UK - Taxi Etiquette
 

Help I have a question. I read before I went to England that you "queue" or as we say in the US "line up" for taxis. Well I thought that was a great idea. Anyway my mother and I were just outside of Selfridges. We looked down the street to see if we could see a line and we did not. Anyway a taxi was coming down the street and we held up our arms to flag him down. He pulled over and as I was getting in this British lady came up and started screaming at us. I was surprised as I had thought I had made sure there was no line. I did not know what to say but I said " I'm so sorry I did not see a queue". Anyway she was not helpful and neither was the taxi driver (he just seemed to want the business). I ended up getting out of the taxi and letting her have it. I'll be darned but I am just so confused. Is there a certain sign I need to look for? I did not appreciate being yelled at since this was our first time and we were not trying to be malicious. I live in Shreveport Louisiana and so pretty much you never need a cab if you live there. Any insight would be greatly appreciated so I do not repeat what I did.<BR>It sure is frustrating at times:) Thanks

Dear Margaret,<BR>There are taxi queues outside train stations in London, but they are quite obvious, and the drivers themselves will direct you to the front cab.<BR><BR>On the street outside Selfridges, you did the correct thing. Either that "lady" was flagging the cab right behind you and you didn't see her, or she was just a bit nuts. Not to worry.

Sorry you had such a problem, maybe it was just a fluke.

Margaret,<BR><BR>I live in London and also prepared myself for the 'queues'. But I must say things are a changing, at least in London. Beware, of queue cutters, I've had at least three occasions where people have tried to cut in front of me quite blatantly and they are quite rude when I point it out to them.<BR>

Hi Margaret<BR><BR>You will occasionally see taxi ranks, where you do need to queue. These are mostly outside stations although there is also one outside Selfridges. They are very obvious to spotwith a taxi sign and road markings. However, the rest of the time it is open season on taxis and you are perfectly entitled to grab one when you can. If the taxi stopped for you, and not at the taxi rank, then you did nothing wrong by getting it. People may get fustrated if they've been trying to grab a cab for ages (black cabs can be hard to come by), and I suspect that's what happened here, but unfortunately that's just tough luck for whoever missed it.<BR><BR>I would have stayed in the cab and told the woman to get lost. It's a dog eat dog.

Kate: you are a pip! Thanks for making me smile, Judy :-D

thanks Judy, LOL, just don't try fighting with me for a taxi. All my English reserve goes flying out of the cab window

Hi Margaret,<BR>Chalk it up to a nutty lady. It sounds like you did nothing wrong.<BR>Just another note on taxi etiquette: When the taxi pulls up you should approach the front seat window and announce your destination to the driver and then get in. It is considered rude to get in the cab and then announce your destination. The reverse is true, when you arrive at your destination, get out and then hand the money through the window on the passenger side of the taxi to the driver.<BR>It's considered rude for the driver to have to turn around towards the back seat to get the destination and/or fare.<BR>The system seems to work very well. I have never seen a fare refused (tecnically they are not allowed to, though the same rule applies in NYC and doesn't always work there). Apparently not a lot of people get out and run away without paying (seen that happen in NY)<BR>Cheers,<BR>Pat

And I have to add this, because it seems many visitors do know but a whole lot don't.<BR><BR>London black cabs: If the little yellow taxi light is lit, don't bother trying to flag them down, it means they already have passengers or they are off duty.<BR><BR>You have to flag one with the light on...<BR><BR>Kavey

Kavey<BR>I'm confused by your information I'm afraid. Your second advice about flagging taxis with their lights on is what I thought was the case--the light on meaning that they're available for hire.<BR>But your earlier sentence about not flagging them if their lights are on....??

elaine - WITH the light on means they're free

kavey, have you ever taken a hackney cab in your life? If the light is on then the cab is available for hire. Elaine and Kate are perfectly correct. You're wrong again, chum......p<BR><BR>I think residents of irian jaya or tristan da cunha know this.

And now my two cents/pence: 1)If desperate for a cab, try this tact, as I have: enter a hotel, stroll through the lobby, exit, and ask the doorman to call you a taxi. Several hotels have taxis waiting in line for just this reason. I have had great success doing this. 2)At night, the light off on the tax doesn't always mean not in service. More than once I was heading back towards a flat in Kensington and a cab driver pulled over to ask me if I needed a cab. At night, some cabbies will chose who they want to pick up---and these drivers are the best in the world regardless.

Ian<BR>I thought that hotel doorman trick was exclusive to New York. Silly me!<BR><BR>And Margaret, sorry to hear that you "offended" someone.<BR>There are some times when there are no hard-and-fast rules, and people aren't always forgiving of what is actually just bad luck, not intentional offense.<BR>In New York too, I try not to "steal" cabs from others on the same corner who have been waiting longer than I, but<BR>on the other hand, we pretty much feel free to walk half a block away and try to get a cab there. After all, one person can't expect to have dibs over a 3-block radius! But sometimes I will hail a cab and simply not see that another person was there before me. If I then realize (due to the screaming I hear), I do what you did and give it up, trying to be civilized about it. If I'm the person who was there first, I politely say that, giving the interloper the benefit of the doubt.<BR>Of course when it's raining and cold and late and the theatre district is busy, civilized conventions sometimes fall by the wayside.<BR><BR>You can try your best and still make a mistake, don't worry about it. On the other hand, maybe that other lady was just crazy.

Inky...<BR>Does it make your day when you catch a typo by your favourite love-to-hates?<BR><BR>Clearly, from the last sentence of the SAME post, I made a typo. Sadly it was a bit of a critical one, but I meant if the light isN'T on dont bother to flag it.<BR><BR>Missed two critical letters.<BR><BR>But yes, since I was born in London, and live here, I have often taken cabs in London...<BR><BR>Kate, apologies for the confusion...<BR><BR>I AM the typo queen, and I usually skim proof my post for typos, but that one was missed as the sentence reads OK for grammar, I just didnt pick it up.<BR><BR>Inky, you need to find something more important to occupy your time than finding amusment in my typos!

Are you making this story up? Didn't somone recently get slammed on the US board for even suggesting that people sometimes get in fights over taxis? New Yorkers were horribly insulted that such a thing could even be suggested, now you're suggesting that those refined Londoners might even do such a thing?<BR>My advice. Hey, it happens, don't worry about it. There are a....holes all over the world, you just happened to run into one.

kav, i dont hate you. My emotions for you arent that strong - you're probably an ok person were I to be a regular on the north london dinner party/wine circuit. As I'm not I'll say don't sweat it, honey.

I don't sweat, I glow ;)<BR><BR>And don't call me honey.<BR><BR>But really, you MUST have better things to do with your time, no?

Believe me, honey, on the brompton road, you sweat.<BR><BR>Be nice.

And, let's not forget, *never* get out facing the street - use the door closest to the sidewalk ('pavement side').<BR><BR>London cabbies really hate that!<BR><BR>And if you're London dreaming you might like the features at<BR><BR>http://www.bbc.co.uk/london/yourlondon/<BR><BR>=)