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Did you know: In NYC, yellow cabs are required to take you anywhere in NYC.

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Re: Did you know: In NYC, yellow cabs are required to take you anywhere in NYC.

#81

Post by zorander »

rdouble wrote: post #49
ary wrote: post #25

So I'll ask the obvious question as a person who has visited, but never lived in, NYC. Why is this a problem? I've never had a problem getting a cab to take me where I want to go in the cities I've lived in nor the ones I've visited. The only downside I can see is if you're requesting somewhere that's remote and that would be difficult for the cab to find another fare on the return trip. NYC does not strike me as a p…

There are a surprising number of remote places in New York. For instance, I doubt any cab would pick up a fare to Broad Channel, Queens. The truly far places like Staten Island aren't an issue, because the fare is so expensive nobody is trying to cab it out there anyway. The fares the cabbies hate are to emerging yuppie gentrification neighborhoods in Brooklyn, Uptown and the part of Queens near Manhattan. Places lik…

Astoria has never caused trouble for me..not once have I been refused, and I cab it back to 23av/31st a couple of times a week from lower manhattan. Maybe it's all of the tlc-oriented services along 21st that make it less of a hassle?

Re: Did you know: In NYC, yellow cabs are required to take you anywhere in NYC.

#82

Post by greenyoda »

mikerhoads wrote: post #10

God forbid a service provider be able to decide for themselves what services they actually want to sell.

NYC grants yellow taxicabs a monopoly (they're the only vehicles allowed to pick you up when you hail them on the street) and regulates the number of licensed cabs, which creates an artificial shortage of taxis. In return for these pleasant market conditions, the taxis have to play by the rules.

Re: Did you know: In NYC, yellow cabs are required to take you anywhere in NYC.

#83

Post by rodericksilva »

jim_h wrote: post #27
BobbyH wrote: post #23

My experience is that if you do not look like a white yuppie, cabs won't even stop for you to refuse service, especially at night. I once grew a goatee that made me look Hispanic, and I couldn't hail a cab at night to save my life. I was upset about this and even once filed a complaint with the Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC) after a cab slowed down, looked at me, then sped away to pick up a white guy down the st…

I don't know when you filed your complaint. However, you can attend the hearing over the phone. You just call and everything is all set on the other end. The driver (and his lawyer) has to be present. My coworker had his hearing over the phone a few weeks ago.

Agreed. My mother-in-law owns a NYC cab. They get hit with complaints all the time...even when its not them and the person had the wrong cab number.

Cab drivers are guilty till proven innocent.

Re: Did you know: In NYC, yellow cabs are required to take you anywhere in NYC.

#84

Post by rodericksilva »

Everyone is saying that they might be on their way back to the garage and I agree except that the driver should have the off-duty light on at that point. They should pull over and explain "Hey I'm on my way back to the garage but I can take you if its close"

Note On the cabby's behalf: If you rent and drive a yellow cab it cost you $150 to get in it. You have to fuel it up at the end of the shift so thats another $30-40 per shift.

At $5-10 per ride and assuming you can average 2 or 3 rides in an hour...it explains why they drive like maniacs and look to hustle.

Re: Did you know: In NYC, yellow cabs are required to take you anywhere in NYC.

#85

Post by klbarry »

alanstorm wrote: post #28
dayjah wrote: post #4

Any idea why a cab driver would want to reject a journey? Is there some other bureaucracy that makes it hard for them to turn a profit if they abide by this? For example it is very common in England for "distance and a half" fares to be invoked when journeys are outside of a particular region. This is in place so that if a cab driver takes you to "Stixwich" they're not out of pocket on the drive back since there are…

It's about a New York City that's 25 years long gone, but this question, and thread, reminded of Ted Rall's recollections of driving a Cab in NYC during the early 80s http://www.rall.com/longarticle_003.htm

It's almost impossible for me to get a ride out to Ozone Park in queens, but reading this totally makes me understand why.

Re: Did you know: In NYC, yellow cabs are required to take you anywhere in NYC.

