We've moved

Come over and say hello, and check out the new look!
The new site address is www.irishtaxi.org
The old re-direct, www.irishtaxi.net should now direct to the new site.
If you used that address and still ended up here, it's because of your browser history, try the links above instead, also you should really clear your browser history, what else might you be missing?

e-mail me at: roy@irishtaxi.net

We've Moved!

The new site address is http://irishtaxi.org/
www.irishtaxi.net is currently in the process of being forwarded to the above address and should

e-mail me at: roy@irishtaxi.net

UPDATE YOUR FEED TO THE NEW SITE HERE

Blogger , I'm Leaving You!

I'm about to make the switch over to the "Wordpress" platform;
I've sorted the web host; "Siteground" too late if they're crap!
I've exported all the Posts and the old comments over, the new "haloscan" type, I'm afraid, don't export!
I hope you'll find the new site a bit more professional looking (not a lot!), it'll certainly be quicker to load,
There are also some new features which I hope to put to good use and others I hope to figure out eventually.
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e-mail me at: roy@irishtaxi.net

Looks Like the Forecasters got it right!

Picture on the right shows workers putting sandbags in Clontarf in preparation for the storm with a lady struggling with her brolly

There was a hell of a lot of wind and rain this evening, the forecasters have said that this, combined with the current high tides will likely cause flooding in coastal areas.
The usual towns and villages in Dublin have been provided with sandbags and the council have put up a temporary flood wall using larger bags, along the seafront at Sandymount.
Many of the residents of Sandymount, Ringsend, Drumcondra and Clontarf; some of the places mentioned are elderly and many are uninsured /uninsurable as a similar disaster hit them only a couple of years ago.
It seems the city council is a very slow learner!
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e-mail me at: roy@irishtaxi.net

I thought the Welsh could sing!

Tonight most memorable was a huge Welsh guy singing along like a bag of cats to "Adeles" song "Chasing Pavements"
He was giving it loads with all the oooohs and aaaaahs and got all the words wrong, when he sang "Tasting Faces" instead of "chasing pavements", I finally broke down in tears laughing at him.
He was genuinely bewildered and seemed upset when I told him how crap he was..... in between my by then hysterical laughter!
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e-mail me at: roy@irishtaxi.net

Driver Rear Ends a Garda car on the M50

I found this picture in tonights paper and thought,.... it must be everyone's worst nightmare;
To rear end a police car.
Can you imagine the shit this driver went through?
It happened during rush hour traffic, the police had pulled in another driver for a grilling and this idiot ploughs into the back of their 4x4..........probably on the phone ?

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e-mail me at: roy@irishtaxi.net

The Circus

I see Fossetts have set up the big top in the Phoenix Park. It's strange seeing the place open up to commercial ventures.

The Circus;
Family fun or animal cruelty?

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e-mail me at: roy@irishtaxi.net

A Lovers Tiff

It always surprises me when a couple argue in the back of the Taxi, airing your dirty linen in public isn't aDublin trait.
Last nights couple turned a common enough arguement upside down.
Unusually it was him complaining that his opinion hadn't been sought, that he had a few insights into the situation to offer but he hadn't been asked for them , and how this happened way too often.
What a puny little man!
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e-mail me at: roy@irishtaxi.net

Irish Taxi is Number One!

Thanks everyone!
One of the targets I set for this place has been reached! When you search for Irish Taxi in Google it has the number one position!
YAY! (well for the time being anyway)
It's all down to you guys logging into the site from all corners of the globe and in ever increasing numbers, I'm not sure why exactly but PLEASE!........ keep coming back!
Last Wednesday tipped the scale in Irish Taxi's favour .....with a record 945 unique visitors on the day!
I know it will dip back down again but hopefully we'll keep a few.
Sadly, the upcoming move to Wordpress will cause it to plummet down the ranks again but the new features will make it a better tool for Taxi drivers, customers, visitors to Dublin and for those who just like the gossip.
Here's the Stats for the last three days, bear in mind that prior to Tuesday the record was 369 and that was a while back, when www.beaut.ie gave us a plug.

