Press Release

TOA Taxis of Birmingham see the benefit of their high-tech investment

London, 18th August 2003 – Raywood Communications, a world-leading provider of advanced Global Positioning (GPS), job dispatch and in-vehicle security systems for the taxi industry, announced today that Birmingham Taxi Owners Association’s (TOA) 400 strong fleet has successfully deployed the unique Raywood dispatch system with integrated Siemens navigation.
Since the system went live on 29th June, TOA is already seeing a huge increase in performance. “We have even received complaints of being too early!” said Mr Paul Lockyer – Chairman of TOA Taxis. “Other customers have commented in amazement that they had only just put down the phone when their taxi turned up” he continued.

Photo by Phil Sampson

This integrated solution has delivered a tremendous improvement in pick-up times for Birmingham taxi customers. The combination of automatic GPS job dispatch and the navigation solution enhances the speed of pick-up, by showing the best available car for the work, assigning it automatically and determining the optimal route to the specified destination – cutting down dead miles and increasing customer satisfaction.

“Because TOA Taxis is a co-operative they had to provide a solution that would not only deliver better customer service, but would ensure that drivers could do their own thing” said Mr Steve Watt, CEO of Raywood Communications. Unlike other taxi dispatch solutions, the flexibility of the Raywood system made this possible. “The Raywood dispatch solution allows drivers to “plot” in areas during quiet times and automatically switch to GPS-based to closest cab dispatch during busy periods” continued Mr Watt.

“Believe it or not the drivers are pretty pleased with it – even the ones who voted against change” said Mr. Lockyer. “The call centre staff are really pleased with the new system too. The jobs are just flying out! Our telephonists can tell a customer when a taxi is dispatched and even how far away their cab is, down to tenths of a mile” said Mr. Lockyer.

Before installing the new Raywood system most TOA cabs would sit on Taxi stands, often in side streets, queued one behind the other. Now the cabs can position themselves anywhere within the coverage area, still be in a queue for radio work and yet be prominent for “walk-on” jobs. “This gives our drivers the best of both worlds and makes our taxis much more visible around the city” said Mr. Lockyer.

“Of all the systems we looked at I don’t think there was a perfect one, but the Raywood system, in combination with the Siemens VDO navigation solution was bloody close to the ultimate solution” said Mr. Lockyer.

This integrated solution, developed by Raywood Communications, in conjunction with Siemens VDO, is a huge leap forward for the taxi industry. This is the first time that a taxi company has fully integrated their job dispatch solution with a state-of-the-art navigation system. This innovative solution melds the Raywood dispatch software with the Siemens VDO navigation software and presents it in a single in-vehicle device. This streamlined approach minimizes the dashboard clutter prevalent in modern taxis.

Raywood and Siemens VDO Automotive have been in partnership since late 2001 and currently market their integrated solution worldwide.

About Raywood Communications:
Raywood is a pioneer in wireless software for the transport industry, developing the first fully computerised job dispatch solution for the taxi industry in the late 1980s. In 1995, Raywood was the first in the world to incorporate Global Positioning (GPS) technology into a computerised job dispatch solution to optimise the tracking and dispatching of vehicles and further revolutionise the taxi industry. Raywood also led the way in the production of in-vehicle digital security cameras, which are now installed all over the world. With tens of thousands ofcarsof cars worldwide using some form of Raywood technology, Raywood is the clear leader in dispatch software and in-vehicle surveillance systems for the taxi industry. Raywood is headquartered in Australia and has offices in North America, Europe and the Middle East. For more information, visit www.raywoodcommunications.com.

About TOA Taxis Birmingham:
TOA Taxis are Birmingham’s oldest and largest black cab, 24 hour, radio service. Complying with all the licensing requirements of Birmingham City Council, and with distinctive yellow logos on roofs and doors, they can be seen all over the city. Formed in 1960 by a small group of taxi owners, today over half the Birmingham’s licensed black taxi owners are members of the association, making Birmingham TOA the largest radio service in the Midlands. TOA Taxi drivers undergo the “Knowledge” test and can offer qualified tour guides to show the wide range of interesting sights in Birmingham and the surrounding areas including, Stratford, Warwick etc. For more information www.toa-taxis.co.uk

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