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Just one day after the 2012 Olympics had been given to
London, the capital suffered its worst ever series of
terrorist attacks. Londoners of every creed, colour and
religion were joined together in despair after losing
someone without ever having the chance to say goodbye to
them. Call Sign Editor Alan Fisher and his wife Linda were just minutes away from the blown-up bus at Tavistock Square on their way to a hospital check up at the Middlesex. As they got closer to where the number 30 was, the emergency services were just arriving and there was an awful stench of burning in the air. Then we heard the appalling news of former DaC driver, Harry Levy, who lost his wife Susan when the tube train was blown up. Call Sign was inundated with drivers asking if we knew how Harry was. What possible answer was there… The whole day has been well documented in the media and this article is just to look at how DaC functioned on that terrible day – Thursday 7 July 2005. Needless to say, once it had been announced that the complete underground and London bus systems were being closed, DaC’s phones went mad. What made life even more difficult for drivers were the number of streets being closed following security alerts. It became apparent that the police had run out of diversions and that Londoner’s safety had to be put before their travelling speed. That left us in a situation of never knowing which would be the best way to go. The whole centre of town became a no-go area and even the A4 westbound was suddenly closed at North End Road. No reason was given or expected. Drivers – both private motorists and taxis alike - knew the score and accepted it without comment. All most Londoners were concerned about was how bad the terrorist |
DIAL-A-CAB AND THE DAY THE BOMBS WENT OFF A bus is blown up in Tavistock Square |
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hoping against hope that casualty numbers would be low. At Brunswick House, staff on DaC’s administration floor went to join call takers on our fourth floor call centre and stayed there for hours. Chairman Brian Rice also joined them and took the decision to lock everyone in the building with no one able to enter. Food was brought in and the staff worked non-stop to attempt to deal with clients. Some of those clients waited for up to two hours and, displaying the solidarity Londoners were showing, still thanked the drivers for working. Call Sign has heard of many instances where taxi drivers ferried walking wounded to hospitals refusing to accept any money and also where long journeys were involved, of shaving the fare to an absolute minimum. Many Dial-a-Cab clients contacted the Society on the following day to thank us for helping to keep their businesses running on a day where chaos ruled. DaC Chairman Brian Rice told Call Sign: “Our staff were just outstanding. It was a tragic set of circumstances that everyone coped with extremely well. Their behaviour was exemplary as they carried out their duties in a calm and professional manner and I cannot praise them highly enough. Their attitude and contribution to |
our clients and this City could only be described as magnificent. We thank both they and our drivers…” Roy Ellis, Head of the PCO, told us: “The Public Carriage Office would like to congratulate the trade on their response to a difficult situation. Stories are beginning to emerge of drivers helping distressed members of the public and assisting people whose normal transport arrangements were disrupted. It is also apparent that there were examples of taxi drivers forgoing the full metered fare. It is gratifying that licensed drivers responded to the needs of travellers and continued to provide a transport service despite the difficulties. Thank you.” London’s taxi drivers often come in for criticism and indeed, one phone-in radio station had a call from an irate member of the public who claimed that the taxi fare he was charged was much more expensive than when he last used a cab. He claimed that taxi drivers were cashing in on the public’s grief. In response to the program host, he admitted that his previous taxi ride had been some three years earlier. He was told where to go… It was a day in which how well you had done became totally irrelevant, but in their irrelevance, London’s licensed taxi drivers can feel proud that they did everything they could in order to help London continue… |
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