This article was submitted almost two weeks
before the AGM and nobody knows what the outcome will be for the Society, so although I
will meet or see most of you at the AGM, I would like to thank all of the drivers who have
assisted me in the present position I have held for the past two years.
Due to the lack of new equipment, we have been covering any increase in work
with the same number of drivers that we have had for the past number of years. We do need
more new drivers or the onus falls onto the existing drivers to do even more account work.
You will have heard at the AGM that the amount of scrubs has risen to an unacceptable
level, we must try to get these down in the very near future.
HANDING CONTROL TO THE GLA
If we want to maintain the position that we hold as London's Premier Radio Taxi Service,
within the coming years when the taxi system is handed over to the GLA, we will need to
adapt. Our service will need to improve so that a client gets the taxi on time, a taxi
which is clean and the driver presentable. I think that the majority of our drivers have
already come to grips with this problem and I admire them in addressing the problem
without any incentive from the Board.
But we still have a few drivers whose vehicles look like dustcarts with
bathroom
style windows and whose attire looks custom-designed to being under an
arch along the embankment. If you are proud of your Society, disown these people, make
your feeling felt by telling them they are a disgrace.
With the advent of the act to licence minicabs, our attitudes have to change.
We have to capture the work before they get a foothold in the door. We just cannot allow
ourselves to sit back as individuals, this was the attitude taken by the taxi trade when
Welbeck minicabs started. If the problem had been stamped on at source, it would not have
developed into the problem that is now staring you in the eyes. If we allow the reputable
car hire firms in London to amalgamate, then they will have the resources to attack our
accounts with lower fares and on-time vehicles.
What you will then be left with is the most expensive private car you have
ever bought (a £30,000 TXI) because nobody will want to buy it off of you as it will
become a dinosaur of the past. Nobody
in London will have the need for a purpose built vehicle, unless you just want to do the disabled work that will not go into a saloon car.
BUILD A FORTRESS AROUND OURSELVES
Let us build up the fortress around ourselves so that we can fight off the onslaught we
expect to come from licensed private hire and maintain our reputation as the world’s
most respected taxi service. I hope that when you read this I will have retained my
position, if that is the case then I will give you my promise that I will encourage you at
every opportunity.
Don't be too saddened by the above article, as I and the rest of the Board
know we have the best drivers and that we can overcome all these problems.
AND IN CASE YOU FORGET ABOUT NEXT YEAR…
The next AGM will be held on Sunday 28th November 1999. So please do NOT book
any weddings, barmitzvah, christenings, engagements, sports events, surprise parties or
holidays. The penalty for non-attendance is £50
And finally ladies and gentlemen, may I take this opportunity to wish you and all of your relatives, a very Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year.
Tom Whitbread
