They'll argue that the Knowledge allows them to route around bad traffic, rather than just following what SatNav or app says to do. Many cabbies have SatNavs th

They'll argue that the Knowledge allows them to route around bad traffic, rather than just following what SatNav or app says to do. Many cabbies have SatNavs that show live traffic conditions so they can do this, but they don't use them for navigation directly. Cabbies tend to know a lot more of the time saving shortcuts than the private hire drivers. It's also very nice to be able to get in a black cab and say something like "The Civil Service Club please" and they'll know exactly where to go, no prodding at a phone/SatNav for a minute or asking for a postcode. The downside is that some cabbies use that same knowledge to their benefit. I've been in several cabs where the driver has purposely used a route that's bad for traffic (rather than the obvious alternatives) so they can earn more money for a journey. (This is more common at times when fares are sparse.)