7 and you'll be bloody happy I don't report your badge to the PCO. Have a good night'.
Spoke to my mate who's been driving a taxi in the Smoke for a years this morning. He was livid and said I should report him on the basis that he's either incompetent or a rip-off merchant.
It's why I have a distrust of London's cabbies as this has gone on for years. Ripping off tourists on airport runs into the city was so lucrative it would get violent over who could park up at heathow etc. I'm pretty sure there was even a newspaper article or tv program about it?
I used cabs a fair amount at one point as we had bags to carry. Cabs assumed you were a tourist despite getting off at Fenchurch St, but asking for tottenham court road or russell square would see them going on a longer route every time and many an argument ensued. We'd have to ask them to go past St pauls and high Holborn or mystriously they'd try and head up old street/a501 way, citing they were avoiding heavy traffic through the city if questioned. It was clearly a common deception as they always said the same thing when asked where we/they were going!
It's why i use Ubers, or Bolts, here and abroad as you get a quote and prepay, so you know whats happening. Uber prices change depending on demand but you know the price before prepaying, whereas in a cab the meter keeps ticking depending on how they can lengthen the journey.