Taxi

Taximeter

The word taxicab is a compound word formed as a contraction of taximeter and cabriolet. Taximeter is an adaptation of the German word Taxameter, which is itself a variant of the earlier German word Taxanom.^[1] Taxe /ˈtaksə/ is a German word meaning "tax", "charge", or "scale of charges".^[2] The Medieval Latin word taxa also means tax or charge. Taxi may ultimately be attributed to Ancient Greek τάξις from τάσσω^[3] meaning "to place in a certain order," as in commanding an orderly battle line,^[4] or in ordaining the payment of taxes,^[5] to the extent that ταξίδι (taxidi), meaning "journey" in Modern Greek, initially denoted an orderly military march or campaign. Meter is from the Greek μέτρον (metron) meaning "measure."^[6] A cabriolet is a type of horse-drawn carriage; the word comes from French cabrioler ("to leap, caper"), from Italian capriolare ("to somersault"), from Latin capreolus ("roebuck", "wild goat"). In most European languages that word has taken on the meaning of a convertible car.

The taxicabs of Paris were equipped with the first meters beginning on 9 March 1898. They were originally called taxibread, then renamed taximètres on 17 October 1904.^[7]

Harry Nathaniel Allen of The New York Taxicab Company, who imported the first 600 gas-powered New York City taxicabs from France in 1907, borrowed the word "taxicab" from London, where the word was in use by early 1907.^[8]

A popular but erroneous account holds that the vehicles were named after Franz von Taxis from the house of Thurn and Taxis, a 16th-century postmaster for Philip of Burgundy, and his nephew Johann Baptiste von Taxis, General Postmaster for the Holy Roman Empire. Both instituted fast and reliable postal services (conveying letters, with some post routes transporting people) across Europe.^[9]

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Taximeter

Taximeter

A taximeter or fare meter is a mechanical or electronic device installed in taxicabs and auto rickshaws that calculates passenger fares based on a combination of distance travelled and waiting time. Its shortened form, "taxi", is also a metonym for the hired cars that use them.

Cabriolet (carriage)

Cabriolet (carriage)

A cabriolet is a light horse-drawn vehicle, with two wheels and a single horse. The carriage has a folding hood that can cover its two occupants, one of whom is the driver. It has a large rigid apron, upward-curving shafts, and usually a rear platform between the C springs for a groom. The design was developed in France in the eighteenth century and quickly replaced the heavier hackney carriage as the vehicle for hire of choice in Paris and London.

Medieval Latin

Medieval Latin

Medieval Latin was the form of Literary Latin used in Roman Catholic Western Europe during the Middle Ages. In this region it served as the primary written language, though local languages were also written to varying degrees. Latin functioned as the main medium of scholarly exchange, as the liturgical language of the Church, and as the working language of science, literature, law, and administration.

Ancient Greek

Ancient Greek

Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek, Dark Ages, the Archaic period, and the Classical period.

Greek language

Greek language

Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages, native to Greece, Cyprus, southern Italy, southern Albania, and other regions of the Balkans, the Black Sea coast, Asia Minor, and the Eastern Mediterranean. It has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning at least 3,400 years of written records. Its writing system is the Greek alphabet, which has been used for approximately 2,800 years; previously, Greek was recorded in writing systems such as Linear B and the Cypriot syllabary. The alphabet arose from the Phoenician script and was in turn the basis of the Latin, Cyrillic, Armenian, Coptic, Gothic, and many other writing systems.

French language

French language

French is a Romance language of the Indo-European family. It descended from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire, as did all Romance languages. French evolved from Gallo-Romance, the Latin spoken in Gaul, and more specifically in Northern Gaul. Its closest relatives are the other langues d'oïl—languages historically spoken in northern France and in southern Belgium, which French (Francien) largely supplanted. French was also influenced by native Celtic languages of Northern Roman Gaul like Gallia Belgica and by the (Germanic) Frankish language of the post-Roman Frankish invaders. Today, owing to France's past overseas expansion, there are numerous French-based creole languages, most notably Haitian Creole. A French-speaking person or nation may be referred to as Francophone in both English and French.

New York City

New York City

New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over 300.46 square miles (778.2 km2), New York City is the most densely populated major city in the United States and more than twice as populous as Los Angeles, the nation's second-largest city. New York City is located at the southern tip of New York State. It constitutes the geographical and demographic center of both the Northeast megalopolis and the New York metropolitan area, the largest metropolitan area in the U.S. by both population and urban area. With over 20.1 million people in its metropolitan statistical area and 23.5 million in its combined statistical area as of 2020, New York is one of the world's most populous megacities, and over 58 million people live within 250 mi (400 km) of the city. New York City is a global cultural, financial, entertainment, and media center with a significant influence on commerce, health care and life sciences, research, technology, education, politics, tourism, dining, art, fashion, and sports. Home to the headquarters of the United Nations, New York is an important center for international diplomacy, and is sometimes described as the capital of the world.

Philip I of Castile

Philip I of Castile

Philip the Handsome, also called the Fair, was ruler of the Burgundian Netherlands and titular Duke of Burgundy from 1482 to 1506, as well as the first Habsburg King of Castile for a brief time in 1506.

Holy Roman Empire

Holy Roman Empire

The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars.

Hackney carriages

17th century hackney coaches in Sir Walter Gilbey's Early Carriages and Roads (1903)

Horse-drawn for-hire hackney carriage services began operating in both Paris and London in the early 17th century. The first documented public hackney coach service for hire was in London in 1605.^[10] In 1625 carriages were made available for hire from innkeepers in London and the first taxi rank appeared on the Strand outside the Maypole Inn in 1636.^[11] In 1635 the Hackney Carriage Act was passed by Parliament to legalise horse-drawn carriages for hire. Coaches were hired out by innkeepers to merchants and visitors. A further "Ordinance for the Regulation of Hackney-Coachmen in London and the places adjacent" was approved by Parliament in 1654^[12] and the first hackney-carriage licences were issued in 1662.

A similar service was started by Nicolas Sauvage in Paris in 1637.^[13] His vehicles were known as fiacres, as the main vehicle depot apparently was opposite a shrine to Saint Fiacre. (The term fiacre is still used in French to describe a horse-drawn vehicle for hire, while the German term Fiaker is used, especially in Austria, to refer to the same thing.)

Hansoms

Drawing of a hansom cab

The hansom cab was designed and patented in 1834 by Joseph Hansom, an architect from York as a substantial improvement on the old hackney carriages. These two-wheel vehicles were fast, light enough to be pulled by a single horse (making the journey cheaper than travelling in a larger four-wheel coach) were agile enough to steer around horse-drawn vehicles in the notorious traffic jams of nineteenth-century London and had a low centre of gravity for safe cornering. Hansom's original design was modified by John Chapman and several others to improve its practicability, but retained Hansom's name.^[14]

These soon replaced the hackney carriage as a vehicle for hire. They quickly spread to other cities in the United Kingdom, as well as continental European cities, particularly Paris, Berlin, and St Petersburg. The cab was introduced to other British Empire cities and to the United States during the late 19th century, being most commonly used in New York City.