Stats

Keep commenting and let me know, (be brutal) what you think of the place
Honestly! What do you think of this Blog? comment here.
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e-mail me at: roy@irishtaxi.net

The Hotel/ Restaurant Job

When the Doorman or Waiter hails a Taxi from outside their establishment, what should be the procedure?
Should the meter go on;

• As soon as you stop alongside him
• When the customer arrives out
• After a set waiting time

Should we add the call out charge?
I don't believe the regulations here specify which action should be taken.
If you were the customer what would you expect?

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e-mail me at: roy@irishtaxi.net

A Somali Invasion?

The Somali Army; Invading Dublin's Southside?

Southsiders will have noticed this; SUVs, Mercedes, BMWs, Audis and other big family cars, with the Somali flag flying proudly from their windows.

The Somali Flag;

So what gives?
Well it just so happens that the Somali Flag is also the flag and colours of the rugby club of St Marys Boys school in Rathmines and seemingly they are doing well in the junior cup at present.
So hopefully we're safe enough for the time being?

John Mc Weeney (St Marys Senior side);

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e-mail me at: roy@irishtaxi.net

Dublin's Worst Adresses

They are:
Coolamber Park, Knocklyon.
Glenmalure Square, Milltown.
Both of the above housing estates are small, quiet and private, with nice houses, that sell for vast sums of money.
However if you tell a Taxi driver either address is your destination you'll get the same conversation every time!

Coolamber Park:
"Ah jaysus mate, you should sell up and move, there's something in the water in that place! Two women killing their husbands in the space of two years!.
If you're a woman it's even worse!

Glenmalure square:
"I'm not going in there! sacred ground that is. That land should never have been sold to developers.
That land belongs to Shamrock Rovers (Ireland's most historic football team) who still to this day over 20 years later don't have a home.
Louis Kilcoyne, the barsteward! should never have been allowed sell it.


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e-mail me at: roy@irishtaxi.net

Crappy Picture time!

Dublin's poshest Pubs:
All lined up beside one another on Dawson Street, these are the places to be seen and to rub shoulders with the rich and famous.
I took the pictures by placing the camera on the moonroof and clicking the button, so as usual they're crap! you can click on them and make them bigger and even more crappier
I will display them in order of infamy!

San Sara

Ron Blacks

Cafe En Seine

You might notice that even though it's freezing and it rains a lot, there are seats outside.
That's what a smoking ban does I guess?
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e-mail me at: roy@irishtaxi.net

28 Cowboy Taxis Convicted this year

So far this year the regulator has secured 28 convictions against drivers for ofences including;

• Overcharging
• Driving without a license
• Driving an unlicenced car

They also have a further 78 prosecutions pending.
This with just 9 enforcement officers for the entire country, imagine what they'd find if they were properly staffed?

Meanwhile;
A big well done to Taxi driver Martin Duffy, who brought a posh English couple from the Airport to the Merrion Hotel, I was bored out of my head with them telling me how funny and entertaining you were!
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e-mail me at: roy@irishtaxi.net

Trouble Brewing?

Things are starting to get a bit tough out there for Irish Taxi drivers, the numbers are swelling and there is a lot of discontent in the air, it's getting near impossible to even get onto a rank with other drivers parking illegally awaiting a free space, unless you follow suit you simply don't get on.
Things aren't so bad for me, my wage is the secondary income in this household, thankfully, as I'm not sure it could sustain us on it's own.
I don't see the point of buying a new car, as the takings simply don't warrant it, yet the regulator has the ambition of every Taxi eventually being six years old or less, therefore you'd need a four year old car if you wanted to get two years from it .............with zero resale value!
I guess the future for the industry is that of a low wage and as a result poorer quality vehicles, as the wage will not be able to maintain the high standards the regulator has in mind.... something will have to give.
I know people complain because of the lack of Taxis for an hour each weekend night and maybe for a bit longer during an "event" weekend such as a Rugby international.
In Dublin the business is at a crisis point. Is it time the regulator called a halt to the issuing of new licenses?
What's the situation like where you are?

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e-mail me here: roy@irishtaxi.net

Ch Ch Ch Changes

Blame TaraIT.com for them all!
In an effort to speed up the pageload time for the blog I've deleted some of the widgets, such as;

• Recent comments (The comments can be viewed from the post)
• You tube videos from sidebar (they're still in the posts)
• Taxi News (seemed to take forever to load)
• The star rating feature (another time waster)
  
• I decreased the number of posts on the title page as well from 20 to 10

I've added one new widget; it's the bookmark below each post, if you like a post you can now share it easily.
If you still find the site slow to load, why not subscribe via Feedburner? I've moved the button to the top of the sidebar, just click it and subscribe via a reader, it's a great way of quickly viewing all your favorite blogs/webpages.

