Fares fair?
Morning.
Let’s get something straight. Black taxis are part of London life and here at Addison Lee, you will never hear us saying anything different. Historically, industry regulations leaned heavily in the favour of the Hackney carriage, making it difficult for private hire minicab companies such as Addison Lee to compete in a fiercely competitive market place. However, in recent years things have changed. Tougher legislation has forced many of the smaller and less professionally run minicab companies out of business and allowed Addison Lee to flourish and grow to a point where we are seen as a genuine alternative to the black taxi. Last year, Addison Lee carried out over 45 million pounds worth of cash bookings. Effectively, these are journeys that are our equivalent to hailing a black taxi. So what’s the difference? Well firstly, the price. On average, an Addison Lee minicab journey will be 30% cheaper than a black cab. Now that’s fine. We live in an open market and would never try to advocate restrictions of trade. Frankly, people can charge what they want. However, the point of interest here is that last year, the Public Carriage Office approved an astonishing 3 tariff increases for black cab companies, in a financial environment that saw most companies across other industry sectors desperately struggling to keep their heads above water.
Still, the days of our black taxi friends monopolising the streets of London are long gone. Addison Lee has over 2000 vehicles on the road and will arrive within 15 minutes of being booked. Our cars are all less than 3 years old, have satellite navigation, air conditioning and, what’s more, you wont see a meter clocking up astronomic fares for the crime of being stuck in traffic. What we quote you is what you pay. End of story.
As I said, black taxis definitely have a part to play in London life. Unfortunately, it is becoming increasingly difficult to work out what that role is.
Agree? Feel free to comment, or ping me an e-mail at jeremyb@addisonlee.com