The first cab service in Toronto, "The City", was established in 1837 by Thornton Blackburn, an ex-slave whose escape when captured in Detroit was the impetus for the Blackburn Riots.^[15]

Modern taxicabs

1897 Daimler Victoria was the first gasoline-powered taxicab

Electric battery-powered taxis became available at the end of the 19th century. In London, Walter Bersey designed a fleet of such cabs and introduced them to the streets of London on 19 August 1897.^[16] They were soon nicknamed 'Hummingbirds' due to the idiosyncratic humming noise they made.^[11] In the same year in New York City, the Samuel's Electric Carriage and Wagon Company began running 12 electric hansom cabs.^[17] The company ran until 1898 with up to 62 cabs operating until it was reformed by its financiers to form the Electric Vehicle Company.^[18]

Soviet GAZ M-1 taxis in 1938

The modern taximeter was invented and perfected by a trio of German inventors; Wilhelm Friedrich Nedler, Ferdinand Dencker and Friedrich Wilhelm Gustav Bruhn.^[19] The Daimler Victoria—the world's first gasoline-powered taximeter-cab—was built by Gottlieb Daimler in 1897 and began operating in Stuttgart in 1897. Gasoline-powered taxicabs began operating in Paris in 1899, in London in 1903, and in New York in 1907. The New York taxicabs were initially imported from France by Harry N. Allen owner of the Allen-Kingston Motor Car Company.^[20] Their manufacturing took place at Bristol Engineering in Bristol, Connecticut where the first domestically produced Taxicabs were built in 1908, designed by Fred E. Moskovics who had worked at Daimler in the late 1890s. Albert F. Rockwell was the owner of Bristol and his wife suggested he paint his taxicabs yellow to maximise his vehicles' visibility.^[21] Moskovics was one of the organizers of the first Yellow Taxicab Company in New York.^[22]

Taxicabs proliferated around the world in the early 20th century. The first major innovation after the invention of the taximeter occurred in the late 1940s, when two-way radios first appeared in taxicabs. Radios enabled taxicabs and dispatch offices to communicate and serve customers more efficiently than previous methods, such as using callboxes. The next major innovation occurred in the 1980s when computer assisted dispatching was first introduced.

As military and emergency transport

Paris taxis carried 6000 soldiers to the front during the First Battle of the Marne

Paris taxis played a memorable part in the French victory at First Battle of the Marne in the First World War. On 7 September 1914, the Military Governor of Paris, Joseph Gallieni, gathered about six hundred taxicabs at Les Invalides in central Paris to carry soldiers to the front at Nanteuil-le Haudouin, fifty kilometers away. Within twenty-four hours about six thousand soldiers and officers were moved to the front. Each taxi carried five soldiers, four in the back and one next to the driver. Only the back lights of the taxis were lit; the drivers were instructed to follow the lights of the taxi ahead. The Germans were surprised and were pushed back by the French and British armies. Most of the taxis were demobilized on 8 September but some remained longer to carry the wounded and refugees. The taxis, following city regulations, dutifully ran their meters. The French treasury reimbursed the total fare of 70,012 francs. The military impact of the soldiers moved by taxi was small in the huge scale of the Battle of the Marne, but the effect on French morale was enormous; it became the symbol of the solidarity between the French army and citizens. It was also the first recorded large-scale use of motorized infantry in battle.^[23][7]

The Birmingham pub bombings on 21 November 1974, which killed 21 people and injured 182, presented emergency services with unprecedented peacetime demands. According to eyewitness accounts, the fire officer in charge, knowing the 40 ambulances he requested were unlikely to be available, requested the Taxi Owners Association to transport the injured to the nearby Birmingham Accident Hospital and Birmingham General Hospital.^[24]

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Hackney carriage

Hackney carriage

A hackney or hackney carriage is a carriage or car for hire. A hackney of a more expensive or high class was called a remise. A symbol of London and Britain, the black taxi is a common sight on the streets of the UK. The hackney carriages carry a roof sign TAXI that can be illuminated at night to indicate their availability for passengers.

Paris

Paris

Paris is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km², making it the fourth-most populated city in the European Union as well as the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2022. Since the 17th century, Paris has been one of the world's major centres of finance, diplomacy, commerce, fashion, gastronomy, and science. For its leading role in the arts and sciences, as well as its very early system of street lighting, in the 19th century it became known as "the City of Light". Like London, prior to the Second World War, it was also sometimes called the capital of the world.

London

London

London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a 50-mile (80 km) estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major settlement for two millennia. The City of London, its ancient core and financial centre, was founded by the Romans as Londinium and retains its medieval boundaries. The City of Westminster, to the west of the City of London, has for centuries hosted the national government and parliament. Since the 19th century, the name "London" has also referred to the metropolis around this core, historically split between the counties of Middlesex, Essex, Surrey, Kent, and Hertfordshire, which since 1965 has largely comprised Greater London, which is governed by 33 local authorities and the Greater London Authority.

Inn

Inn

Inns are generally establishments or buildings where travelers can seek lodging, and usually, food and drink. Inns are typically located in the country or along a highway; before the advent of motorized transportation they also provided accommodation for horses.

Parliament

Parliament

In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. The term is similar to the idea of a senate, synod or congress and is commonly used in countries that are current or former monarchies. Some contexts restrict the use of the word parliament to parliamentary systems, although it is also used to describe the legislature in some presidential systems, even where it is not in the official name.

Saint Fiacre

Saint Fiacre

Saint Fiacre is the name of three different Irish saints, the most famous of which is Saint Fiacre of Breuil, the Catholic priest, abbot, hermit, and gardener of the seventh century who was famous for his sanctity and skill in curing infirmities. He emigrated from his native Ireland to France, where he constructed for himself a hermitage together with a vegetable and herb garden, oratory, and hospice for travellers. He is the patron saint of gardeners.

Hansom cab

Hansom cab

The hansom cab is a kind of horse-drawn carriage designed and patented in 1834 by Joseph Hansom, an architect from York. The vehicle was developed and tested by Hansom in Hinckley, Leicestershire, England. Originally called the Hansom safety cab, it was designed to combine speed with safety, with a low centre of gravity for safe cornering. Hansom's original design was modified by John Chapman and several others to improve its practicability, but retained Hansom's name.

Joseph Hansom

Joseph Hansom

Joseph Aloysius Hansom was a British architect working principally in the Gothic Revival style. He invented the Hansom cab and founded the eminent architectural journal, The Builder, in 1843.

Architect

Architect

An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that have human occupancy or use as their principal purpose. Etymologically, the term architect derives from the Latin architectuscode: lat promoted to code: la , which derives from the Greek, i.e., chief builder.

Horse-drawn vehicle

Horse-drawn vehicle

A horse-drawn vehicle is a mechanized piece of equipment pulled by one horse or by a team of horses. These vehicles typically had two or four wheels and were used to carry passengers and/or a load. They were once common worldwide, but they have mostly been replaced by automobiles and other forms of self-propelled transport.

John Chapman (engineer)

John Chapman (engineer)

John Chapman (1801–1854) was an English engineer and writer. At different times in his career, he was involved with lace-making machinery, journalism, Hansom cabs and the promotion of railways, cotton and irrigation in India.

Berlin

Berlin

Berlin is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constituent states, Berlin is surrounded by the State of Brandenburg and contiguous with Potsdam, Brandenburg's capital. Berlin's urban area, which has a population of around 4.5 million, is the second most populous urban area in Germany after the Ruhr. The Berlin-Brandenburg capital region has around 6.2 million inhabitants and is Germany's third-largest metropolitan region after the Rhine-Ruhr and Rhine-Main regions.

