Training Program for Taxi Drivers

QUESTION 2 

If you were asked to develop a training program for taxicab drivers, how would you do it? How would you evaluate the program? 

            My training program for taxicab drivers will focus mainly on improving the existing KSA (knowledge, skills and abilities) of the taxicab drivers, I am training. 

Obviously, knowledge is the first part of my training program.  The most basic knowledge of any taxicab driver is knowledge of the city’s streets and places.  The taxicab drivers should know the basic geography of the city where they are driving, the names of prominent places and streets and knowing the fastest routes to go to any place in the city.  Other important knowledge that any taxicab driver should know include which streets are one-way and alternative routes to a certain place to avoid being stuck in a traffic jam.  Furthermore, each taxicab driver should be able to read and identify accurately all types of road signs being used in traffic in the city, and know by heart the rules of driving in the city, i.e. the speed limit, loading capacity of each taxi.

The skills that will be in the training program for taxi drivers include driving safely, defensive driving and following traffic rules and regulations.  Moreover, another important skill for any taxi driver is to fix simple car problems like changing flat tires, what to do when a car overheats, or how to fix the car’s airconditioning system.  The taxi driver should also be able to check simple safety measures before starting on the shift.  That means checking the water of the radiator, cleaning the windshield and the trunk of the taxi, cleaning the interior of the taxi so that it smells clean and looks clean, cleaning the side mirrors and the overhead mirror to ensure visibility, checking the oild of the engine, if it’s still enough, checking the air in the tires, and making sure the taxi has the requisite equipment like flashlights, hazard signs, extra tire, just in case car troubles occur.

            Finally, the last phase of my training program will be measuring the abilities of the taxi drivers.  This can be in the form of actual road tests which will measure the ability of the taxi driver to solve problems and deal with commuter concerns. 

            This training program can be evaluated by using several measures including measuring the number of accidents met by the taxicab drivers being trained, the number of passengers they carry in a day, the amount of money they earn every day, their safety record, their police citations and tickets, the number of complaints they received from commuters, number of police reports against them – basically, statistics that would show how careful they are as drivers.