I think people need to stop whining about the fare hike. These drivers bust their butts for 12 hours a day and they deserve a raise. You think Cab Drivers in NYC make as much as the jerks who work for the LIRR or the Metro Buses? Not even close.

Besides, with the waiting time increase, it helps to lessen the desire for cabbies to drive like maniacs to make ends meet.

People expect these guys to work 12 hours a day for peanuts. Milk goes up, gas goes up, cigarettes go up, it's called inflation. Get used to it.

Billy Kess

Not tipping is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard. I think a better solution for the cheapskates among us would be to invest in a monthly Metrocard.

Or call a car service. There are so many to choose from, and as far as I know, the rates are staying static right now. I like New Day myself. Cheaper and nicer than a cab, and always more than willing to take me to Brooklyn or any other outer borough.

I think it's important to stand up for your right to be taken anywhere in the 5 boroughs you ask to be taken. This happened to me once recently, when I was outside the Harlem Fairway with groceries. The cab slowed down for me, but then sped off when he saw the groceries behind me at the curb (wtf?). I took down the number and called 311, but it was after 5 p.m. on a Friday, and I'd have to wait until Monday for the TLC to open again. By the time Monday rolled around, my anger had subsided, but at the time I thought about how I wouldn't have been merely inconvenienced but really fkkd if I were elderly, disabled, had children, etc. No way a cabbie should get away with discriminating against a fare just because they don't like what you look like or where they know or assume you're going.

"Who has the time and resources to take off work to go through this arduous process? It doesn't seem like there's much incentive for cab drivers to respect the law."

I'm the person who had a hearing and won - yes, this is all true, but I found the TLC to, surprisingly, be pretty efficient. I was given a choice of times for the hearing and chose 8:00 a.m. for minimal interference with the workday. I had to wait maybe 1/2 an hour and the hearing took about 15 minutes. I'm a lawyer, so I just showed up in a suit and represented myself. The driver showed up with a lawyer. They waited in a separate waiting room and the driver never hears any of your personal information (the administrative law judge was very careful about that, at my hearing), so there's no reason to be nervous about a sketchy confrontation. I thought the judge was very reasonable and fair - you're both given an opportunity to present evidence and plead your case. The TLC sent along the decision within a couple of weeks. The driver has the opportunity to appeal, which means another hearing, but the driver in my case didn't.

The only bitch of the whole thing is that if the driver is a no-show, there's a re-scheduled hearing whereas if you, the rider, are a no-show, it's a default judgment in favor of the driver. I know it sounds like a hassle, but it was 100% worth it, ultimately.

I reported a cabbie for refusing to take me from the East 30's out to Bay Ridge (quite a hike, but I was ready to pay accordingly). I gave the TLC commission all the info on the incident and never got any call to let me know that there was a hearing on the matter. Just one incident, but it pissed me off that I did everything right and that cocksucker broke the law w/o consequences.

Couple of things:

A) If a congestion charge is only charged one time per day per vehicle (as they do in London), then it will be spread out over a LOT of passengers, who will barely notice it. Additionally, the resulting drop in congestion will mean less time sitting in traffic, which means cheaper cab rides (and more money for cabbies too, because the can get a new fare sooner and get more surcharges).

B) Gotta love the Post's opening graf:

Taxi riders saw red at every stop light yesterday as fare hikes up to 27 percent kicked in - after New Yorkers were promised they'd average only 11 percent.

Uh, yeah, that's what "average" means. Some people pay more than 11% more some people pay less. Duh.

sarah, if you read some of the comments above, you'll see that at least one person did complain about it and won.

Have you ever reported a cab driver for refusing to take you where you want to go?

I was kicked out of a cab recently when he told me and my friend, both of us with significant luggage already packed in the cab, that he would not drive us to Brooklyn from Port Authority.

He started taking our stuff out of the cab and putting it on the side of the street. We immediately called 311 and reported him.

But it's not that simple. You have to go to a hearing during business hours weeks later to officially submit your complaint. You don't even know when that hearing will be until you get a letter in the mail with all the details.

Who has the time and resources to take off work to go through this arduous process? It doesn't seem like there's much incentive for cab drivers to respect the law.

mihow, I was going to Greenpoint too when this happened. Maybe taxi drivers hate Greenpoint! What is it? The Poles? How can anyone hate the Poles?