LTI TX2 cab

Toyota JPN Taxis in use in Hong Kong

Taxi services are typically provided by automobiles, but in some countries various human-powered vehicles, (such as the rickshaw or pedicab) and animal-powered vehicles (such as the Hansom cab) or even boats (such as water taxies or gondolas) are also used or have been used historically. In Western Europe, Bissau, and to an extent, Australia, it is not uncommon for expensive cars such as Mercedes-Benz to be the taxicab of choice. Often this decision is based upon the perceived reliability of, and warranty offered with these vehicles. These taxi-service vehicles are almost always equipped with four-cylinder turbodiesel engines and relatively low levels of equipment, and are not considered luxury cars. This has changed though in countries such as Denmark, where tax regulation makes it profitable to sell the vehicles after a few years of service, which requires the cars to be well equipped and kept in good condition.

Cities like London and Tokyo have implemented specific regulations like London's Conditions of Fitness that dictate size, fuel efficiency, emissions, and accessibility standards far stricter than that for private vehicles.^[25][26] Much like the NY Checker cabs of the 60s-80s, the unique attributes of the city often make the vehicles built to fit those requirements ubiquitous to its livery fleets, and often becomes an iconic image of the city itself.^[27]

Although New York City's efforts to implement new regulations has stumbled in its efforts to mandate both a hybrid and wheelchair-accessible vehicle,^[28] London and Tokyo's efforts have yielded unique vehicles such the LEVC TX and Toyota JPN Taxi that meet and exceed modern emissions and accessibility requirements for the future, and will hopefully soon extend to other cities as older models get rotated out of the bigger cities and into smaller markets.^[29][30] Modifications of existing minivans such as the Mercedes Vito London Taxi and the Nissan NV200 have been introduced as a stopgap measures to fill the need for alternative products, however their acceptance by drivers is yet to be seen.^[31]

Wheelchair-accessible taxicabs

Wheelchair accessible maxicab, unloading a wheelchair-using passenger in Australia

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In recent years, some companies have been adding specially modified vehicles capable of transporting wheelchair-using passengers to their fleets. Such taxicabs are variously called accessible taxis, wheelchair- or wheelchair-accessible taxicabs, modified taxicabs, or "maxicabs".

Wheelchair taxicabs are most often specially modified vans or minivans. Wheelchair-using passengers are loaded, with the help of the driver, via a lift or, more commonly, a ramp, at the rear of the vehicle. This feature is however a subject for concern amongst Licensing Authorities who feel that the wheelchair passenger could not easily exit the vehicle in the event of accident damage to the rear door. The latest generation of accessible taxis features side loading with emergency egress possible from either of the 2 side doors as well as the rear. The wheelchair is secured using various systems, commonly including some type of belt and clip combination, or wheel locks. Some wheelchair taxicabs are capable of transporting only one wheelchair-using passenger at a time, and can usually accommodate 4 to 6 additional non-disabled passengers.

Wheelchair taxicabs are part of the regular fleet in most cases, and so are not reserved exclusively for the use of wheelchair users. They are often used by non-disabled people who need to transport luggage, small items of furniture, animals, and other items. Because of this, and since only a small percentage of the average fleet is modified, wheelchair users must often wait for significantly longer periods when calling for a cab, and flagging a modified taxicab on the street is much more difficult.

Other

Three-wheeled Coco taxis in Havana, Cuba

A "bicitaxi" (identified by its license plate) in Ciudad Nezahualcoyotl, Mexico

Taxicabs in less developed places can be a completely different experience, such as the antique French cars typically found in Cairo.^[32] However, starting in March 2006, newer modern taxicabs entered the service operated by various private companies. Taxicabs differ in other ways as well: London's black cabs have a large compartment beside the driver for storing bags, while many fleets of regular taxis also include wheelchair accessible taxicabs among their numbers (see above). Although taxicabs have traditionally been sedans, minivans, hatchbacks and even SUV taxicabs are becoming increasingly common. In many cities, limousines operate as well, usually in competition with taxicabs and at higher fares.

Recently, with growing concern for the environment, there have been solar powered taxicabs. On 20 April 2008, a "solar taxi tour" was launched that aimed to tour 15 countries in 18 months in a solar taxi that can reach speeds of 90 km/h with zero emission. The aim of the tour was to spread knowledge about environmental protection.^[33]

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TXII

TXII

The LTI TXII is a hackney carriage manufactured by LTI. It is the second model following the modernisation and re-design of the London taxi that began with the TX1.

Cycle rickshaw

Cycle rickshaw

The cycle rickshaw is a small-scale local means of transport. It is a type of hatchback tricycle designed to carry passengers on a for-hire basis. It is also known by a variety of other names such as bike taxi, velotaxi, pedicab, bikecab, cyclo, beca, becak, trisikad, sikad, tricycle taxi, trishaw, or hatchback bike.

Hansom cab

Hansom cab

The hansom cab is a kind of horse-drawn carriage designed and patented in 1834 by Joseph Hansom, an architect from York. The vehicle was developed and tested by Hansom in Hinckley, Leicestershire, England. Originally called the Hansom safety cab, it was designed to combine speed with safety, with a low centre of gravity for safe cornering. Hansom's original design was modified by John Chapman and several others to improve its practicability, but retained Hansom's name.

Water taxi

Water taxi

A water taxi or a water bus is a watercraft used to provide public or private transport, usually, but not always, in an urban environment. Service may be scheduled with multiple stops, operating in a similar manner to a bus, or on demand to many locations, operating in a similar manner to a taxi. A boat service shuttling between two points would normally be described as a ferry rather than a water bus or taxi.

Gondola

Gondola

The gondola is a traditional, flat-bottomed Venetian rowing boat, well suited to the conditions of the Venetian lagoon. It is typically propelled by a gondolier, who uses a rowing oar, which is not fastened to the hull, in a sculling manner and also acts as the rudder. The uniqueness of the gondola includes its being asymmetrical along the length making the single-oar propulsion more efficient.

Bissau

Bissau

Bissau is the capital and largest city of Guinea-Bissau. As of 2015, it had a population of 492,004. Bissau is located on the Geba River estuary, off the Atlantic Ocean, and is Guinea-Bissau's largest city, major port, and its administrative and military centre.

Mercedes-Benz

Mercedes-Benz

Mercedes-Benz, commonly referred to as Mercedes and sometimes as Benz, is a German luxury and commercial vehicle automotive brand established in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG is headquartered in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Mercedes-Benz AG produces consumer luxury vehicles and commercial vehicles badged as Mercedes-Benz. From November 2019 onwards, Mercedes-Benz-badged heavy commercial vehicles are managed by Daimler Truck, a former part of the Mercedes-Benz Group turned into an independent company in late 2021. In 2018, Mercedes-Benz was the largest brand of premium vehicles in the world, having sold 2.31 million passenger cars.

London

London

London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a 50-mile (80 km) estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major settlement for two millennia. The City of London, its ancient core and financial centre, was founded by the Romans as Londinium and retains its medieval boundaries. The City of Westminster, to the west of the City of London, has for centuries hosted the national government and parliament. Since the 19th century, the name "London" has also referred to the metropolis around this core, historically split between the counties of Middlesex, Essex, Surrey, Kent, and Hertfordshire, which since 1965 has largely comprised Greater London, which is governed by 33 local authorities and the Greater London Authority.

Tokyo

Tokyo

Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital and most populous city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 million residents as of 2018; the city proper has a population of 13.99 million people. Located at the head of Tokyo Bay, the prefecture forms part of the Kantō region on the central coast of Honshu, Japan's largest island. Tokyo serves as Japan's economic center and is the seat of both the Japanese government and the Emperor of Japan.

