New Scotland Yard's Treatment of Cab Proprietors.
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A fortnight ago, much to the relief of the proprietors of London motoreabs, the Public Carriage Department of New Scotland Yard began to give evidence of its preparedness to allow some latitude in the construction which is to be placed upon its taximeter and other taxicab regulations. The spirit of reasonableness, which so seldom characterises the administration of a public department, means a great deal for the revenue side of the cab-owning companies. Prior to the occasion named, when written intimation of the concession was first received, any trivial mishap to a recording instrument, or the accidental severance of any one of the live seals upon a taxicab, meant the immediate transference of the vehicle to the non-earning list, and the subsequent devotion of several hours of valuable time, phis the expenditure on petrol and tires, in order that the vehicle might again be passed. As is well known to those who are immediately in touch with what is taking place in London, the old-time inflexible construerion of the regulations has been abandoned, and the taxicab can now continue to run, with a substantial taximeter or minus one or more of its seals, until " the first available day "comes for presentation at one of the passing stations. This is as it should be, and we look for still further concessions of the kind, such as the approval of more suitable " seals " than those which are now commonly in use, These welcome changes are in the interest of the public as much as in the interest of the cab owners, and they tend to increase respect for the central authority, which thereby shows its ability to substitute for " red tape " that degree of true broad-mindedness which is not incompatible with the correct discharge of the duties imposed upon it. Similarly, an early decision to confer with some representative body, such as the Commercial Motor Users' Association, before new rules are promulgated, would be mutually beneficial.