Professional driving

Professional driving means

• looking after your passengers, yourself and your vehicle
• planning well ahead – taking account of road and traffic conditions
• practising good observation
• keeping in control
• anticipating events.

It’s essential that your vehicle is under control at all times. You must drive it with skill and plan ahead so that your vehicle is always travelling at the correct speed and ready for your next manoeuvre.

Consider the environment

You’ll often have to wait for a fare. If you have to wait more than a few minutes, turn off your engine to reduce emissions and noise pollution.

All drivers are responsible for using their vehicles in a way that’s sympathetic to the environment. This is especially the case for professional drivers, so use your skills to set an example to other road users.

Seat belts

It’s always safer to wear a seat belt when driving; however, taxi drivers aren’t required by law to wear a seat belt at all times. Drivers of hackney carriages don’t need to wear a seat belt when they’re on duty, but private hire drivers are only exempt when they’re carrying a fare-paying passenger.

Communication and in-car equipment

Don’t allow the use of in-car equipment to distract you from driving carefully and safely. It’s illegal to use a hand-held mobile phone or other similar device when driving. Never use a hand-held microphone when driving. Find a safe place to stop before using such equipment.

If your taxi is fitted with a communications radio or telephone, you should only use it while driving if it’s fitted with a hands-free microphone. However, even using hands-free equipment is likely to distract your attention from the road. It’s far safer not to use this equipment, or tune the radio, while driving.

Tiredness and distractions

As a professional driver you may be driving for long hours. Even though your hours aren’t restricted like those of a bus or coach driver, you should make sure that you don’t drive for so long that you become exhausted. You have a duty to yourself as well as your passengers not to drive when you’re tired.

You should normally take a break of at least 15 minutes after every two hours of driving.

You must make sure that you’re always fit and able to concentrate for the whole of your shift.

If you know that you’ll have a long journey at the end of the day, such as an airport run, plan your day and your rest periods so that you can make this journey safely.

Obviously, if you’re carrying passengers, you can’t stop in the middle of a journey to take a rest.

Factors causing fatigue include

• time of day – natural alertness is at a minimum between 2.00 am and 7.00 am. There’s another, smaller dip in alertness between 2.00 pm and 4.00 pm • lack of sleep
• continual glare from oncoming headlights. This is very tiring on the eyes and can lead to general tiredness
• limited lighting (street lights, pedal cycles) causing strain on the eyes when reading signs, looking for premises or seeing other vehicles.

Be aware of distractions from your passengers when you’re driving.

• Your passengers may be talking among themselves, so make sure you’re not distracted by what they’re saying.
• Your passengers may try to chat with you, especially if they’re not from your town and are trying to find out more about the area. Be polite, but make sure you’re not distracted and can concentrate on your driving at all times.

All of the advice in this publication is relevant to you as a taxi driver. However, there are certain manoeuvres you’ll have to carry out more frequently when driving taxis than you would when driving a private car. These are

• stopping at the side of the road
• turning in the road.

Stopping at the roadside

As a taxi driver you have to think of your passengers at all times and make sure that, when you stop, your passengers are able to get into or out of your vehicle safely and conveniently.

Make sure that

• you pull up within a reasonable distance of the kerb, in a position that’s safe, legal and convenient
• you apply the parking brake and put the vehicle into neutral gear before your passenger opens the door
• your passengers can open the door fully and that their entry or exit isn’t blocked by trees or street furniture – lampposts, waste bins, signs, etc
• you’re there to help your passenger with loading or unloading luggage or if they’re not able to get in or out without help • all your passengers are comfortably seated before you move away.

Turning your vehicle around

As a taxi driver you’re likely to have to turn your vehicle around more frequently than most other drivers – for example, if you’ve just dropped off a passenger and receive a call on your radio to pick up a fare in the opposite direction.

You should assess the situation and decide on the safest and most appropriate way to make the turn. You could consider

• making a U-turn within the width of the road
• using a junction on the left or right to swing around
• turning in the road using forward and reverse gears
• reversing into a side road on your left or right.

Never reverse from a side road into the main road and don’t use private driveways to make your turn. Make sure that you don’t mount the kerb when you’re turning around, as this could endanger pedestrians and damage your vehicle.