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Southport Corporation is about to license six taxicabs, and sites for the stands are under discussion.
The Suburban Taxicab Co., Ltd., with an authorised capital of £3„00.: in £1 shares, has its registered office at Albert Street, Didsbury, near Manchester.
Horse-drawn Taxis at Newcastle.
Proprietors of horse-cabs in Newcastle-on-Tyne have begun to fit taximeters to a number of their vehicles. This city has a unique feature in its hackney-carriage services, a number of two-horse cabs being employed. The competition with 20 taxicabs, for which licenses have just been issued (see last week's issue of this journal) promises to be keen.
The Budget.
A petition to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, for return with signatures not later than Monday next, has been prepared by the 6ommereia1 Motor Users' Association, and is now in the hands of the principal motorcab companies for the support of their drivers. Additional copies can be had on application to Mr. W. Rees Jeffreys, at 1, Albemarle Street, W.
Argyll or Napier?
Mr. George du Cros write.s I
notice in your issue of the 15th you mention that the car used by Mi. Klein which made a record trip to Queenstown, was an Argyll. Will pm kindly note that the cab in question was a. Napier, the property of this company, and that it was driven by Churchman, one of our regular drivers." Our paragraph of last week was based on information from the Argyll Company. We cannot do more, for the present, than publish the claims of both sides.
Who Checks the Route?
A correspondent, who asks that we shall mention the matter on this page, thinks that some of our queries in regard to taxivans (8th of April) should be applied to taxicabs. He considers that many motoreab drivers fail to take the shortest route to the point of call or destination, whereas horsecabbies, who have nothing to gain by circuitous driving, take the direct way. We do not admit the general contention in either case: a few horsecabbies are as ready to swindle the stranger to London as are a few of the motormen.
At Bath.
After a six months respite, during which the local horse-cab drivers were advised to look round to see if they could make some provision of motorcabs for themselves, the Bath Town Council has come to the conclusion that it can no longer deprive its ratepayers of the facilities for rapid travel which are provided by taxicabs. Licenses have been granted for a total of 48 vehicles, and these will be issued to the Provincial Motor Cab Co.. Ltd., the Bristol Electric Tramways Co., Ltd., the Bath Carriage Co.. Ltd.. and the Bath and District Taxicab Company.
General Motorcab Company.
The current traffic returns of the General Motor Cab Company are sent to us as follow :—
Week ending Saturday, 15th May, £17,128_
Previous week, £17,268.
Corresponding week, 1908, V_3.337. Decrease on previous week, £140. increase on corresponding week, 1908. £3,791.
Total receipts from let August, 1908, £570,901.
Increase on previous corresponding period, £241,902.
It should be noted that the above figures take no account of the average number of cabs in service.
The Parsons Motor Company, Limited, Town Quay, Southampton, is running motorcabs from its various depots in that town. They are not licensed to ply for hire.
Cardiff Licenses.
Licenses for only four taxicabs are now in force at Cardiff, the Watch Committee having declined to grant other licenses, for ten cabs, to the Southern Motor Taxicab Company, of Tresillian Terrace, or alternatively to Messrs. Thomas and Company. It appears that the desire is exclusively to license cabs owned by Cardiff people, and that Messrs. Thomas and Company were not the owners of the cabs in respect of which they lodged an application. The " Western Mail " remarks : " If this is really the reason, we can only say that it is at once ridiculous and inadequate. Taxicabs have become a great public convenience in Cardiff, as in other towns, and the most inveterate enemy of motorcars could not call them a nuisance." An amusing interview, on this matter also, appears in a recent issue of the " South Wales Daily News '' : the opinions of a Cardiff horse-cabby were asked, and this man foolishly gloated over the fact that " A few years alio you would have to hire acab a week afore hand to be certain you'd get it."