From Roots, To Routs : By London Taxi Driver Marc Turner.

Alex Hayley’s Roots; Saga of an American family was published in 1976. A year later, ABC TV’s mini-series had a record breaking 130 million viewers in the US and millions more in the UK with its story beginning in 1750 and the birth of Kunta Kinte into a life of slavery. Roots follows his family’s battle against slavery through the years. 

 

London Cabby Marc Turner, recently spoke to an Uber driver and noted a similarity to that original series. Marc’s story is true. 

Kizzy is a 27 year old male who hails from Togo in West Africa. From the 16th century and for around 200 years, Togo was the trading centre for Europeans searching for slaves to export. It even earned Togo the name of The Slave Coast. Kizzy doesn’t think much has changed and describes his position nowadays as being in 'servitude' to Uber. “That's what it feels like,” he told me recently in the full knowledge that his words would be reproduced in Call Sign. He went on to explain those words...

“The UK is the mother of democracy; everyone wants to be here for its liberty, tolerance and safety. Uber welcomes migrants and refugees with open arms, allowing us to get a foothold – at least so far as work is concerned and where 'good' English isn't a necessity. Most drivers’ partners have other jobs as it is impossible to make a decent living on Uber unless you work around the clock.”

Kizzy often has to sleep in his Prius in order to make his working hours pay. I asked him if he felt exploited? He earnestly replied that it was better to take Uber’s crumbs then to steal from his neighbours! He told me that he rents his car but refused to talk about his insurance status and added that working for Uber was unpredictable, varying between slack and busy.

He said he prefers short rides with their £5 minimum, but dislikes ‘roaders’ because the fares are so cheap and just not economically viable. He tends to call punters with an excuse if a job doesn’t suit him and gets them to can- cel, earning himself a fiver! If they don't cooperate, he will pretend they’re not at the pick- up and scrub it. Contrary to rumour, Uber do allow some rejection of jobs, but if drivers continue to do so they will be deactivated without notice.

Ratings are another pressure. If they drop, drivers get a call enquiring whether they know their way around town. Kizzy admitted to me that he often hung up at Eurostar. When I asked why, he replied honestly that at hourly earnings of around £6 (well below average minimum wage) he had to put himself where the work was.

I asked Kizzy what he thought of licensed taxi drivers? He rather touchingly gestured a bow and then pronounced: “You are the undisputed kings! Taxis are the father, Uber is the baby. If baby gets smacked for continually crying, it will scream louder. Baby needs to be embraced and caressed and taught how to behave properly.” I impressed on him that was TfL’s responsibility and not ours! I was then taken aback by Kizzy’s assertion that young women loved Uber.

“They can't resist the cheapness, despite surge pricing or even feeling scared of the drivers. They all tend to make contact with loved ones as soon as they enter my car because I think they don't trust me! The majority of night customers are young women. Their usage is phenomenal. They may even be the deciding factor in this conflict.”

I had one final question to Kizzy; what were his hopes and predictions for the future? His answer wasn’t one I really wanted to hear: “Uber is dropping prices again to try and attract new passengers from all over London even though it will aggravate ‘partners’ with rising commissions. If we raised our fares and you dropped yours, we could meet somewhere in the middle. We Uber drivers shouldn't be ene- mies with taxi drivers because we have one thing in common – our mutual hatred of Uber.”

At that point Kizzy, genuinely tearful, admit- ted that he didn’t want to be an Uber driver for much longer. He found it to be so stressful due to his not being qualified for the rigours of responding to ‘immediate hire’. In other words, he didn’t know his way around.

At that point, I thanked Kizzy for his time and insight. We parted company – he to yet another night’s sleep in his car followed by another day in Uber bondage. I wouldn’t dream of saying it directly to Kizzy for fear of offending someone who had been honest in his responses, but there was obviously a tenuous link from Alex Haley’s Roots to Kizzy’s lack of Routes and Uber... 

There but for the grace of God go we... and please, don’t blame the messenger!

Seasons Greetings to one and all...

Marc Turner 

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No End To Night Tube Dispute: Latest pay offer falls short, says union

The delayed Night Tube has suffered another setback with the Rail, Maritime and Transport union saying a revised pay and conditions offer "falls short" of what it wanted.

Last week London Underground said it would recruit part-time staff to cover nightshifts at weekends.

It also offered to extend the three-year pay offer to four years.

But the RMT said reps had reported that the offer did not meet drivers' expectations.

General secretary Mike Cash said the union's executive committee would now consider its next steps.

Steve Griffiths, chief operating officer of London Underground, said the latest offer was "fair and affordable".

"We have listened to union feedback and have made absolute guarantees which mean no existing driver will have to work the Night Tube, unless they choose to do so. Instead we will hire part-time train drivers specifically to run the service.

"We have also been working hard to secure a long-term pay deal in order to provide certainty for our staff and for London, so we have now added a fourth year to the deal."

London Underground workers held strikes in July and August over the impact the proposed 24-hour service at weekends would have on safety issues and their work-life balance

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Splyt Rideshare, convicted for operating without a private hire licence

Transport for London (TfL) has taken enforcement activity against an app-based minicab company that was operating illegally without a private hire licence.

