Bob Oddy

Bob Oddy has served travellers all over the London area since 1966, when he first obtained his licence to drive a taxi. Over the years, he became more involved, becoming one of the Advisors for the Computer Cab Company Ltd., the chief negotiator for London Taxi Fares and the Deputy General Secretary for the London Taxi Drivers Association (a.k.a. LTDA). He has the nickname of “Rickshaw Bob” which he obtained in his fifteen year fight to ban rickshaws and pedicabs from the streets of London. He cites these small transportation devices as deathtraps, dangerous to the public and passengers.

Rickshaws, he says, tend to take corners at a rather fast speed and tip at the kerbs. He believes that the London cab industry can serve the public much better than the pedicab, because they are driven by trained professionals rather than untrained amateurs, as well as being physically safer. The officials in London are seeking to license the rickshaws, but Bob Oddy and others in the London cab industry have vowed to keep them from accomplishing this goal, going so far as to bring the matter to court. Pedicabs and rickshaws continue to line the streets of London as this fight continues.

While he is not fighting to ban rickshaws, he is encouraging the use of the Knowledge of London training, instead of bringing in new technological devices, such as GPS and sat-nav programmes. Bob Oddy is an aggressive advocate of continuing to train cab drivers to know the streets of London completely and train in the Knowledge of London studies to ensure that they have it all memorised. He is opposed to using GPS devices instead, citing unofficial tests done in 2012, which show conclusively that the cabbie can quickly and easily come up with a better, faster route than a typical GPS system, thereby saving the passenger both time and money. He believes that keeping the fares as low as possible will keep London cabs high on the favourites list, amongst tourists and travellers.

Bob Oddy has good reason to be proud of the London cab industry. Ever since 2008, London cabs have been voted “best in the world.” Cabs are kept clean and the drivers are among the friendliest. To this, Bob says, "Our members are trained to the highest standards and are dedicated to driving as a full-time profession Therefore their skill, knowledge and expertise is second to none... It is this great service that shapes travellers first experience in the UK and we are very proud of that."