Conditions of Fitness

Conditions of Fitness

The Metropolitan Conditions of Fitness for Taxis set out the requirements for vehicles that may be used as licensed Hackney carriage taxi cabs in London. They are what makes London's taxis unique in the world and are governed by Transport for London's Taxi and Private Hire office.

Accessibility

Accessibility

Accessibility is the design of products, devices, services, vehicles, or environments so as to be usable by people with disabilities. The concept of accessible design and practice of accessible development ensures both "direct access" and "indirect access" meaning compatibility with a person's assistive technology.

Checker Taxi

Checker Taxi

Checker Taxi was a dominant taxicab company and national franchisor that was based in Chicago, Illinois. Checker Motors was an American vehicle manufacturer based in Kalamazoo, Michigan that built the iconic Checker Taxicab, sold commercially as the Checker Marathon until 1982. Both companies were owned by Morris Markin by the 1930s.

Most taxi companies have some sort of livery on the vehicle, depending on the type of taxi (taxi, cab, private hire, chauffeur), country, region and operator.

Toyota Crown Comfort taxicabs lined up in front of Kowloon Waterfront in Hong Kong

Most places allow a taxi to be "hailed" or "flagged" on the side of the street as it is approaching. Another option is a taxi stand (sometimes also called a "cab stand," "hack stand," "taxi rank," or "cab rank"). Taxi stands are usually located at airports, railway stations, major retail areas (malls), hotels and other places where a large number of passengers are likely to be found. In some places—Japan, for example—taxi stands are arranged according to the size of the taxis, so that large- and small-capacity cabs line up separately. The taxi at the front of the line is due (barring unusual circumstances) for the next fare.

Passengers also commonly call a central dispatch office for taxis. In some jurisdictions, private hire vehicles can only be hired from the dispatch office, and must be assigned each fare by the office by radio or phone. Picking up passengers off the street in these areas can lead to suspension or revocation of the driver's taxi license, or even prosecution.

Other areas may have a mix of the two systems, where drivers may respond to radio calls and also pick up street fares.

Passengers may also hire taxicabs via mobile apps. While not directly involving the call center, the taxis are still monitored by the dispatcher through GPS tracking. Many taxicab companies, including Gett, Easy Taxi, and GrabTaxi provide mobile apps.

Dispatching

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In this scene from It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, a yellow cab driver, played by Peter Falk, contacts his dispatch through a callbox on the street. Two-way radio communication had not become a standard by the time the film was made in the early 1960s.

Taxis during a traffic jam in Istanbul, Turkey.

Taxis waiting for customers in Cologne, Germany.

A taxi in Venice.

The activity of taxi fleets is usually monitored and controlled by a central office, which provides dispatching, accounting, and human resources services to one or more taxi companies. Taxi owners and drivers usually communicate with the dispatch office through either a 2-way radio or a computer terminal (called a mobile data terminal). Before the innovation of radio dispatch in the 1950s, taxi drivers would use a callbox—a special telephone at a taxi stand—to contact the dispatch office.^[34]

When a customer calls for a taxi, a trip is dispatched by either radio or computer, via an in-vehicle mobile data terminal, to the most suitable cab. The most suitable cab may either be the one closest to the pick-up address (often determined by GPS coordinates nowadays) or the one that was the first to book into the "zone" surrounding the pickup address. Cabs are sometimes dispatched from their taxi stands; a call to "Top of the 2" means that the first cab in line at stand #2 is supposed to pick someone up.

In offices using radio dispatch, taxi locations are often tracked using magnetic pegs on a "board"—a metal sheet with an engraved map of taxi zones. In computerized dispatch, the status of taxis is tracked by the computer system.

Taxi frequencies are generally licensed in duplex pairs. One frequency is used for the dispatcher to talk to the cabs, and a second frequency is used to the cabs to talk back. This means that the drivers generally cannot talk to each other. Some cabs have a CB radio in addition to the company radio so they can speak to each other.

In the United States, there is a Taxicab Radio Service with pairs assigned for this purpose. A taxi company can also be licensed in the Business Radio Service. Business frequencies in the UHF range are also licensed in pairs to allow for repeaters, though taxi companies usually use the pair for duplex communications.

Taxi dispatch is evolving in connection to the telecom sector with the advent of smart-phones. In some countries such as Australia, Canada, Germany, the UK and USA, smartphone applications are emerging that connect taxi drivers directly with passengers for the purpose of dispatching taxi jobs, launching new battles for the marketing of such apps over the potential mass of Taxi users.

Taxi fares are set by the state and city where they are permitted to operate. The fare includes the 'drop', a set amount that is tallied for getting into the taxi plus the 'per mile' rate as has been set by the city. The taxi meters track time as well as miles in an average taxi fare.

Drivers and companies

In the United States, a nut is industry slang for the amount of money a driver has to pay upfront to lease a taxi for a specific period of time. Once that amount is collected in fare, the driver then begins to make a profit. A driver "on the nut" is trying to earn back the initial cost. This varies from city to city though, in Las Vegas, Nevada, all taxicabs are owned and operated by the companies and all drivers are employees (hence no initial cost and earn a percentage of each fare). So "on the nut" simply means to be next in a taxi stand to receive a passenger. Additionally, some cab companies are owned cooperatively, with profits shared through democratic governance.^[35]

Discover more about Hiring related topics

Toyota Comfort

Toyota Comfort

The Toyota Comfort and the long-wheelbase Toyota Crown Comfort are a line of mid-size sedans produced by Toyota between 1995 and 2018. A platform derivative of the Toyota Mark II (X80), the Comfort was aimed at fleet buyers with a primary focus on taxicab operators. A third model was released in 2001 as the 11th generation Crown Sedan for the Japanese market only. The Crown Sedan was also aimed at fleet buyers, as a high end taxi or for corporate use.

Hong Kong

Hong Kong

Hong Kong, officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China, is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta in South China. With 7.5 million residents of various nationalities in a 1,104-square-kilometre (426 sq mi) territory, Hong Kong is one of the most densely populated places in the world. Hong Kong is also a major global financial centre and one of the most developed cities in the world.

Mobile app

Mobile app

A mobile application or app is a computer program or software application designed to run on a mobile device such as a phone, tablet, or watch. Mobile applications often stand in contrast to desktop applications which are designed to run on desktop computers, and web applications which run in mobile web browsers rather than directly on the mobile device.

Gett

Gett

Gett, previously known as GetTaxi, is an Israeli B2B Ground Transportation Management (GTM) platform and marketplace, and B2C ride-hailing app headquartered in London, and owned by GT GetTaxi (UK) Limited

Easy Taxi

Easy Taxi

Easy Taxi is a mobile app for taxi hailing available in 30 countries. The app allows users to book a taxi and track it in real time. The same iOS, Android, or Windows Phone app can be used in all places in which the partner taxis operate. Easy Taxi was founded in 2011 in Brazil and has since expanded globally, covering the network of 30 countries and more than 420 cities. As of December 2014, the company reported it reached the number of 17 million users and more than 400,000 taxi drivers are affiliated with an Easy Taxi network.

It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World

It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World

It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World is a 1963 American comedy film produced and directed by Stanley Kramer with a story and screenplay by William Rose and Tania Rose. The film, starring Spencer Tracy with an all-star cast of comedians, is about the madcap pursuit of $350,000 in stolen cash by a diverse and colorful group of strangers. It premiered on November 7, 1963. The principal cast features Edie Adams, Milton Berle, Sid Caesar, Buddy Hackett, Ethel Merman, Dorothy Provine, Mickey Rooney, Dick Shawn, Phil Silvers, Terry-Thomas, and Jonathan Winters.