Last week TfL successfully prosecuted Splyt Technologies Ltd for breaching the requirement for a London private hire operator's licence.

Splyt, which offered private hire journeys through an app, launched their service in April this year without an operator's licence. TfL believed this to be in breach of legislation and Splyt ceased their operation following correspondence. Earlier this week, Splyt pleaded guilty to the charge.

Splyt were fined £1,750 at Westminster Magistrates' Court, as well as being ordered to pay TfL's claimed costs in full, a further £5,217.50.

The District Judge remarked that it had been a complex case, and that there had been extensive correspondence between TfL and Splyt to try to resolve the matter.

The number of private hire drivers in the Capital has risen rapidly in recent years - there are now 92,049 licenced private hire drivers, up from 76,249 in March 2015. 

This rapid growth has given rise to a number of wider issues, including rising traffic congestion, illegal parking and impacts on air quality. This is why the Mayor is calling for the Government to bring forward primary legislation to give TfL the power to cap minicab numbers.

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Your chance to voice your opinions about TfL's consultation on card payments.

TfL recently held a consultation about Credit Card payments in regards to the licensed Taxi trade. Many drivers felt the questions were loaded in favour of an agenda already decided by TfL and decided not to take part. Therefore, only 349 licensed Taxi drivers actually responded to the consultation. 

AskPOB have decided to redress this issue and are carrying out a survey, asking the questions that drivers feel should have been asked in TfL's consultation. 

Please give this survey your full support.

  Dear Driver

Here's your chance to voice your opinions about TfL's consultation on card payments which managed to get just 349 responses. So, please take part today to help create a true reflection of trade opinion.

AskPOB is currently conducting an independent survey to establish driver opinion on card payment solutions and possible changes to taxi tariffs. AskPOB is an impartial third party, working in collaboration with trade organisations and groups to reach as many drivers as possible, and to understand how drivers would like to best use card payment facilities and at what cost.

The last driver consultation conducted by AskPOB yielded over 1,400 responses and delivered a comprehensive voice from the London taxi trade on recent changes at Tavistock Place. 

By completing this survey, AskPOB will once again ensure that London taxi drivers are being heard. 

AskPOB is a free subscribed service giving all drivers a voice.

Please use this link for survey: >Click Here<

Many thanks and be lucky,

Perry Richardson
AskPOB

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IF YOU CARE, BE THERE...LTDA BRANCH MEETING TODAY 5PM WOODFIELD ROAD

It's no good just moaning that your representative org isn't doing anything, or they at not listening to your worries. It's no good just talking to other cabbies in shelters or on ranks. 

You have the opportunity of shaping the policy that's made on your behalf by turning up at branch meeting. 

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The Shape Of Things To Come? Plus Uber Drivers New Delivery Service.

A young mother has accused an Uber driver of calling her a “black c***” and launching a brutal assault after a row over making multiple drop-offs.

Paramedic Taleka White, 27, says she was dragged out of a minicab and punched twice in the face after her driver flew into a rage in Addiscombe, south London, in the early hours of Sunday.

She says her face smashed into the ground after she was sent flying by the second blow.

The man allegedly called her a “stupid black c***” and a “black b***” during the ordeal at about 3.30am on Sunday morning.

The mother, who has a four-year-old son, is unsure why he became so aggressive, but says he grew angry after some confusion over the destinations.

The women had taken a lift using the minicab app after a night out in Croydon town centre on Saturday and agreed to make separate drops, in the same fashion the proposed UberPool will operate.

She said the driver was polite at first but became rude during the journey when her friend told him he had missed the turning to her house.

He then started to insult Ms White after she continued the journey alone.

Ms White said: “He started to abuse me, saying ‘you stupid black c***, your friend gave me the wrong directions’.

“I sat in the back of the car crying, I wasn’t sure what he was going to do.”

Although frightened, she continued the journey to her mother’s home in Addiscombe – where the driver allegedly became violent.

“He pulled up outside my mum’s and as I was gathering my stuff, he got out and opened the door and dragged me out,” she said.

“As he did this I started wailing and he punched me in my face. 

“I put my hands up and was screaming to get my mum’s attention and he punched me again.

“I went flying down the road and landed on my face. He ran into his car and drove off.”

Ms White was left terrified and injured, with a lump on her head, bruising and a bloodied wrist and knuckles.

She visited A&E on Sunday and needs to return to have an X-ray on her hand.

She called on Uber – which she says has not even refunded the journey – to ban the driver.

“He should not be allowed to work for a cab firm ever again,” she said.

“It’s disgusting – Uber should not be employing someone like that. I just don’t want it to happen to anyone else.”

The matter has been reported to police but Scotland Yard was not yet able comment.

Should be interesting when Uber start their UberPool service when their drivers will be expected to pick up, upto 4 separate, unrelated passenger. 

Not only could you be getting into a car driven by a stranger....would could be sitting next to 3 other strangers on rout.

