The Knowledge
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The Knowledge is the study of London that a prospective taxi driver must complete in order to obtain a licence to operate a black cab in London, the purpose of which is for them to demonstrate that they know the roads, routes and places of London.
Because a passing taxi can be hailed on the street, and because London is not operated on a grid system but has an intricate and busy network of many historic roads and back streets, the taxi driver is required to be able to decide routes immediately in response to a passenger's request or traffic problems, rather than stopping to look at a map or ask a controller by radio. The 320 main (standard) routes within The Knowledge are contained within the "Blue Book" (officially known as the "Guide to Learning the Knowledge of London"), produced by the Public Carriage Office which regulates licensed taxis in London. A taxi driver must learn these, as well as gain mastery of most of the other 25,000 roads and thousands of common buildings relevant to driving in London, to become a licensed taxi driver in the city.
The Knowledge is the most demanding course of study required by any taxi regulator in the world. On average 34 months of preparation and in most cases at least ten "Appearances" (attempts at the final test) are required before an applicant will obtain a license as a London taxi driver.
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Officially, The Knowledge consists simply of learning 320 routes, referred to as "runs", through central London and knowing the significant places along those routes including streets, squares, clubs, hospitals, hotels, theatres, government and public buildings, railway stations, police stations, courts, diplomatic buildings, important places of worship, cemeteries, crematoria, parks and open spaces, sports and leisure centres, places of learning, restaurants and historic buildings. In all some 25,000 streets within a six mile radius of Charing Cross are covered along with the major arterial routes through the rest of London. The Knowledge includes such details as the order of theatres on Shaftesbury Avenue, or the names and order of the side streets and traffic signals passed on a route.During their period of training, would-be cabbies usually ride around London on these routes on a moped which earns them the name of knowledge boys (or girls). A humorous film about this learning experience, called The Knowledge, was written by Jack Rosenthal for ITV, and was in 2000 voted number 83 in a list of the 100 Greatest British Television Programmes compiled by the British Film Institute.
In order to pass The Knowledge an applicant must have a clean driving licence and no criminal record, then first pass a written test, which qualifies them to make an "appearance". At appearances, knowledge boys/girls must, without looking at a map, identify the quickest and most sensible route between any two points in metropolitan London that their examiner chooses. For each route the applicant must recite the names of the roads used, when they cross junctions, use roundabouts, make turns, and what is 'alongside' them at each point. It is extremely rare for a driver to reach the required standard in fewer than 10 appearances.
Knowledge boys/girls and their online learning communities have recently been the subject of academic research, including a Ph.D. dissertation by Drew A. R. Ross at Oxford University.
There is evidence that training for The Knowledge can result in measurable physical changes in the brain of a trainee cab driver. See reports by [BBC News] and [Scientific American Frontiers].
External link
- [Transport for London], who administer the examination
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