Peter Falk

Peter Falk

Peter Michael Falk was an American film and television actor. He is best known for his role as Lieutenant Columbo in the long-running NBC series Columbo, for which he won four Primetime Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe Award (1973). In 1996, TV Guide ranked Falk No. 21 on its 50 Greatest TV Stars of All Time list. He received a posthumous star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2013.

Istanbul

Istanbul

Istanbul, formerly known as Constantinople, is the largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, cultural and historic hub. The city straddles the Bosporus strait, lying in both Europe and Asia, and has a population of over 15 million residents, comprising 19% of the population of Turkey. Istanbul is the most populous European city, and the world's 15th-largest city.

Venice

Venice

Venice is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 bridges. The islands are in the shallow Venetian Lagoon, an enclosed bay lying between the mouths of the Po and the Piave rivers. In 2020, around 258,685 people resided in greater Venice or the Comune di Venezia, of whom around 55,000 live in the historical island city of Venice and the rest on the mainland (terraferma). Together with the cities of Padua and Treviso, Venice is included in the Padua-Treviso-Venice Metropolitan Area (PATREVE), which is considered a statistical metropolitan area, with a total population of 2.6 million.

Dispatch (logistics)

Dispatch (logistics)

Dispatch is a procedure for assigning employees (workers) or vehicles to customers. Industries that dispatch include taxicabs, couriers, emergency services, as well as home and commercial services such as maid services, plumbing, HVAC, pest control and electricians.

Radiotelephone

Radiotelephone

A radiotelephone, abbreviated RT, is a radio communication system for conducting a conversation; radiotelephony means telephony by radio. It is in contrast to radiotelegraphy, which is radio transmission of telegrams (messages), or television, transmission of moving pictures and sound. The term is related to radio broadcasting, which transmit audio one way to listeners. Radiotelephony refers specifically to two-way radio systems for bidirectional person-to-person voice communication between separated users, such as CB radio or marine radio. In spite of the name, radiotelephony systems are not necessarily connected to or have anything to do with the telephone network, and in some radio services, including GMRS, interconnection is prohibited.

Mobile data terminal

Mobile data terminal

A mobile data terminal (MDT) or mobile digital computer (MDC) is a computerized device used in emergency services, public transport, taxicabs, package delivery, roadside assistance, and logistics, among other fields, to communicate with a central dispatcher. They are also used to display mapping and information relevant to the tasks and actions performed by the vehicle such as CAD drawings, diagrams and safety information.

Australia

Different states have different regulations for taxi driver registration and compliance:

• New South Wales: There is an annual taxi licence determination which sets the maximum number of taxis allowed in specified areas. To be eligible you must have a taxi licence which is available from ABLIS.^[36] The industry body is the NSW Taxi Council^[37] and it provides a pathway to becoming a taxi driver.
• Northern Territory: Apply for a Commercial Passenger Vehicle licence (H endorsement) and ID card.^[38]
• Queensland: Apply for a driver authorisation.^[39]
• South Australia: Apply for South Australian driver accreditation with the SA government^[40] then complete training with a registered training provider.
• Tasmania
• Victoria: Drivers apply to the Taxi Services Commission to get a driver accreditation^[41]
• Western Australia

New Zealand

New Zealand taxi drivers fall under the definition of a Small Passenger Service Vehicle driver. They must have a P (passenger) endorsement on their driver licence.^[42] Until 1 October 2017, all drivers wanting to obtain a P endorsement had to complete a P endorsement course,^[43] but that requirement was removed as a result of lobbying by Uber who had been flouting the law.^[44]

Drivers must comply with work-time rules and maintain a logbook, with the onus on training falling on companies and drivers since the P endorsement course was abandoned.

The New Zealand Taxi Federation^[45] is the national advocacy group for taxi companies within New Zealand.

The inside of a Japanese taxicab in Kyoto with GPS navigation on board.

Most experienced taxi drivers who have been working in the same city or region for a while would be expected to know the most important streets and places where their customers request to go. However, to aid the process of manual navigation and the taxi driver's memory (and the customer's as well at times) a cab driver is usually equipped with a detailed roadmap of the area in which they work. There is also an increasing use of GPS driven navigational systems in wealthier countries.

In London, despite the complex and haphazard road layout, such aids have only recently been employed by a small number of 'black cab' taxi (as opposed to minicab) drivers. Instead, they are required to undergo a demanding process of learning and testing called The Knowledge. This typically takes around three years and equips them with a detailed command of 25,000 streets within central London, major routes outside this area, and all buildings and other destinations to which passengers may ask to be taken.^[46]

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Kyoto

Kyoto

Kyoto, officially Kyoto City , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin metropolitan area along with Osaka and Kobe. As of 2020, the city had a population of 1.46 million. The city is the cultural anchor of a substantially larger metropolitan area known as Greater Kyoto, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) home to a census-estimated 3.8 million people.

Navigation

Navigation

Navigation is a field of study that focuses on the process of monitoring and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another. The field of navigation includes four general categories: land navigation, marine navigation, aeronautic navigation, and space navigation.

Memory

Memory

Memory is the faculty of the mind by which data or information is encoded, stored, and retrieved when needed. It is the retention of information over time for the purpose of influencing future action. If past events could not be remembered, it would be impossible for language, relationships, or personal identity to develop. Memory loss is usually described as forgetfulness or amnesia.

Map

Map

A map is a symbolic depiction emphasizing relationships between elements of some space, such as objects, regions, or themes.

A Brazilian Fiat Siena Tetrafuel taxi in São Paulo runs as a flexible-fuel or as a bi-fuel with CNG

Taxicabs have been both criticized for creating pollution and also praised as an environmentally responsible alternative to private car use.^[47]

One study, published in the journal Atmospheric Environment in January 2006, showed that the level of pollution that Londoners are exposed to differs according to the mode of transport that they use. When in the back seat of a taxicab people were exposed the most, while walking exposing people to the lowest amount of pollution.^[48]

Alternative energy and propulsion

Singapore Toyota Prius hybrid taxicab

Kumamoto City incorporated the Nissan Leaf electric taxi to its taxi fleet in February 2011

In Australia, nearly all taxis run on LPG, as well as the growing fleet of hybrids.^[49] Argentina and the main cities of Brazil have large fleets of taxis running on natural gas. Many Brazilian taxis are flexible-fuel vehicles running on sugarcane ethanol, and some are equipped to run on either natural gas or as a flex-fuel. At least two Brazilian car makers sell these type of bi-fuel vehicles.^[50][51][52]

Malaysia and Singapore have many of their taxicabs running on compressed natural gas (CNG).

