MORE CABS FOR OWNER-DRIVERS.
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AFURTHER relief of the position in the Metropolis due to the shortage of taxicabs will, no doubt, come from the scheme recently launched by the British Motor Cab Co., by which drivers will be able to purchase vehicles from the company's fleet of cabs, which have been standing idle . since the company closed down in February of last year, following a strike of the employees.
It is the general experience of owners of fleets of cabs that a cab will earn more when it is run by the owner-driver than when it is being run by a paid servant. There seems to be a bigger income from luggage, from extra passengers, from back money and B14
other quite legitimate charges which all go towards making cab running a profitable business. But, when these sources of added income are missed, cab business in London is not worth the doing. The terms of purchase are easy enough and the charges for garaging, cleaning and minor repairs are so reasonable, that we should not be surprised to find them being readily taken up by the men, to note the rapid increase in the number of cabs on the streets and the consequent and equally rapid improvement in the behaviour of the taxi driver. And the more of these cabs that return, the less will be the need for the /icensiiag of the proposed motor hansoms.