#86

Post by mikerhoads »

SHOwnsYou wrote: post #80
mikerhoads wrote: post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Your last sentence confuses me. The way to change them is to first debate their merits and pitfalls. Your entire case seems to be "The law is the way that it is and thats final, anyone who doesn't like it just shouldn't be a cab driver". My argument is that "this system is inefficient and does more harm for the majority of consumers and cab drivers while benefitting the larger cab companies that can work their way to…

I am shocked that you're still clinging to this argument. You are suggesting that officially sanctioned NYC cab drivers should be allowed to not give rides to people based on race and destination (extrapolate to any service provider be allowed to discriminate against anyone for any reason). The fact that you're claiming racism (and any other subjective thing about a rider) solves harms caused by inefficiency in the N…

>>You are suggesting that officially sanctioned NYC cab drivers should be allowed to not give rides to people based on race and destination

My argument is that a private company should be able to offer whatever service they want. If the city of New York wants to offer a complete service then they should add a taxi service as part of the MTA. Also, I don't think I mentioned race. Destination discrimination is mainly about minimizing risk and avoiding areas dense with blue dots on this map http://projects.nytimes.com/crime/homicides/map

>>What is the point of a subjectively offered city service with no viable alternative?

This is not a city service. It's a private service in the city that well established companies have lobbied nyc government to increase the barrier of entry for. Subways and busses are city services, they are the ones that should have universal service routes.

>> If there was a law that made my industry so inefficient it harmed me and my customers so much and benefited my boss to an outrageous extent then I would show my disapproval by changing industries (either permanently or temporarily via a strike). That is how changes to the status quo are made in a market. Reducing demand so suppliers have to change their offer.

No, going on strike would decrease supply NOT demand. Also, do you really think cab drivers have an alternate industry to flock to?

Re: Did you know: In NYC, yellow cabs are required to take you anywhere in NYC.

#87

Post by SHOwnsYou »

mikerhoads wrote: post #86
SHOwnsYou wrote: post #80

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am shocked that you're still clinging to this argument. You are suggesting that officially sanctioned NYC cab drivers should be allowed to not give rides to people based on race and destination (extrapolate to any service provider be allowed to discriminate against anyone for any reason). The fact that you're claiming racism (and any other subjective thing about a rider) solves harms caused by inefficiency in the N…

>>You are suggesting that officially sanctioned NYC cab drivers should be allowed to not give rides to people based on race and destination My argument is that a private company should be able to offer whatever service they want. If the city of New York wants to offer a complete service then they should add a taxi service as part of the MTA. Also, I don't think I mentioned race. Destination discrimination is mainly a…

>My argument is that a private company should be able to offer whatever service they want.

This is not your original argument. The Yellow Cab company does offer the service they want -> A trip to anywhere that cant be discriminated against based on race or destination (it’s on the NYC transportation website). Your argument was that each individual driver should be able to pick and choose who to take based on any factors they deem relevant, which DOES include race, religion, or any other factor you can think of.

>This is not a city service.

I apologize, I began to use “city service” instead of “only service governmentally sanctioned by the city.” But the argument remains, what is the point of allowing subjectivity in the only government sanctioned cab company?

>No, going on strike would decrease supply not demand

Again, I apologize for not being more explicit. I was referring to the demand for cab driver jobs by potential cab drivers. I switched from talking about the market for cab rides to the market for cab driver jobs without explaining. Going on strike would decrease the demand for cab driver jobs. The suppliers would then have to make a more compelling offer to potential cab drivers for them to get back behind the wheels of cabs.

>Do you really think cab drivers have an alternative industry to flock to?

Yes. At any point I’m sure there are thousands of other unskilled-labor jobs in NYC that cab drivers can get in to. Driving is not a field of specialized labor. Anyone with a license and can pass the test can do it.

Re: Did you know: In NYC, yellow cabs are required to take you anywhere in NYC.

#88

Post by tim_iles »

goatforce5 wrote: post #21

Similar rules in London, UK. And, I suppose, most cities. The standard way to hail a cab in London is to lean in the passenger window when the cab pulls up to you, tell 'em where you're going and then they unlock the doors and you get in. A couple of times I had people say they weren't going that way, etc. Once I said "I know you have to take me!" but there's not a lot you can do when they say "feck off you cahnt" an…

Last week I was refused a cab from the south side of Blackfriars Bridge to Leicester Square, because the driver said it was "too busy" in central London right now. (Fortunately the cab behind him accepted us, and it didn't seem "too busy" at all.) Didn't know this rule applied, thanks!
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