Ever since there have been people wanting to get from one place to another, there have been others willing to convey them to their destination in exchange for monetary reimbursement. Today taxis come in a wide variety of guises, and the ‘traditional’ idea of what constitutes a taxi is being challenged by the rapid rise in popularity of Uber and other vehicle-hailing and ride-sharing apps.
But the fact is, the taxi driving profession has always been evolving and changing with the times, so we thought it’d be a good idea to look back through time at where it all began and how things have changed since.
Enter the taxi
The word ‘taxi’ itself comes from France, as it was from here that New York’s first fleet of petrol-powered vehicles for hire came. The word was originally a shortened version of ‘taximeter cabriolet’ – the former being a French word referring to charge and measurement, and the latter originally referring to a type of horse-drawn carriage. The words ‘cab’ and ‘taxicab’ are also derived from this source.
The history of taxis goes back long before the shiny new fleet of the New York Taxicab Co in 1907 though. Back in the mists of medieval Europe, and quite possibly other regions of the world, those with means of transport such as boats and wagons would hire out their services to travellers with the means to pay for passage.
Origins of the hackney carriage
It was in London and Paris in the 17th century though that the true roots of the modern taxi lie. At this time horse-drawn coaches were a popular means of transportation for the wealthy, who would often hire them out with their driver to those of more modest (though not that modest) means. As the coaches proliferated and newer models were purchased by the landed gentry, the older carriages would often be sold to merchants and others who would then hire them out in order to make money.
It was in this time, during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, that they first became known as ‘hackney carriages’. The word hackney is also of French origin and is unrelated to the identically named London district, coming from ‘hacquenee’ – a horse for hire. In 1634, the first London taxi rank appeared on the Strand, with a complement of four hackney carriages organised by Captain John Baily. This is perhaps the earliest example of a taxi firm, and was a model that was soon adopted by others. By 1662, the first hackney carriage licenses were issued in the city.
As carriages became more affordable, the taxi trade exploded in London and other cities across the world.
Refining the idea
By the 19th century the streets were becoming congested with horse-drawn vehicles and a new solution was sought. In the 1830s Joseph Hansom designed a slick new two-wheeled carriage which was much easier to manoeuvre around the increasingly busy city streets, and could be pulled by a single horse. The Hansom cab was born, and quickly spread throughout Europe, the British Empire and the USA. Soon after, a mechanical taximeter to calculate fares was added and became standard in many cities.
Age of the automobile
With the development of the first cars, it was inevitable that these would soon come into service as taxicabs. These competed with and soon replaced the horse-drawn taxi-carriages in many cities. The first proper petrol-powered and meter-equipped taxi cab was the Daimler Victoria, which came into service in 1897. Soon after this, petrol-powered taxis were a common fixture on city streets around the world.
The rest, as they say, is history, and with the development of two-way radios and computer-assisted dispatching, taxis have become one of the transportation success stories of the modern world. But now with Uber and a variety of app-driven innovations stirring up the market, the trade is in flux again, and who knows where it may be driven tomorrow?