San Francisco became in 2005 one of the first cities to introduce hybrids for taxi service, with a fleet of 15 Ford Escape Hybrids, and by 2009 the original Escape Hybrids were retired after 300,000 miles per vehicle.^[53] In 2007 the city approved the Clean Air Taxi Grant Program in order to encourage cab companies to purchase alternative fuel vehicles, by providing incentives of US$2,000 per new alternative fuel vehicle on a first-come, first-served basis.^[54][55] Out of a total of 1,378 eligible vehicles (wheelchair-accessible taxi-vans are excluded) 788 are alternative fuel vehicles, representing 57% of the San Francisco's taxicab fleet by March 2010. Gasoline-electric hybrids accounted for 657 green taxis and compressed natural gas vehicles for 131.^[54][55][56]

As of mid-2009 New York City had 2,019 hybrid taxis and 12 clean diesel vehicles,^[57] representing 15% of New York's 13,237 taxis in service, the most in any city in North America. At this time owners began retiring its original hybrid fleet after 300,000 and 350,000 miles per vehicle.^[53][58] Two attempts by the Bloomberg Administration to implement policies to force the replacement of all New York's 13,000 taxis for hybrids by 2012 have been blocked by court rulings.^[59][60]

Chicago is following New York City's lead by proposing a mandate for Chicago's entire fleet of 6,700 taxicabs to become hybrid by 1 January 2014. As of 2008 Chicago's fleet had only 50 hybrid taxicabs.^[61] In 2008 Boston mandated that its entire taxi fleet must be converted to hybrids by 2015.^[62] Arlington, Virginia also has a small fleet of 85 environmentally friendly hybrid cabs introduced in early 2008. The green taxi expansion is part of a county campaign known as Fresh AIRE, or Arlington Initiative to Reduce Emissions, and included a new all-hybrid taxi company called EnviroCAB, which became the first all-hybrid taxicab fleet in the United States, and the first carbon-negative taxicab company in the world^[63][64][65] A similar all-hybrid taxicab company, Clean Air Cab, was launched in Phoenix, Arizona in October 2009.^[65]

In Japan, electric taxicabs are becoming increasingly popular. In 2009, battery-swap company Better Place teamed with the Japanese government to trial a fleet of electric taxis with the Better Place battery-swap system in Yokohama.^[66] In 2010, the taxi company Hinomaru Linousine Company launched two Mitsubishi i MiEV electric taxicabs in Tokyo. Both taxicabs had female drivers and were branded under ZeRO TAXI livery.^[67]

Hybrid taxis are becoming more and more common in Canada, with all new taxis in British Columbia being hybrids, or other fuel efficient vehicles, such as the Toyota Prius or Toyota Corolla. Hybrids such as the Ford Escape Hybrid are slowly being added to the taxicab fleet in Mexico City.

Other cities where taxi service is available with hybrid vehicles include Tokyo, London, Sydney, Rome and Singapore.^[68] Seoul introduced the first LPI hybrid taxi in December 2009. The internal combustion engine runs on liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) as a fuel.^[69]

In 2010 Beijing, China introduced electric taxis. A trial run began in March 2010 with taxis being cheaper than their regular gasoline counterparts.^[70]

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Fiat Siena

Fiat Siena

The Fiat Siena is a subcompact car produced by the Italian manufacturer Fiat from 1996 to 2022. It is the four-door sedan version of the Fiat Palio, a supermini car especially designed for developing countries. It was introduced for the first time in South America, and was produced in various countries worldwide. Later, in 2002, a similar car based on the same platform was developed for the European market, the Fiat Albea. It replaced the Siena in these European markets, such as Poland and Turkey, where the original model was previously sold.

Flexible-fuel vehicle

Flexible-fuel vehicle

A flexible-fuel vehicle (FFV) or dual-fuel vehicle is an alternative fuel vehicle with an internal combustion engine designed to run on more than one fuel, usually gasoline blended with either ethanol or methanol fuel, and both fuels are stored in the same common tank. Modern flex-fuel engines are capable of burning any proportion of the resulting blend in the combustion chamber as fuel injection and spark timing are adjusted automatically according to the actual blend detected by a fuel composition sensor. This device is known as an oxygen sensor and it reads the oxygen levels in the stream of exhaust gasses, its signal enriching or leaning the fuel mixture going into the engine. Flex-fuel vehicles are distinguished from bi-fuel vehicles, where two fuels are stored in separate tanks and the engine runs on one fuel at a time, for example, compressed natural gas (CNG), liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), or hydrogen.

Bi-fuel vehicle

Bi-fuel vehicle

Bi-fuel vehicles are vehicles with multifuel engines capable of running on two fuels. The two fuels are stored in separate tanks and the engine is able to run on one fuel at a time. On internal combustion engines, a bi-fuel engine typically burns gasoline and a volatile alternate fuel such as natural gas (CNG), LPG, or hydrogen. Bi-fuel vehicles have the capability to switch back and forth from the gasoline to the other fuel, manually or automatically. A related concept is the duel-fuel vehicle which must burn both fuels in combination. Diesel engines converted to use gaseous fuels fall into this class due to the different ignition system.

Compressed natural gas

Compressed natural gas

Compressed natural gas (CNG) is a fuel gas mainly composed of methane (CH4), compressed to less than 1% of the volume it occupies at standard atmospheric pressure. It is stored and distributed in hard containers at a pressure of 20–25 megapascals (2,900–3,600 psi), usually in cylindrical or spherical shapes.

Hybrid taxi

Hybrid taxi

Hybrid taxi or hybrid electric taxi is a taxicab service provided with a hybrid electric car (HEV), which combines a conventional internal combustion engine propulsion system with an electric propulsion system.

Nissan Leaf

Nissan Leaf

The Nissan Leaf , stylized as LEAF, is a compact five-door hatchback battery electric vehicle (BEV) manufactured by Nissan. It was introduced in Japan and the United States in December 2010, and its second generation was introduced in October 2017. The Leaf's range on a full charge has been increased gradually from 117 km to 364 km, due to the use of a larger battery pack along with several minor improvements.

Electric vehicle

Electric vehicle

An electric vehicle (EV) is a vehicle that uses one or more electric motors for propulsion. It can be powered by a collector system, with electricity from extravehicular sources, or it can be powered autonomously by a battery. EVs include, but are not limited to, road and rail vehicles, surface and underwater vessels, electric aircraft, and electric spacecraft. For road vehicles, together with other emerging automotive technologies such as autonomous driving, connected vehicles, and shared mobility, EVs form a future mobility vision called Connected, Autonomous, Shared, and Electric (CASE) Mobility.

Liquefied petroleum gas

Liquefied petroleum gas

Liquefied petroleum gas is a fuel gas which contains a flammable mixture of hydrocarbon gases, specifically propane, propylene, butylene, isobutane and n-butane.

Argentina

Argentina

Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of 2,780,400 km2 (1,073,500 sq mi), making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourth-largest country in the Americas, and the eighth-largest country in the world. It shares the bulk of the Southern Cone with Chile to the west, and is also bordered by Bolivia and Paraguay to the north, Brazil to the northeast, Uruguay and the South Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Drake Passage to the south. Argentina is a federal state subdivided into twenty-three provinces, and one autonomous city, which is the federal capital and largest city of the nation, Buenos Aires. The provinces and the capital have their own constitutions, but exist under a federal system. Argentina claims sovereignty over the Falkland Islands, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, and a part of Antarctica.

Natural gas vehicle

Natural gas vehicle

A Natural Gas Vehicle (NGV) is an alternative fuel vehicle that uses compressed natural gas (CNG) or liquefied natural gas (LNG). Natural gas vehicles should not be confused with auto gas vehicles powered by liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), mainly propane, a fuel with a fundamentally different composition.

Ethanol fuel in Brazil

Ethanol fuel in Brazil

Brazil is the world's second largest producer of ethanol fuel. Brazil and the United States have led the industrial production of ethanol fuel for several years, together accounting for 85 percent of the world's production in 2017. Brazil produced 26.72 billion liters, representing 26.1 percent of the world's total ethanol used as fuel in 2017.

