Follow PHTM
Posted on the 11th February 2025 in PHTM News
ISLE OF WIGHT TAXI FIRM FIELDS CALLS FROM DOWN UNDER AFTER TOWN MIX UP
A taxi company on the Isle of Wight is experiencing a surge of calls from Australia, thanks to a geographical mix-up involving towns with the same name.
Cowes Taxis, owned by Peter Dibsdale, has been fielding requests for rides from patrons in Cowes, Phillip Island, Victoria – over 10,000 miles away in Perth.
"I think they come out of the pub at closing time and just they Google Cowes Taxis not realising it’s Cowes, Isle of Wight," Dibsdale, 63, explained.
The calls, typically arriving in the afternoons after Australian pubs close, have become increasingly frequent over the past decade.
The confusion has led to some amusing, albeit frustrating, exchanges. Dibsdale recounted one instance: "One guy asked for a fare from Cowes to Ventnor, another place we share with over there! I thought that this was a decent fare and asked where he wanted to be picked up from. But when he told me the name of the road and his location, I said it didn’t exist here!
"When we both realised, we had a laugh about it.”
While most calls are simply a case of mistaken location, some have added another layer of complexity. Dibsdale recalled a call from an international number during Cowes Week.
"I got an international number phoning wanting a cab from Cowes and said to the person that he had the wrong country. However, he was actually here during Cowes week and wanted a lift back to his yacht!"
Dibsdale contacted the Phillip Island local paper in an attempt to alert residents to the ongoing confusion. "It’s all a bit of fun and light-hearted, but it can be very irritating if we're busy," he admitted.
Adding to the irony, Phillip Island's former pub was named "The Isle of Wight," further blurring the lines between the two Cowes.
This latest incident follows a similar mix-up involving Newport on the Isle of Wight and Newport in Wales, highlighting the global challenge of shared town names.
Read another story
- TWO THIRDS OF CABBIES FOUND TO HAVE ISSUES IN KIRKLEES WINTER ROAD SAFETY CRACKDOWN
Out of fifteen taxis stopped, ten were found to have issues, ranging from incorrect signage to serious vehicle defects.
- NORTH AYRSHIRE TAXI DRIVER REPRIMANDED FOR VAPING IN CAB ON HIS DAY OFF
David McComb was observed by a licensing officer vaping in his blue Skoda on Canal Street, Saltcoats, on 23 December.
- RHYL TAXI DRIVER STRUGGLES TO SURVIVE AFTER SECOND GOOGLE BUSINESS PROFILE REMOVAL
Christopher Campbell, 47, owner of Rhyl Cabs Ltd, reported his profile was disabled in the early hours of February 1st, leaving him "finding it hard (for his business) to survive" without the crucial online presence.
- NORWICH TAXI FIRM CLAIMS DRIVERS SCARED OF TRAIN STATION PARKING FINES
U-Ride, based on Magdalen Road, claims as many as 30 of its drivers have been penalised with £100 fines for picking up and dropping off passengers.
- KEIGHLEY PH OPERATOR LOSES LICENCE AFTER CLASS A DRUG DEALING TOOK PLACE AT THE BASE
Magistrates decided that Akmal Sakander, operator of Central Private Hire based in Keighley Rail Station, was not a “fit and proper person” to run a private hire business.
- PASSENGER PLEADS GUILTY AFTER BEING RECORDED RACIALLY ABUSING CHORLEY CABBIE
At 1.30am on 12 May 2024 a taxi driver picked up two male passengers from Chorley taxi rank.
- TAKE ME RAISES OVER £15,000 FOR NSPCC AS CHARITY PARTNERSHIP CONCLUDES
Take Me has successfully concluded its 12-month Charity of the Year partnership with the NSPCC, raising an impressive £15,200.20p for the children’s charity.
- NOTTINGHAM CABBIES HAIL NEW RAILWAY STATION TAXI RANK AS "BIG ACHIEVEMENT"
After a decade of relocations, taxis returned to Carrington Street on Monday, February 3, in a move praised by drivers as the "best option" for both themselves and passengers.
- INQUEST HEARS CABBIE HAD NO CHANCE TO AVOID STANLEY CRASH THAT KILLED TEEN MOTORCYCLIST
Tony "TJ" Hedley, 16, died on October 5, 2024, from head and neck injuries sustained in the collision with a taxi driven by Kevin Malpass in South Moor.
- TAXI DRIVER CONVICTED OF SEXUALLY ASSAULTING TEENAGER AFTER NIGHT OUT IN FALKIRK
Jaswinder Singh, a taxi driver, has been found guilty of sexually assaulting an 18-year-old woman he was driving home from a night out in Falkirk.
- MORAY TAXI FARE CONSULTATION BEGINS
Currently, the maximum fare is a charge of £3.96 for the first mile, then 33p for each additional tenth of a mile. It is proposed that fares remain at this level.
- DRUNK CABBIE WITH 90 YEAR OLD MOTHER IN CAR WEAVES ACROSS M1 PROMPTING ROLLING ROADBLOCK
Nadarajah Balan, 47, was observed swerving between lanes near Ratby with his 90-year-old mother as a passenger in his Volkswagen.
- £100 MILLION AND COUNTING THE COST OF GREATER MANCHESTER'S SCRAPPED CLEAN AIR ZONE
Greater Manchester's abandoned Clean Air Zone has cost over £100 million, a new report reveals, exposing the financial fallout of the controversial scheme.
- NORTH YORKSHIRE SEEKS INPUT ON TAXI ACCESSIBILITY AND DRAFT INCLUSIVE SERVICE PLAN
North Yorkshire is facing a shortage of wheelchair accessible taxis and is calling on residents to share their views to improve accessibility across the county.
- SCOTTISH HIGHLANDS MAN FINED FOR UNLICENSED PICK UP OUTSIDE CLUB
Thomas Swan, 53, from Thurso, picked up a passenger outside a Thurso nightclub and drove him seven miles to Halkirk on 4 February of last year, Wick Sheriff Court heard on Tuesday 4 February.
- THREE MORE ARRESTS MADE IN NOTTINGHAM TAXI DRIVER MURDER
Police carried out the arrests on the morning of Wednesday 5 February at a number of locations across the city and county.
- THREE ARRESTED FOLLOWING TAXI DRIVER STABBING IN BUCKSHAW VILLAGE NEAR CHORLEY
The incident occurred on Holland House Way, off Buckshaw Avenue, shortly before 10pm, prompting police to cordon off the area.
- CITY CABS CELEBRATES A CENTURY ON EDINBURGH'S STREETS AND LOOKS TO THE FUTURE
Founded on September 13, 1925, by 25 cab owners as the Edinburgh Licensed Hackney Carriage Association, the company aimed to address parking issues and streamline vehicle inspections.
- BUCKS COUNCIL SEEKS PUBLIC INPUT ON TAXI DRIVER BANS FOR CRIMINAL CONVICTIONS
Buckinghamshire Council has launched a public consultation on which criminal convictions should disqualify individuals from becoming or remaining licensed taxi drivers.
- WORTHING CAB FARES SET TO RISE BY A POUND PER JOURNEY AFTER DRIVERS REQUEST RISE
A group of 37 drivers has asked Worthing Borough Council to approve a new tariff structure, which would see the starting fare for up to four passengers rise by £1.