Eventually, I'll be moving to Wordpress and hosting my own blog.
This is currently planned for March 13th, please ensure any links you have to this blog are to www.irishtaxi.net and not to the http://irishtaxi.blogspot.com/ to ensure a smooth changeover!

All of this was suggested to me by the nice people at the online marketing firm I'm using to help me increase my readership, all garnered from the marketing report they sent me.
They're called TaraIT.com

I'm still awaiting the personalised report, god knows what they'll have me doing then!

Yesterday was the busiest day on the blog................ EVER!
It nearly topped the 400 visitors mark but not quite;

Click image for clearer view

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Idiot Drives the wrong way down Dublin Port Tunnel

Short video from Primetime showing a driver do a u-turn in one of the port tunnels.
The guy was sent a summons for |Dangerous driving;
Here's the video;

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Dublins Best nightspots

a Question I'm often asked;
Where do the locals go?
First thing you need to know is that the average Dubliner is fairly well off, well at least those who go out regularly in Dublin are.

For me, the best place for locals to go is the Andrew Street/South William Street stretch, these two roads run for about 250 meters in total, yet contain a huge variety of good Night time venues.
I'll run through some of the best ones, starting at the Andrew street end, All restaurants (well you've got to eat!);

• Salamanca: spanish Tapas
• Trocadero: one of my favorites, very theatrical (French cuisine)
• Sai pan: Thai
• Chantz: Famous all you can eat Chinese buffet (€12 last time I looked)
• Le Caprice: Italian
• Cedar tree: Lebanese

Now you come to the Exchequer street/Wicklow street junction, both streets are well worth exploring, but on the corners we have;

• The Old Stand: A grand old pub popular with sporty types...... for a chat
• The International: Great pub and hosts the finest stand up comedy
• Taste of India:Indian food

Now we're on South William street;

• Dakota: Bar and night Club
• Spy: Bar and night club
• Barmizu: late night Bar/restaurant
• Grogans (The Castle): A really true Dublin pub, check it out!
• South William (new kid on the block) third name change seems to be doing well finally
• Khyber tandoori :Indian
• Malotti: Indian (We like Indian don't we?)
• Barkley club: Lapdancing
  
• Peters Bar: yet another great pub
  
• Major Toms (Rula Bula) Night club (Brazilian)(A month ago it was Aussie)

We're at the end of South William street now; Mercer street/ Clarendon Street junction, here we've got;

• Break for the Border: night club popular with Hen and Stag parties
• Hairy lemon: pub people go to before Break for the border

That's it but all the roads adjacent to and parallel with this stretch are equally busy.
To recap;
25o metre stretch;

• 11 restaurants
• 5 night clubs
• 1 stand up comedy venue
• 1 lapdancing club
• 4 great pubs plus 2 more good ones
  

What more do you want?

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Advice for Brian Kearney's Defence Team.

Brian Kearney is currently on trial for the murder of his wife.
I think he did it..... but I always think they did it!
However, he's entitled to the best defence the state can provide.

Say hello to CoCo, my Dog!

Lots of Bloggers have introduced us to their dogs, (well Twenty, K8, and Headrambles have!) their dogs are man eating rabid monsters, whereas CoCo is a dope.

Back to the trial;
During the prosecution evidence it was said that Brian Kearney, on the afternoon of the murder was panting heavily with panic, then, when asked what things his boy would need to take with him to his Aunts, he stopped, then spoke calmly without panting to the police officer about the child's requirements, then when he finished, began panting again, thus suggesting this panting was a "put on"?

Now CoCo pants a lot!
However whenever I gesture to put her lead on, she stops panting completely, once the lead is on though. she instantly resumes her panting again.
VOILA! The dopey dog defence!
If his legal team require CoCo they should howl loudly on the night of a full moon.

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Monday Night Out

I worked tonight because I took Saturday off for the awards, I like to do my 5 nights otherwise I feel I'm slacking.
My first job was a girl who had been out for a meal with her workmate, they do this every Monday after work and look forward to it as it helps them ease their Monday morning blues.
I think it's a great idea and everyone should try it.
By the way working Monday night was a very pleasant experience, very civilised I may do it again sometime.