Meanwhile News Of Uber Driver's New Deliver Service:

Mini-Cab driver Waseem Anwar Choudry, 31, of Chichester Court, Slough gave his wife eight dresses to bring back from Pakistan, which unbeknown to her had 3.5 kilogs of the class A drug – worth almost half a million pounds – sewn inside.

Border Force officers found the drugs in Nazreen Anwar’s bag after she stepped off a flight from Islamabad on June 28, and she was arrested.

In interviews with National Crime Agency investigators the 28-year-old said she had been in Pakistan for a two week holiday, and claimed her husband had given her the dresses to bring back, saying she did not know the drugs were inside.

Choudry had been due to fly back a few days after his wife but did not board the plane, and he was arrested by the National Crime Agency six weeks later attempting to re-enter the country at St Pancras International rail terminal, having travelled from Pakistan via Paris.

A must watch video on Uber's new service

  

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UCG On Night Ops With The Tout Squad.

On Friday November 13th, Trevor Merralls and I were granted very rare full access to the Mets undercover Cab Enforcement Unit and were invited to join them for a night to observe what they do and how they do it.

We met at 9pm and were warmly welcomed at their Kings Cross base. The team is led by Inspector Tracy Allison, under her are 5 sergeants and 55 PCs. It seems a lot but bearing in mind that’s to cover 31 London Boroughs 24/7 it really is not. The two proactive teams (those on the streets) are split into two groups of 24.

As they are specialist officers and if numbers are diminished through sickness, injury or leave they cannot draft in untrained temporary staff, with the exception of decoys, so you can see they are understaffed .

Staffing levels notwithstanding we can tell you they do an excellent job, are totally dedicated and their professionalism is second to none.

At the briefing Tracy told us that they work on intelligence received from the Met, TFL and cab drivers who report touts etc.

The number one area for touting and sexual assaults is Shoreditch. With that in mind we got in an unmarked car with Tracy and her Sergeant ,Mike and headed toward Shoreditch High St.

Eventually we and the second car parked in Garden Row and waited.

Two decoys were situated within 30 yards in Gt Eastern St.

No tout would ever know that the young woman on the corner and man opposite were Police. They blend in perfectly.

Our in car teams were in constant contact with the decoys and each other; completely invisible to the touts.

Tracy explained that there is a marked difference between those deemed illegally Plying for Hire and those blatantly Touting.

To clarify this, if a PHV is empty and sees a prospective fare with their hand up , if they stop and the prospective passenger asks to be taken to wherever, this is classed as P4H.

If a PHV sees a person who looks like they may be needing a ride home, stops and asks them if they need a cab, its Touting.

The reason the CEU target touts as oppose to those Plying for Hire is as follows.

Illegal P4H, although a criminal offence, it is not what is known as a ‘Recordable Offence’, by which I mean the police cannot take a DNA sample when the suspect is arrested.

Touting is Recordable and a DNA sample is always taken upon arrest

DNA samples from touts have led to many convictions for crimes committed in the past, which is why the CEU will wait to arrest one.

In a perfect world they would have the manpower to nick both P4H chancers and Touts; the world in which we work is not perfect though.

We saw a number of PHVs pull up next to the the decoys and then drive away.

After some 40 minutes we had a bite. A car stopped next to a decoy and engaged in conversation, on a hand signal our car blocked the the tout from the front and the second car blocked him from reversing. It happened so quickly that no tout can hope to escape. The CEU have this blocking exercise perfected.

This character had no licence, no insurance and was suspected of taking and driving away.

He was arrested and taken to a local custody suite and the car was seized and driven to a police pound.

Another unlicenced tout was arrested in Fairchild St and taken to a different custody suite to be charged.

At this point the Shoreditch area was seen to be ‘burnt’, Police jargon meaning that their presence there was known and it was time to move on.

Tracy and Mike decided that we would then drive to Camden, another toutshotspot.

On the way Tracy called her colleague who had taken the first tout to be charged and asked if anything was known about him.

It was, she immediately rang the officer who was impounding the vehicle and that is when I heard the most chilling words any woman and to an extent men could hear ‘ Search that car for a Rape Kit ‘ !!

It transpired that he had serious previous including the worst crime toward a woman. He was a dangerous predator and who knows what he had in mind that night.

A Rape Kit, is Ropes ,Gloves, weapon etc.

I must reiterate that this person was unlicensed but there are many more like him on the streets.

We next parked in Camden and the decoys were deployed. After a while a very suspect PHV stopped. The driver got out and was about to approach our man but a marked police car with blue lights flashing, on a completely unrelated job, stopped within 20 yards of us and the prospective tout did nothing.

We then moved on to Camden High St and it didn’t take long before our decoys were touted, this time by a licenced PHV driver.

He was arrested and taken away for questioning and charging.

As I said earlier each of these touts can have DNA samples taken which is of great help to the police.

That night was a real eye opener as to the scale of the problem; it is huge.

The CEU do their level best to fight the problem but are outnumbered.

Please don’t blame them for inadequacy, it’s not their fault. It’s a game of Cat and Mouse. On Friday it became clear there are many more mice than cats.

(We have not forgotten who ran the mouse breeding programme)

Angel Clarkson

UCG Secretary

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