Malaysia

Malaysia

Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. The federal constitutional monarchy consists of thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two regions: Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo's East Malaysia. Peninsular Malaysia shares a land and maritime border with Thailand and maritime borders with Singapore, Vietnam, and Indonesia. East Malaysia shares land and maritime borders with Brunei and Indonesia, and a maritime border with the Philippines and Vietnam. Kuala Lumpur is the national capital, the country's largest city, and the seat of the legislative branch of the federal government. Putrajaya is the administrative center, which represents the seat of both the executive branch and the judicial branch of the federal government. With a population of over 32 million, Malaysia is the world's 45th-most populous country. The southernmost point of continental Eurasia is in Tanjung Piai. Located in the tropics, Malaysia is one of 17 megadiverse countries, home to numerous endemic species.

The Taxicab, Limousine & Paratransit Association (TLPA) was established in 1917 in the United States, and is a non-profit trade association of and for the private passenger transportation industry. Today its membership spans the globe and includes 1,100 taxicab companies, executive sedan and limousine services, airport shuttle fleets, non-emergency medical transportation companies, and paratransit services.

In April 2011, TLPA announced a nationwide "Transportation on Patrol" initiative. The TOP program gives local police departments the materials they need to train volunteer taxi drivers to be good witnesses and watch out for criminal behavior.^[71]

Taxicab drivers are at risk for homicide at a far higher rate than the general working population in the United States (7.4 per 100,000 and 0.37 per 100,000, respectively). In efforts to reduce homicides, bulletproof partitions were introduced in many taxicabs in the 1990s, and in the 21st century, security cameras were added to many taxicabs. Security cameras have been shown to be more effective when implemented by cities and not taxicab companies.^[72] Cab drivers also work together to protect one another both from physical threats and passengers who refuse to pay.^[73]

Also, in some countries, it is reported that taxi drivers involve in more unsafe driving behaviors. Taxi drivers' feelings about their occupation, including traffic chaos, social prestige, economic pressure, and job satisfaction, may impact on the subsequent driving behaviors.^[74]

This section may be confusing or unclear to readers. In particular, it doesn't include or links to existing taxicab regulations, and the reasons behind them, so deregulation can be explained in context.. Please help clarify the section. There might be a discussion about this on the talk page. (April 2018) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

A queue of hybrid taxis in Sydney, Australia

Support of deregulation

Supporters of taxicab deregulation may argue that deregulation causes the following benefits:^[75]

• lower prices, because more taxis are competing on the market;
• lower operating costs, incentivized by the competition;
• the competition adds quality and the pressure to enhance one's reputation;
• new innovations such as shared-ride markets and special services for disabled people, new market niches;
• the demand for taxi services increases, as the prices fall and the quality improves.

However, there appears to be a consensus that taxi deregulation has been less impressive than advocates had hoped.^[75] Possible reasons include overestimation of what deregulation could deliver and insufficiently thorough deregulation^[75] Some also emphasize that the strong cab-driver subculture, itself, ("The Last American Cowboys"), provides its own form of informal regulation.^[76]

Deregulation advocates may claim that the taxi service level increases most in the poorest sections of the city. The effect is highest in peak hours and bad weather, when the demand is highest.^[75]

Deregulation advocates also may claim that, in a deregulated environment:^[75]

Mitsubishi Taxi in Ghana's Central Region

black market taxis become legal, possibly eliminating their problems,

• cities save money, as they do not have to plan and enforce regulation.

In nearly all deregulating cities the number of taxis increased, more people were employed as drivers, and deregulation advocates claim needs were better satisfied.^[75]

Existing taxi companies may try to limit competition by potential new entrants. For example, in New York City the monopoly advantage for taxi license holders was $590 million in the early 1980s. The city has 1400 fewer licenses than in 1937. Proponents of deregulation argue that the main losers are the car-less poor and disabled people.^[75] Taxi owners form a strong lobby network that marginalizes drivers and taxi users. It also pays local government officials to uphold taxi regulation.^[77] The regulators usually do not wish to rise against the taxi-owner lobby.^[75] The politicians do not want taxi drivers to have a negative opinion of them.^[78]

Taxi deregulation proponents claims that immigrants and other poor minorities suffer most from taxi regulation, because the work requires relatively little education. Regulation makes entrance to the taxi business particularly difficult for them.^[79] People who are elderly, disabled, housewives and poor use taxis more often than others.^[75]

According to Moore and Rose, it is better to address potential problems of deregulation directly instead of regulating the number of taxi licences. For example, if the regulators want to increase safety, they should make safety statutes or publish a public list of safe taxi operators.^[80]

Proponents of deregulation also claim that if officials want to regulate prices they should standardize the measures rather than command prices. For example, they may require that any distance tariffs are set for the first 1/5 miles and then for every subsequent 1/3 miles, to make it easier to compare the prices of different taxis. They should not prohibit other pricing than distance pricing.^[75] Deregulation advocates claim that regulators only have a very limited information on the market.^[75]

Black market taxis often have problems with safety, poor customer service, and fares. This situation is made worse because customer who patronize such taxis cannot complain to the police or media. However, proponent of taxi deregulation argue that when these illegal taxis become legalized, their behavior will improve and complaints to officials about these formerly illegal taxis would be allowed.^[75]

Taxi companies claim that deregulation may lead to an unstable taxi market. However, one pro-deregulation study by Kitch, Isaacson and Kasper claims that the previous argument is a myth because it ignores the U.S. free taxi competition up to 1929.^[75]

Airport taxis as a special case

Some deregulation proponents are less opposed to airport taxi regulation than to regulation of other taxi services. They argue that if an airport regulates prices for taxis in its taxi queues, such regulation has fewer disadvantages than citywide regulation. An airport may determine prices or organize different queues for taxi services of different qualities and prices. It can be argued whether rules set by the owner of an airport are regulation or just a business model.^[75]

Partial deregulation as a failure

Proponents of deregulation argue that partial deregulation is the cause of many cases of deregulation failing to achieve desirable results in United States cities. Many U.S. cities retained regulations on prices and services while allowing for free entrance to taxi business. Deregulation advocates argue that this prevented market mechanisms from solving information problems because new entrants have found it difficult to win new customers using new services or cheap prices. Also, ride-sharing has often been prohibited.^[75]

Often officials have also prohibited pricing that would have made short rides in sparsely populated areas profitable. Thus drivers have refused to take such customers. Therefore, partial deregulation is not always enough to enhance the situation.^[75] One study claims that deregulation was applied to a too small area.^[75]

In the taxi regulation report by U.S. FTC it was concluded that there are not grounds for limiting the number of taxi companies and cars. These limitations cause a disproportionate burden on low income people. It is better to increase the pay for unprofitable areas than to force the taxis to serve these areas.^[81]

According to the report, the experience on free entry and price competition are mainly positive: prices have fallen, waiting times were shortened, the market shares of the biggest companies have fallen, and city councils have saved time from licensing and fare setting. However, the airports should either set their own price ceilings or allow for price competition by altering the queue system.^[81]

Opposition to deregulation

Opponents of taxi deregulation argue that deregulation will result in high taxi driver turnover rates which may cause the number of less-qualified taxi drivers to increase, dishonest business practices such as price gouging (especially on airport routes) and circuitous routing, and poor customer service.^[82]

A Connecticut General Assembly report argues that deregulation fails to cause price decreases because taxi passengers typically do not price comparison shop when searching for taxicabs, and that fares usually increased with deregulation because the higher supply of taxis caused drivers' earning potential to decrease.^[83] This report claims that deregulation resulted in dramatically increased taxi supply, especially at already overserved airport locations, fare increases in every city, and an increase in short-trip refusals by taxicab drivers.^[83]

