There’s a lot of anger on this thread regarding inflated fares and cabbie’s ripping off the public
Let me explain.
Firstly I was a licensed Hackney (black & white) and private hire driver in Cardiff finishing in 2005.
To become a badged taxi driver took back then approximately six months- the longest process was learning and passing the knowledge test.
It is the only job I know of where you have to PAY TO WORK!!
Vehicle rental was £200 per week
A radio from one of the main taxi firms was £80 per week and trust me you needed the extra work
Fuel was on average £30 a day

So before you earn a penny for yourself you must take £500 a week

In order to earn £250 I was working seven days a week and doing 80-100 hours behind the wheel

The only time that you were able to earn inflated fares was on a Friday and Saturday night between 11 pm and 2am.
Still you can only do one fare at a time so being selective was key.
Black and white you could stop anywhere which wasn’t a problem
Private Hire you would need to turn off your radio and “ Go Flimping” which was illegal- picking up fares that haven’t pre booked.
The answer to getting home is to book your taxi in advance
So before moaning please take into consideration the thankless job this really is 😩