Call Sign May 2011 - Page 12 - Can Twitter be a danger to DaC?

The heading to this article may sound silly, but recent events suggest that the social networking site of Twitter might be trying to enhance itself at the expense of Dial-a-Cab (and the other two radio circuits). Of course, if those enhancements were to be achieved by getting their own drivers to cover their own account work, then that classifies as legitimate competition. But the problem so far as Call Sign is concerned is that around twenty DaC subscribers are also on Twitter. On its’ own, that poses no problem and in fact two years ago this magazine published an article by former subscriber Richard Cudlip (ex-V23) in which he told how he used Twitter and how he saw its’ future progress. He referred to it as a useful tool for cab drivers, going on to explain how it allowed drivers to stay in contact with each other via short text messages, mainly via their smartphones. "It's like messages sent via our DaC terminals, but potentially open to a much wider audience," Richard told us – but that is where our worry emanates from. He went on to add: "I have already had people that "follow" me (ie read my Twitter blog updates) asking if I could pick them up from somewhere when they know I’m working. I haven’t acted on any of these yet as I've never been in the right place at the right time. But I can easily see how even a small network of drivers could start using Twitter to try and get work. I think the potential is huge, but then I'm a great advocate of technology and the web." Then in the August issue of 2009 Richard told Call Sign that together with another driver, Karl	Can Twitter be a danger to DaC?
	*Richard Cudlip: Co-Founder of Tweetalondoncab* James, he had helped to set up Tweetalondoncab when around 30 drivers got together via Twitter and between them claimed to have "hundreds of followers." Richard admitted that his group of Tweeters hadn’t received many bookings, but he was hopeful that the message would eventually get out there and that those operating the system would benefit with extra work. This magazine had no doubt that Richard was a genuine believer in the Twitter system and had no intention of hurting anyone else in the process, but the possibility is there if someone on Twitter uses DaC equipment to further his network. They now have around fifty drivers and you – the Call Sign reader – might be asking how that could possibly be a danger to the three major circuits? Well one DaC driver who isn’t on Twitter, but is on the LTDF chatroom told us of an email that had come from a Tweeter and our driver asked what we thought about it? The email to the LTDF list claimed the driver had seen a terminal message on DaC about there being work at the Savoy riverside entrance, so he then tweeted it out and also went there himself. Firstly that	meant that a DaC driver might have lost a good job because a message meant for DaC drivers then went out on Twitter. And sure enough, a Tweeter apparently tweeted in that he had "got off" to Mill Hill - a nice ride at any time, but one that should have gone to a DaC driver. The writer himself got a trip to Surbiton. No problem there until he announced that his passenger had been the director of an insurance company and he was then told all about the Twitter empire and the possibility of using a service such as that – in a DaC taxi! Because the coverage on Twitter is very hit and miss, in fact sounding like the former Zingo system under a different name, that could end up sending an account over to private hire. When the work picked up, Zingo couldn’t cope and Twitter could well go the same way. The question is at what expense to the radio taxi trade? Now Tweetalondoncab are advertising themselves as a viable system and asking potential passengers to contact them in a partnership with TaxiStop. Those interested are asked to download a smartphone app in order to access the service. That is a legitimate service – unless they then use their association with DaC via their terminals and passenger contact - to further enhance that service. Will those 20 Tweeters begin chatting up every DaC account client they pick up? No doubt those DaC drivers on Twitter will tell Call Sign…

AL loses legal battle over adbins

Just before the Easter break, minicab firm Addison Lee lost their legal battle with Westminster City Council over its unauthorised installation of 19,000 cigarette adbins outside pubs and restaurants and one even outside Dial-a-Cab’s East Road headquarters! Now a judge has ruled that AL acted illegally by erecting some of the bins without planning permission.
   Westminster brought the action over 21 advertisements at seven sites - six of which were said to be in conservation areas. Addison Lee was ordered to pay the council's costs of £21,407. In addition, they were fined £480 and were ordered to remove the 21 bins.
   According to AL Chairman John Griffin, the action contradicted the council's doubling-up of PM David Cameron’s ‘Big Society’.
   After the case, John Griffin told the press: "I stood up in court today and told them that their Big Society is nothing but a farce." He added that no complaints had come from the public.

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