Terrifying taxi ride this morning

[Zenana]

Just got a taxi from York train station to Kings Manor in Exhibition Square (or so I thought). I could easily have walked but was running late. The driver asked me if it was York St John and I said no, the University of York. I asked if he wanted the postcode he said no.

I realised he was going way out of the town centre and the meter said £8. I questioned this and he told me to shut up and "stop confusing me". Said I'd told him it was the university of York and when I started to try to explain talked and shouted over me and said I wouldn't listen.

He thankfully had pulled over at this point and I told him I'd get out and walk and pay him for this journey. "You robbing me. You robbing me. You robbing me" he just wouldn't stop. He called me a fucking bitch and drove away.

I didn't take his details or anything I was too shaken up. I'm amazed how upset it's made me.

I had a 45 minute walk to the meeting and I'm glad as it's allowed me to calm down a little but I'm so upset at this vile misogynist.

Honest question - what's the crime you hope the police will investigate?

My friend has told her DDs to always call her when they’re getting in a cab alone and tell her their no. So, that’s exactly what her oldest DD (20yo) did one night and the driver pulled over and told her to fuck off out of his cab if she was going to pull that shit 😯(alone, in the dark, nowhere near home). Yes, they did report him to the local council - not sure what happened to him though.

This is so disgusting I'm so sorry that happened to you

Driving Uber is generally a side gig and not their livelihood. They make a little cash and can walk away any time.

I’ll take a taxi over Uber any time. The drivers are more likely to be professionals who know their way around and drive well.

I don't want the police to investigate. I want this person on the radar because he may have done it before and he may escalate his behaviour.

Yep this man needs to be on the police radar

You really feel the need to attack me personally because I disagree with you?
That’s a shame.
You’re clearly a very, sad, angry little person.

Good luck with that ❤️

PS The crime you can report, OP, is threatening behaviour.

Before I was a lowly SAHM, I worked for a victims of domestic violence advocacy service 😊

Goodbye darling.
Better luck with your DARVO tactics next time

They are no safer nor less safe.

Absolutely this. my DH friend is a taxi driver for a local firm. Use of ID badges is no help - as a PP said, the photos are deliberately of poor quality so that the person cannot be easily identified - you can just see the basics like a head, skin colour, wearing glasses or not. It is so that different people (usually men) can drive the taxi illegally as only one will be the genuine license holder.

the taxi company turn a blind eye - as long as they get their money up front for the use of “the radio” they don’t care who is actually doing the driving.

most of the time it is people wanting to make cash in hand rather than sexual predators but both things an happen. Must are “non-locals” who are “borrowing” the licence/ID from an acquaintance or relative hence they may not have the knowledge of the area that a legal driver would have.

Worryingly it’s also happening in other areas. There was an investigation where I used to work as the care home was sourcing agency carers and the people turning up were not necessarily the person who had been legitimately employed but rather someone else who had borrowed/rented the ID badge from the employee.

This may not deter a driver who was not the legal driver ie someone who had borrowed the legal driver’s car and license.

I remember when I was younger (early 20's) I got a taxi home after a night out on the town & as I was about to get once home the taxi driver reached over & touched/stroked my thigh, I had a short skirt on. It was so awkward, but I didn't say anything as I just wanted to get out. I wish I did say something & he was obviously a predator towards young vulnerable drunk women, and now I hate to think what else he might have done to others since?
I still think about it now, 20 years on.
He wouldn't have acted like that if you'd have been a man. There is no such thing as being kept on the radar, you either report him to take action or you don't. He absolutely deserves reporting.

There's no cabbie around who is going to say 'Oh, rape? Yeah, that was definitely me driving my cab with my plate details inside, nobody else ever drives it because that's illegal' rather than admitting that he lent his vehicle to his mate and giving them his name, address, etc.

It doesn't just identify a vehicle, it specifically identifies a driver - and an innocent but untrustworthy licensed driver is not going to see a conviction for rape as preferable to being done for handing his plate and vehicle over to somebody else. And a dodgy fake cabbie using his mate's plate will know that his friend will never take the rap for that.

Threatening behaviour? The bar would need to be set very, very low for that. This is unpleasant but it was clearly all about confusion on both sides.
There is no 'radar', the police don't have time to keep a list of taxi drivers who've had a bad day. There was no physical threat to the OP (as far as I can see) and I find it fascinating that the posters who are clearest about that are the ones who seem to actually know these locations in York and can understand the driver's perspective on what was initially said.

You could just Google it…

A commits this offence if:

• A behaves in a threatening or abusive manner; and
• The behaviour would be likely to cause a reasonable person to suffer fear or alarm; and
• A intends by the behaviour to cause fear or alarm or is reckless as to whether the behaviour causes fear or alarm.

This offence applies to behaviour of any kind including things said or otherwise communicated, as well as things done. Behaviour can also consist of a single act (e.g. shouting and swearing aggressively during an argument) or a course of conduct (e.g. sending threatening or abusive emails over a course of days or weeks).

https://www.ppsni.gov.uk/threatening-or-abusive-behaviour#:~:text=A%20behaves%20in%20a%20threatening,behaviour%20causes%20fear%20or%20alarm.

@fuckmyuteruslining I was not confused about where I wanted to go or the instructions I gave him. The only confusion on my part was why he was driving out of town when I'd told him where to go and that it was in walking distance but I was running late.

I'd say my day was far worse than his because of his abusive behaviour that you're failing to recognise as such.

You seem to think a taxi driver yelling at a customer, not allowing them to speak and being abusive is just fine and dandy.