Road vehicle; Austin Low Loader taxi, registration number CXX 598, 1936

The first motorised taxi was introduced in London in 1903. They quickly replaced horse drawn cabs, which had almost completely disappeared from the city's streets by the 1920s. There were abiut 8,000 taxis in London by this time, and this figure stayed relatively stable until 1939. This Austin Low Loader taxi was licenced in 1936. The type was introduced in 1934 and became the most numerous cab of the decade, being cheap to buy, reliable and easily obtainable. It has a folding roof and space for four passengers. Luggage would have been stowed beside the driver.