Call Sign July 2003 - Page 10 - 1956 and all that

CAN THE CAB TRADE XI DEFEAT ARSENAL
And Provide Brian Rice with his Last Chance of Silverware This Season!

On Sunday July 6 at Chigwell's Metropolitan Police sports ground, the now annual charity football match in aid of the Children's Magical Taxi Tour to Disneyland Paris for chronically sick children and organised by the Company of Hackney Carriage Drivers, will take place between Arsenal ex-pros and the Cab Trade All-Stars.
   Although players cannot be guaranteed to appear, Arsenal hope to field a very strong team including their former centre half and winner of two league championships under George Graham, Steve Bould. Also down to play is one of the gunners' greatest mid-fielders Paul Davis - now perhaps with substantially less hair than at his peak but with a lot of his skill still in place. Together with such other big names from their recent past including Chris Whyte, Brian Hornsby and Brian Sparrow - who went to school with DaC driver Alex Constantinou (N05) - they should overpower the cab trade.
   But, perhaps not! Hoping to line up for the cabbies are ex-pros and celebrities including Dial-a-Cab's ex-QPR striker Gary Micklewhite (R69). Former Barnet star Kelly Haag knows a few tricks, as does ex-Chelsea star Trevor Aylott. We also hope to have former West Ham player Alan Dickens, Chelsea's John Bumpstead, former Watford, Inter Milan and England striker Luther Blissett and brilliant ex-Spurs midfielder Paul Allen.
   Having travelled all the way to Cardiff's Millennium Stadium only to see his beloved Queens Park Rangers fail to gain promotion to the Nationwide first division, Gary Micklewhite now represents DaC Chairman Brian Rice's last hope of a QPR piece of silverware this season!
   We'll know on Sunday July 6 at the Chigwell Met Police sports ground (Roding Lane entrance). Entry by program only, available at usual outlets or on the day. There is a licensed bar and refreshments with plenty of parking space.
   And as a special treat, the FA Cup will be on display throughout the match. So come along and cheer our cabby team on and help the Children's Magical Taxi Tour to Disneyland Paris...

WOULD A LONDON OLYMPICS
BE GOOD FOR DAC DRIVERS?

With London now officially in the race against Paris, New York, Moscow and others for the 2012 Olympic Games, drivers may well be thinking that 9 years from now could be a real boom-time for the taxi industry.
But is that how it worked for other Olympic cities? Taxi Driver David Gawthorn was born in the UK but resides and works in Melbourne, Australia. He is also the author of a book on his Australian taxi experiences and has his own weekly radio show. Call Sign asked him about the Sydney Olympic Games and whether their cab trade benefited.
"They were a total disaster for Sydney cabbies," replied David, "the whole city shut down for the period that the Games were on and just concentrated on the big event. Even Sydney's public transport, which is notoriously bad, ran properly for the duration of the Games! In addition, all transport was free on production of an Olympic ticket - and very often if you didn't have a ticket! The system strongly favoured public mass transport rather than the inferred 'expensive' cabs. "In fact the Taxi rank was about a kilometre from the main stadium and many people who might have considered taking a cab, took the free train instead

- and who could blame them?"
David went on: "My wife, youngest daughter and myself made the pilgrimage to Sydney and stayed about 80 kilometres (50 miles) out. Even though we had no intention of going to any of the events, we got to travel free on the trains to get into the city! Not much use to cab drivers!"
David concluded by adding: "Apart from bits and pieces of Olympic work, there was also less of the regular cab driving work as so many streets were closed. And it wasn't just we cabbies who complained, many retailers, restaurants, bars, cafes and pubs that weren't in the immediate area of the events and the city, saw their takings drop."

So what about London? As Transport for London will obviously be looking to Sydney to see how they planned the event, it looks like London's taxi drivers may have a battle on their hands rather than a windfall! Perhaps we shouldn't wait until 2012 to make our point? If London is confirmed as getting the 2012 Games - and admittedly that is still a year or so away - then the time to start putting our case will be soon after and not the day before the Games commence....

WOULD A LONDON OLYMPICS BE GOOD FOR DAC DRIVERS?

WOULD A LONDON OLYMPICS
BE GOOD FOR DAC DRIVERS?