And yes, it was a very uncomfortable ride.

all this means to me is screwing them over on there tip, i hate it when they choose the worst possible route, and when i give suggestions they say thats a bad choice,,,, hahahha 311 have recieved many calls from me about cabs

i think im going to carry exact change on me fron now on!

I took a cab from DUMBO to Williamsburg and it was $8.20. I think that's a fair price considering a car service would probably have been about $12. We did take the BQE and there was little waiting time.

I think it's a fair increase. If you think of other cities in the world, NYC taxi drivers get screwed...

However! If they increase the fare they better increase the service. Cleaner, newer cars. Cars without exhaust pipe problems. Drivers who bathe?

among all the fares around the US in large met area's i think nyc still ranks as the most fair for mileage and waiting time.

i travel to DC frequently and their "zone system" sucks... talk about a rip off.

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the drivers here deserve tips on several conditions:

first off, no one deserves a tip unless they go above and beyond their call of duty. i used to wait tables and bartend to pay for college and i never expected a tip if i was a below par with my job. i would work my ass off for the customer to get my tips.

i always tip according to the ride itself and the amount on the meter. if the meter is $10+ dollars i always tip $2+ change. more than enough. however, if the driver refuses a route i give him or talks on his phone whilke trailing slow traffic (while other traffic is going around us) i deduct accordingly, that's fair. rewarding him for a shitty ride will teach him he can continue to drive like an idiot.

i do not reward anyone including waiters, cab drivers, doormen, etc if they cannot perform the simple task of good customer service. customer service has been on the decline in recent years and it's bullshit. we as consumers have rights, on of those rights is to tip accordingly. reporting the drivers to the tlc for bad driving or misrepresentation of their jobs is a headache and doesn't do much.

if they want tips they're gonna have to work for them, like anyone else in the service industry.

is it really more beneficial for the driver to sit in traffic or actually clocking miles on the meter and picking up another fare? $12/hr is not a lot considering the cost of labor + overhead for the car.

Driving a cab is an easy job, it doesn't deserve great wages

Have you ever driven in NYC? Have you ever tried doing it for 10 hours a day while supporting a family?

I'm glad to see stories on cab fares bring out the dicks among us. But then again, those are the people who are *too good* to take the subway.

CB and Samantha: My husband and I live in Greenpoint so we run into the whole "I am not going to Brooklyn" thing quite often. I know they have to take you but don't you ever find that if you actually talk them into it, it's going to be some of the most unpleasant 10+ minutes of your life? Sometimes, they get really ugly, drive like assholes, etc. I dunno. I usually give in just because I can't deal with being treatd like a burden.

I know that doesn't really do much for those in the future but still...

Ditto to what Samantha T said -- both on the importance of not asking drivers if they'll take you, and also on the reasonableness of the fare increase.

My cab from Union Square to the Upper West Side last night cost $2.50 more than usual. You better believe that came out of the tip. The fare increase was a stupid idea. Driving a cab is an easy job, it doesn't deserve great wages....or tips. I don't tip at McDonalds and that might be harder than talking on your cell phone in a foreign language while smelling like body odor and taking too long to get me home.

Umm..on top of the right to have the driver take you anywhere in the 5 boroughs you want to go, you also have the right to tell him EXACTLY WHAT ROUTE to follow..don't blame them for taking crowded streets when that now works in their favor...speak up then or shut up now..

remember: fewer than half of New Yorkers own cars, and more like 75% of Manhattan residents don't own cars, so they really don't know how expensive just owning a car is. when you consider paying for gas, insurance, maintenance, parking (maybe not, if you feel like spending a half hour searching for a new spot every 2 days), a couple bucks extra here and there to take a taxi around the city is still far less expensive than owning a car, much less owning a car in the city. buck up, and if you choke at paying $3 extra to wait in traffic (wasting gas and polluting the city air), maybe you should consider paying $2 to take a train instead ...

CB - if the guy had his light on, he is required to take you where you need to be. By keeping his light on, he took the risk that you'd be headin' to the BK. Do NOT ask the driver whether it's okay to go to the outerboroughs, people! They are required by law to take you, no if, ands, or buts. I had a cabbie refuse to take me to Brooklyn. I took down his license plate number and called 311. We had a hearing and he got fined $500 for his refusal. I actually felt a little bad about such a hefty fine because the guy clearly wasn't raking it in, but I know that this happens ALL THE TIME to my outerborough-dwelling friends (especially my African-American friends), so I figured the buck stopped with me.

With that said, I don't begrudge the fare increase. Those of you who are taking it out of the tip are cheap assholes.