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Remembrance Day I have been in the taxi trade for almost forty years, thirty four of them with Dial-a-Cab and I have always endeavoured to patronise the taxi trade charities that do such a sterling job for those less fortunate than ourselves, while at the same time do such a fantastic PR job for the London taxi trade in general. The taxi trade has always been fairly vociferous, but it seems to be more so today than it ever was in the past. This is probably due to the fact that media outlets such as the internet and email make contacting colleagues so much easier. Going back not that many years, drivers would meet in cafes or in the back of their cabs to discuss cab trade politics and to plot the demise of some poor individual! But as I said earlier, that has now changed - probably for the better - as mass communication is open to all and much good has come from that. As you are all aware, 14th November was Remembrance Sunday and whilst it has always been observed - I believe the Cenotaph is 90 years old - it just seems more pertinent at the moment both to my generation and those younger that have never experienced a World war. Now of course we have troops in Iraq and Afghanistan who appear to be losing their lives on an almost daily basis in an attempt to keep us safe in our cities, whether that be in Europe or North America. So what, you are probably asking yourself, has mass communication, taxi trade charity and Remembrance Sunday have to do with anything, let alone a Chairman’s Report? Has Brian Rice run out of things to write about? No, not at all, but from time to time events happen that can make you especially proud to be associated with individuals or an industry and so it was for me on Remembrance Sunday! On this particular day, many ex-servicemen were endeavouring to get to the Cenotaph by 11am for the service while TfL in their wisdom - together with the London |
 Underground - had decided to perform maintenance on many tube lines on that particular day with the result that many stations had to be closed. Why was the maintenance so pressing that it had to be done on that particular day? And if it was so pressing, why was there not alternative arrangements made for our ex-servicemen? That point is where we get to the mass media part. There is a chat site for taxi drivers that I believe has been in existence for over two years and they have formed a group called the United Cabbies Group (UCG). This particular group were obviously aghast as to what was going to happen on Remembrance Sunday, so they decided to set up their own free shuttle service from Waterloo Station, The Union Jack Club and the Victory Services Club going to the Cenotaph and of course, not forgetting the return trip as well. Because of the mass media, they were able to get volunteers to drive the servicemen and marshals for the event in a very short space of time. I’m told that the turnout by taxi drivers was excellent and extremely well organised. As you would have come to expect from the London taxi trade at times of any adversity, all those involved gave their time free of any charge. The above is not the type of thing I would normally write about, but I believe that on this occasion as many of you as possible should be aware of what this group of taxi drivers did on our behalf for those ex-servicemen on Remembrance Sunday. I admit to not being sure what their politics are, but that is totally irrelevant at this moment because I feel humbled, grateful and proud of their actions on behalf of myself and everyone else in the London Taxi industry – |
and I’m sure that applies to all DaC
subscribers as well. Work is improving but... Brian Rice |
