1901

We can trace our history back to when a gentleman by the name of Monkhouse “Yorkie” Graham began operating a horse-drawn Hackney Carriage in Sunderland.

1922

The business had prospered to such an extent that Mr Graham was able to purchase his first motor vehicle, a Model “T” Ford, to operate alongside his horse-drawn carriages around Sunderland. At this point, it was decided to name the company “Sunderland Carriage and Motor Company”.

1934

The last of the horse-drawn carriages were taken out of service. 

1953

The taxis were kept very busy serving customers at what was known as the north end of Sunderland Railway Station in High Street West. 

1970

Following the retirement of “Yorkie” Graham, his son Edward continued running the business until his death in 1970. Edward was succeeded by his daughter Monty Atkinson, the company becoming more commonly known as Graham’s Taxis.

1971

Meanwhile, another small group of independent taxi drivers joined together to form Sunderland Owner Drivers Association, using the trading name of Station Taxis. They set up business in Athenaeum Street outside the “south end” of the railway station. The aim of this association was to accept bookings from customers and share the available work amongst all members

1974

The group prospered, and membership grew until the railway station in High Street West was closed for redevelopment and Sunderland Carriage and Motor Company were forced to move their operation to the “south end” of the station. The two companies then worked side by side sharing a small wooden shelter which had been donated to the taxi drivers of the town by a grateful customer many years previously

1980

After working alongside each other for some years, the two companies decided to merge.

1985

The association was incorporated and became Station Taxis (Sunderland) Ltd.

1990

It became evident that the existing radio and paper-based dispatch system was no longer able to cope with the volume of work. The company installed a computer-based system into office premises in Waterloo place.

1996

A data transmission system was installed. The new system effectively removes the need to relay bookings to the cars by voice and instead transmits job details directly onto a small data screen in the taxi itself.

2004

The company continued to expand and purchased Park Lane Taxis who were at the time the main rivals in the city. Soon after, Station Taxis moved all operations to a much larger building purchased in Riverside Road, Southwick.

2012

Station Taxis was awarded ‘Business of the Year’ at the Sun FM Business Awards, ‘Service Provider of the Year’ at Sunderland Retail Awards, and ‘Overall Business of the Year’ at the Sunderland Portfolio Awards.

2014

Station Taxis launched the first Mobile App in Sunderland, allowing customers to book a taxi using GPS and pay by card.

2018

After a large increase in demand, the company introduced credit and debit card payment machines in all of its vehicles, another first for the city.

2019

Artificial technology in the form of a chatbot for Messenger was installed, allowing customers to book a taxi via Facebook. The existing in-vehicle data systems were replaced by mobile technology so that drivers could accept jobs via a mobile phone.