The Knowledge

[goodgoalie]

Where does the money come from to pay the wages of the examiners and the other people who work in the Knowledge office? Presumably the examinees have to pay to be tested, but is there a levy on existing black cab drivers? The overheads must be considerable.

[woofgang]

Funded and managed by TFL
https://tfl.gov.uk/info-for/taxis-and-private-hire/licensing/apply-for-a-taxi-driver-licence

[Buenchico]

The salaries are paid by Transport for London.

TfL rakes in £25.4m per year from taxi licensing, so that will obviously cover a large part of the costs but some of TfL's other income (such as the four and a quarter billion pounds per year received in income from fares, plus another quarter of a billion pounds from congestion charging) might also be made available if need be.

[Jackdaw33]

The last time I looked it cost £4 just to travel one stop on the Tube. No wonder they're raking it in.

[goodgoalie]

Thanks, both. Didn't realise TfL was involved - thought black cabs were independent and self-regulating.

[Buenchico]

^^^ It's £4.90 if you pay by cash now, JD33 but only £2.40 if you use a contactless debit card or an Oyster card. Further, if you stay within Zone 1 and pay by plastic, the total daily fares you pay are capped at £6.60.

[jno]

I think jackdaw's old enough (if a Londoner) to have a freedom pass and pay nothing.

[RobNorth]

One of the few jobs where you can't bluff your way in or be given preferential treatment on account of who you know or the caste you belong to...

[Jackdaw33]

I am old enough to qualify but I live 300 miles from London.

[jno]

long ago, for about three years I used to take a cab home at about 2am every night. I lived just off the Edgware Rd, within 10 miles of Charing Cross, and in all that time I found exactly three taxi drivers who knew my street - and one of them turned out to be the first one again; at least he'd remembered. So I don't think the Knowledge is all that.

[jno]

just outside the greater London boundaries then, jackdaw... but never mind, in another five years it will have expanded to your doorstep.

[OldBather2]

I have an East Sussex County Council Bus Pass.This covers all English (not sure about Welsh/Scots) Buses,including London Buses(but not underground, obviously)

[Buenchico]

^^^ English bus passes aren't valid in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland (or vice versa).

[OldBather2]

Thanks Buenchico,can't complain England is a big enough place!LOL

[trt]

Do Uber drivers have to take some kind of test, as there seems to be a lot of complaints about them, not knowing how to get from A to B?

[Buenchico]

^^^ Uber drivers hold private hire licences, the same as regular London minicab drivers do. They're not required to pass 'The Knowledge' but, with satnavs in their cars, they shouldn't need it anyway.

[Jackdaw33]

When nationwide bus passes came out in 2008 the Scottish authorities made an exception for one chap so that he could travel all the way from Land's End to John O' Groats using his pass for nothing. He must have had plenty of time on his hands.

[Buenchico]

PS: Unlike a black cab, where a non-local has to trust that the driver has taken the shortest route, Uber's customers can go online to see maps of all the journeys that they've taken with the firm, so that they can check that drivers haven't taken circuitous routes.

[Buenchico]

^^^ He took his dog with him as well, JD33:
http://tinyurl.com/lupnpns

It's been done (without a bus pass) a lot quicker though:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/10947507/Its-a-record-four-days-by-bus-from-Lands-End-to-John-OGroats.html

[ParsleyDumpling]

The one thing that struck me about this program, was how polite and respectful everyone was to each other, and how smart the examinees? looked. It was a refreshing change to have people on both sides of the exam paper (so to speak)show respect and good manners.