Becoming a taxi driver in the ACT
Becoming a taxi driver in the ACT isn't as easy as it first appears. My uncle and aunt previously owned taxis down in Bateman's Bay and my aunt told me that all she had to do was show up to the cop shop, go for a quick drive to a few well known Bateman's Bay landmarks and that was it. There you go - there's your taxi licence. Things aint that easy in the ACT.
There are essentially six steps to getting your taxi licence in the ACT.
First step: Jockeying
What you do here is sit in the passenger seat of the taxi cab and the taxi driver shows you what he or she does to pick up a passenger and how they go about it. You have to sit with the driver for 8 to 10 hours before they sign off on it. In order to start jockeying you need to find an operator to sponsor you and this is essential before you can complete any of the next steps.
Second step: Five day course at the taxi school
These five days I found very boring but you have to complete the five day course and it costs around $500. The course covers everything from taxi ranks, shortest routes, occupational health and safety, tax for taxi drivers to dealing with blind and other disabled people. There are a number of written tests along the way; the pass mark is 80%. You actually have to study some of the material in order to obtain a pass mark. If you fail you get a second go at the tests on the last day. The course isn't that difficult to pass for someone who has lived in Canberra for at least five years and has a reasonable understanding of English. I often wonder how some of the foreign born taxi drivers pass as there are quite a few taxi drivers out there whose English isn't flash hot.
Third step: Police check
You have to get a police check done which costs around $50. This is apparently put in place to prevent people with previous convictions for rape, violent crime or thievery from obtaining a licence. You do take vulnerable people in your taxi such as teenage girls and old ladies so it is probably best that people with convictions for the above mentioned crimes do not obtain a licence. As I found out, a few speeding fines doesn't really matter.
Fourth step: Medical
While taxi drivers are small business owners with their own ABN, the taxi groups in Canberra still have to pay worker's compensation for their taxi drivers. Hence, you have to complete a medical to ensure that the taxi groups in Canberra are employing reasonably fit and healthy people. The medical is not too invasive, they do take a urine sample and you have to take your shirt off in front off the doctor as they check your lungs and your back for any problems.
Fifth step: Registering a business name and for GST
Taxi drivers are essentially small business owners so therefore they must obtain an ABN and register for GST. This doesn't cost anything and unlike the police check, it just takes a few business days before you receive notification that you are registered.
Sixth step: Practical driving test
You must provide evidence that you have completed the medical, have an ABN and registered for GST and completed the police check before you can book to do the practical driving test. You are given 30 locations around Canberra during the five day course which you must memorise and know the shortest routes between each of them. Some of them are easy like the High Court but some of them are harder like the Pinnacle Apartments in Kingston. On my driving test I went to the Jindalee Nursing Home, the Brumbies Club in Griffith, the front gates of Manuka Oval and Middle Rank in Parkes. You have to be careful of school zones as if you speed through these zones it is an automatic fail.
After you pass the practical you go to the RTA and provide them with evidence that you have completed every step and then you get a letter from RTA which you take to a Canberra Connect office to get your photo taken and put on a taxi licence. After that you go in uniform to the taxi office in Fyshwick to obtain your pin so you can log in to the taxi booking system.
And with that, you are ready to start driving.
Oprah or the Queen?
I was waiting a Manuka rank at 1.30am in morning on a Tuesday night wondering who would want a taxi at this hour. Fortunately for me, a couple of young fellas, one of African descent and one of Caucasian descent got into my taxi and asked to be taken to Red Hill. I was exactly happy because it was only going to be a $10 fare. As we headed up Flinders Way I was asked by the Caucasian whether I would rather sleep with Oprah or the Queen. I responded that I would rather sleep with Oprah as apparently black women are great in bed. Both fellas laughed. The Caucasian said that surely I would rather bed the Queen, it's the Queen for God sake. I responded that she was far to old and that Oprah probably had some sexual energy left in her. He continued to protest that it was the Queen and with all her majesty and wealth, surely I would rather sleep with her. Even as he got out of the taxi, he was still going on about the Queen.
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