Major change to 'the knowledge' for taxi drivers

Most Bristol taxi drivers will no longer have to learn by heart the thousands of routes around the city.

At a meeting of the city council's public safety and protection committee on Tuesday councillors unanimously approved changes to part of the test known as "the knowledge".

The changes - which apply only to private hire drivers, not Hackney cabs - means the requirement to memorise the city's geography will be scrapped in favour of a new approach.

Councillor Sarah Classick, who chairs the committee, said it was "not about making the test easier to pass", but rather bringing it more in line with more modern guidance.

"Because all journeys are pre-booked a lot of drivers now rely on things like sat navs," she said.

"As such the sections where they have to have that memory of where every pub, club and restaurant is in Bristol is a bit outdated, and seems to be a bit of a barrier to good drivers passing the knowledge test."

It emerged at the end of May that "the knowledge" would be scrapped, but Ms Classick said other parts of the test such as those on road safety, legislation and policy and disability awareness would all remain in place.

She also insisted that drivers would still be tested on their knowledge of Bristol - not confusing, for example, Greenbank Road in Southville with Greenbank in Easton - but said the test as it stood was a "barrier to good drivers passing".

Though councillors have approved a new approach in principle there will not be any changes made immediately.

Ms Classick said council officers would now be asked to look into examples of best practice from other cities that have already made a similar change, and any new elements of the test would need to be approved by the committee.

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