CHEAPER TAXIS
[To the Editor of the SPECTATOR.] Sin,—On the burning question of taxi fares I can supplement Mi. Warren's facts. I have lately returned from Stockholm and Berlin. I believe that in Berlin petrol is slightly cheaper even than it is in London, but the initial charge for a Berlin taxi is, if I remember rightly, 25 per cent. less-75 pf. (about 9d.), against our ls.
In Stockholm the retail price of petrol is the equivalent of ls. 10d. a gallon, against our ls. 644. in London, yet the fares are so reasonable that one hails a taxi in Stockholm as light-heartedly as one stops a 'bus in London. The initial
charge is only 50 ore (about 61(1.). Now, many of the Stockholm taxis are luxurious six-cylinder touring cars of American lig- nufacture. I have sailed gracefully in a Packard or a Buick and have paid no more than ls. for a lengthy cruise. I have even driven for six miles from Stockholm into the country for no more than 3s. 10d. When I returned to London I paid 4s. between Victoria and Marylebone for my unhappy self and luggage. The London four-cylinder taxicab cannot consume anything like the quantity of petrol required by its six-cylinder superior in
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