STEVE SCOTLAND HAD better reason than most for thinking he knew London like the back of his hand. Not only was he a native Londoner, born and bred, but he’d spent years working as a chauffeur in the city, driving his passengers wherever they wanted to go, finding the shortcuts, negotiating the city’s traffic-clogged streets swiftly, accurately, and with a minimum of fuss.
So he quietly fancied his chances of passing “The Knowledge” test — the demanding test of London’s back streets and landmarks that confronts anyone who wishes to join the elite ranks of London’s cabdrivers.
Although “Knowledge Schools” exist to offer advice and help would-be cabbies prep for the series of examinations they have to pass along the way, the intensive learning of the city’s streets and landmarks, through thousands of miles of exploration by scooter or on foot, is very much a do-it-yourself affair, all of it on your own time and at your own pace.
