"Nude" Skater Hits Rockefeller Ice
Adam Lambert Says He's A Performer, Not A Babysitter
Protest To Keep 9/11 Trials Out Of NYC
Lacrosse Sex Scandal — Sexual Assault or Prank?
Woman Sues Publishing Company Over Sexist Sales Culture
An interesting bill is being considered by the City Council: The NY Sun reports that City Council member John Liu is sponsoring a bill for a $3 million plan to put more taxi dispatchers in Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx. Liu, who also chairs the Transportation Committee, said, "The reality of New York today is that people outside of Manhattan's central business district would like to jump in a cab on demand.As we have more economic activity outside Manhattan, we will get more demand for yellow cabs." The money would come from the $141 million the city made from taxi medallions sales.
However much the City Council may like the plan, it seems that livery drivers - as well as the Bloomberg administration - would oppose the plan. Apparently livery drivers consider the outer-boroughs "their turf." And it's unclear how successful these stands would be with hacks - one taxi driver said, "I'm not going out to Brooklyn or Queens empty. I'd probably use the stands only if I was coming in from the airports."
Photograph by Swaneeswan on Flickr
add to stumble upon
add to reddit
tweet this
post to facebook
BTW,Staten Island is also included in the bill--which is a good thing, since MTA bus service on the island is unreliable, to put it kindly.
I have a new idea, lets start canceling the medalions of cabs which arent being used enough % of the time. In Manhattan all the midtown traffic problems are caused by taxis, I counted 40 taxis go by before a single car. Most of them empty. If the cabs arent being used, they shouldnt be wasting space on the streets. The taxi meters can be reprogramed to keep track how much of the time the taxi is "on the clock" and not on the clock but in service, if its not enough, medallion cancelled at the end of the year/season/month.
Livery cabs are cheaper. I like Eastern in Brooklyn.
Here's an idea. Why doesn't the City ofNew York buy the TLC. this was the city can regulate the taxi's like they do the MTA.
The drivers would be unionized, get insurance, be happier (in theory) the cost of the fare would drop, and tipping would be optional. Do I tip the bus driver for taking the time to deal with crappy drivers, to deal with the customers questions etc??
If taxi cabs could make money in the other boroughs, wouldn't they already be taking fares? Clearly, if a taxi stand were needed, then drivers would be lining up there already to pick up passengers.
Why doesn't the City ofNew York buy the TLC. this was the city can regulate the taxi's like they do the MTA.
Because the city does not own or regulate the MTA. The state does.
I can't stand the black livery cars. They haggle every godamned time and never give you a good fare.
Street pickup (without pre-arrangement) is illegal for livery cabs or community cars.
John Liu's bill will help boost service because each taxi stand will have TLC dispatchers to maintain order and issue tickets for illegal activity. Take a look at the Flushing taxi stand, which is operated by the taxi industry and is sponsored by John Liu. There are yellow taxicabs at the stand, located on Main and Roosevelt, picking up passengers who come out of the subway every day (even weekends).
Uh, the TLC is part of the City.
John Liu knows nothing about transportation. I've seen him speak and have a Q&A with a bunch of transportation officials and he had no clear stances by supporting policies one minute and then opposing the same one five minutes later. He was also very unprofessional.
If you live in an outer borough, then you have used a livery cab at least once or twice (or a 1000 times like me). After being ripped off the first time you should have your head screwed on much tighter the 2nd time around. Just ask the price when you call, and don't be afraid to argue if the cab driver is charging more than the usual price. You also do NOT have to tip Livery drivers.
I don't have a problem with Yellow Cab TLC stands in Brooklyn, just as long as the drivers know where the hell they are going!
not to get all technical on you, Jessie, but you do not have to TIP anyone.
When I was growing up (a couple decades ago) there was an unofficial taxi stand in Flushing in the same spot as they've set up the new one. It was helpful to be able to get a legitimate cab ride when you needed one, especially at that time when bus service would end earlier than it does now. There also used to be a stand on Queens Blvd and 108th Street in Forest Hills. Nowadays, I generally just go into LGA to get a cab.
There's good reason the Flushing hub is booming, and I say more power to it. I don't trust livery cabs and its been at least a decade since I've hailed one on the street.
Very clever, Technical, but what Jessie was saying is that the tip is built into the quoted price of a livery fare -- if you pay above that, you're a fool. I never tip livery cabs and I've never gotten a comment or a glare about it. That's in contrast to the yellow cab fare, which does not include the tip.