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Welcome to the Blogroll

I'm happy to add the blogs of some lovely people i met at the awards.
Steph's The Biopsy Report a deeply personal blog that was up for Personal Blog
Grannymar joint winner with Headrambles of best Personal blog

Grannymar and Steph (the Biopsy Report);

Ellybabes, (Grannymars daughter) I didn't get a photo, sorry lads! you've really missed out. Her little fight with Redmum over an aincient Barbie doll booby prize was the highlight of the evening.
and begrudgingly, the winner of MY award John Braine ....He's a really nice guy!
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Mothers Day

I broke one of my own golden rules and booked a restaurant for a Hallmark day lunch.
I did it last Thursday evening, as I passed the Courtyard restaurant in Donnybrook (one of our favorites) I decided to see if they had any tables free on the day. they squeezed me in for 3:15.
When we arrived the first thing that hit was the noise, it was like a playschool with kids everywhere, fair enough I guess we should have realised.
Next was the SET menu! gone was the usual selection of goodies to choose from.
Then there was the price! €30 per person including mandatory service charge of 10% and not including drinks.
(I'd always give a 10% tip, but I feckin' hate when it's mandatory!
The service was DIRE! A 40 minute wait between courses, my wife can't stand to listen to me drone for that long without distraction!
To top it all......... the food wasn't great either!
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Big Mickey Money Night!

I remember from when I had a Hackney cab that the first Tuesday of every month was a big earner.
It was mickey money night, the day the children's allowance was paid, and a big night out for the girls.
I don't notice it as much now as I rarely work on a Tuesday night since I switched to driving the Taxi.
The memory of those nights came back tonight when I heard two girls say;
"You'll be busy tonight love, it's Mothers Day......big mickey money night!"
nb. A mickey is what young boys around here call their appendage.
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Blogger Awards

A Great night was had by all,

Here's how close I got to an award! shame too many people were watching I couldn't steal one.

The Bar was hopping;

Meanwhile inside;


Congratulations to all the winners .....well deserved, in particular
my mates at Beaeut.ie, (best Group)
also Twenty Major triumphed with most humorous post and BEST BLOG well done you deserved them both
Top man Grandad got two as well!
and I suppose I better congratulate the winner in MY category John Braine (no hard feelings AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHH)
As you can tell I'm a very good loser!

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What if it were you?

A girl in the car told me a personal story and after she was finished I told her I'd use it on the blog, I explained that I would use a different nightclub, say she had a different colour hair and even use a different destination but she went pale and pleaded with me not to use it.
She said she thought Taxi drivers were like hairdressers, that she could tell us anything in confidence, I replied that we are exactly like hairdressers, that we relay everything, but in vague terms so as not to embarrass the individual, but the story's got to be told!
She made me promise not to repeat her story and I agreed as I knew she had given me my post anyhow!
So how would you feel if you were the subject of one of my posts?
Remember, I do my best to conceal your identity, but if you read it you'd probably realise it was you and possibly your friends would too.
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Signs Of Old Age

The other night I got a fare to Lusk, dropping off at Sutton Cross first,
I'd said "cool A trip to the seaside"
and then the girl asked,"did I mind going to Lusk?",
to which I replied "No, sure that's where all the beautiful people live" and continued on my way. Suddenly I realised my head was so full of Lusk that I'd forgotten completely what the first destination was and had to ask!
This forgetfulness is beginning to happen too often!
I sometimes find myself driving along, yapping away, then I arrive at a junction, the fork junction for Rathmines/Ranelagh/Harolds Cross, is a good example and then I have to ask, "where did you say you where going again?"
Is it just me?
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Roads Roy's Pissed on

We Taxi drivers have got to relieve ourselves!
So if you're lucky enough to travel in a Taxi on one of the roads listed, just say;
"this is a road Roy pissed on"
and if you're in my cab, you'll get a 10% discount off the fare!.
I'll start it from tonight and add to it as I go along.

The first road to be given this great honour is;

1. Old Court Road in Tallaght
2. Laurel Grove in Ranelagh
3. Raglan Road in Ballsbridge (very posh)
   

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