This report argues that deregulation has led to undesirable results in several American cities. Seattle deregulated taxis in 1980, resulting in a high supply of taxicabs, variable rates, price gouging, short-haul refusals, poor treatment of passengers.^[83] As a result, Seattle re-regulated in 1984, reinstating a restriction on taxicab licenses and fare controls.^[83] In St. Louis, deregulation produced a 35% rise in taxi fares, and taxicab drivers complained of waiting hours at airports for customers at taxicab stands.^[83] Taxicab companies claimed they increased fares in order to make up for lost competition resulting from the increased supply of taxis. As a result, the St. Louis City Council froze new taxicab licenses in 2002.^[83]

A study of the deregulation of taxis in Sweden in 1991 showed that the taxicab supply increased, but average fares also increased in almost all cases.^[84] Specifically, average fares per hour increased for all trips. Average fares also increased for fares calculated by distance (per kilometer) in almost every category studied – for all customer-paid trips in municipalities of all 3 sizes (small, medium, and large) and increased for municipality-paid trips in small and large municipalities; fares only decreased for municipality-paid trips in medium-sized municipalities that were calculated per kilometer.^[84] Deregulation also resulted in decreased taxicab productivity and decreased taxi-company revenues.^[84] This study concluded that deregulation resulted in increased fares especially in rural areas and the authors argued that the increased fares were due to low taxi company revenues after deregulation.^[84]

Taxi companies claim that deregulation would cause problems, raise prices and lower service level on certain hours or in certain places.

The medallion system^[85] has been defended by some experts. They argue that the medallion system is similar to a brand-name capital asset and enforces quality of service because quality service results in higher ridership, thus increasing the value of owning the medallion.^[86] They argue that issuing new medallions would decrease the medallion value and thus the incentive for the medallion owner to provide quality service or comply with city regulations.^[86] They also argue that the medallion may be preferable to alternate systems of regulation (such as fines, required bonds with seizures of interest payments on those bonds for violations, or licensing of all would-be taxis with revocation of that license for violations) because fines are difficult to collect, license revocation may not be a sufficient deterrent for profitable violations such as price cheating, and because using penalties on bond interest payments give regulators an incentive to impose penalties to collect revenue (rather than for legitimate violations).^[86] Medallions do not earn interest and thus inappropriate seizures of interest by regulators is not possible.^[86]

Results of deregulation in specific localities

The results of taxi deregulation in specific cities has varied widely.

A study of taxi deregulation in nine United States cities found that the number of taxi firms increased, but large incumbent firms continued to dominate all but one of the nine cities.^[87] The taxi prices did not fall in real terms, but increased in every city studied.^[87] Turnover was concentrated among small operators (usually one-cab operators); little turnover occurred among medium and large new firms and no exit by a large incumbent firm occurred since deregulation.^[87] Productivity decreased by at least one-third in all four cities for which sufficient data was obtainable; the authors argued that decreases of this magnitude in productivity have serious economic consequences for taxi drivers, by shifting the industry from employee drivers to lease drivers and causing the average taxi driver to earn a lower income.^[87] Innovation in service did not occur in the deregulated cities because such innovations (especially shared-ride service) were doubted by taxi operators to be justified by demand and because the operators viewed that they would cause a net decrease in revenue.^[87] Discounts were offered in certain deregulated cities; however, these discounts were small (10% typically) and were also offered in some regulated cities.^[87] The study found a lack of service innovation and little change in level of service despite the increased number of taxicabs.^[87]

In Japan, taxi deregulation resulted in modest decreases in taxi fares (primarily among long-distance trips); however, Japanese taxi fares are still very high (still the highest in the world).^[88] Also, taxi driver incomes decreased, and the earnings of taxi companies also decreased substantially.^[88] Deregulation failed to increase taxicab ridership enough to compensate taxi companies for those losses.^[88] The burden of deregulation fell disproportionately on taxi drivers because taxi companies increased the number of taxis rented to drivers (to make more money from rental fees), which resulted in stiff competition among drivers, decreasing their earnings.^[88] Transportation professor Seiji Abe of Kansai University considered deregulation to be a failure in the Japanese taxi industry (despite what he considers success in other Japanese industries).^[88]

In the Netherlands, taxi deregulation in 2000 failed to reach policy objectives of strengthening the role of the taxi in the overall Dutch transport system.^[89] Instead, the deregulation resulted in unanticipated fare increases (not decreases) in large cities, and bad driver behavior became a serious problem.^[89] Local authorities had lost their say in the market due to the deregulation, and thus were unable to correct these problems.^[89]

In South Africa, taxi deregulation has resulted in the emergence of taxi cartels which carry out acts of gun violence against rival cartels in attempts to monopolize desirable routes.^[90] In South Africa, taxis were deregulated in 1987, resulting in fierce competition among new drivers, who then organized into rival cartels in the absence of government regulation, and which used violence and gangland tactics to protect and expand their territories.^[90] These "taxi wars" have resulted in between 120 and 330 deaths annually since deregulation.^[91] These taxi cartels have engaged in anticompetitive price-fixing.^[92]

In New Zealand taxi deregulation increased the supply of taxi services and initially decreased the prices remarkably in big cities, whereas the effects in smaller cities were small.^[75]

In Ireland, taxi deregulation decreased waiting times so much that the liberalization became very popular among the public.^[93] The number of companies was increased and the quality of cars and drives did not fall.^[93] Some have argued that the regulation should be completely abolished, not just cut down.^[75] Minister Alan Kelly held a review of Ireland's taxi industry after Ireland's national broadcaster RTÉ broadcast an investigation into the taxi industry 10 years after de-regulation.^[94]

In Finland taxi fares rose 13% after 2018 deregulation.^[95]

Discover more about Regulation related topics

Hybrid vehicle

Hybrid vehicle

A hybrid vehicle is one that uses two or more distinct types of power, such as submarines that use diesel when surfaced and batteries when submerged. Other means to store energy include pressurized fluid in hydraulic hybrids.

Sydney

Sydney

Sydney is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about 70 km (43.5 mi) towards the Blue Mountains to the west, Hawkesbury to the north, the Royal National Park to the south and Macarthur to the south-west. Sydney is made up of 658 suburbs, spread across 33 local government areas. Residents of the city are known as "Sydneysiders". The 2021 census recorded the population of Greater Sydney as 5,231,150, meaning the city is home to approximately 66% of the state's population. Nicknames of the city include the 'Emerald City' and the 'Harbour City'.

Price ceiling

Price ceiling

A price ceiling is a government- or group-imposed price control, or limit, on how high a price is charged for a product, commodity, or service. Governments use price ceilings ostensibly to protect consumers from conditions that could make commodities prohibitively expensive. Such conditions can occur during periods of high inflation, in the event of an investment bubble, or in the event of monopoly ownership of a product, all of which can cause problems if imposed for a long period without controlled rationing, leading to shortages. Further problems can occur if a government sets unrealistic price ceilings, causing business failures, stock crashes, or even economic crises. In unregulated market economies, price ceilings do not exist.

Price gouging

Price gouging

Price gouging is the practice of increasing the prices of goods, services, or commodities to a level much higher than is considered reasonable or fair. Usually, this event occurs after a demand or supply shock. This commonly applies to price increases of basic necessities after natural disasters. In legal usage, price gouging is a crime that applies in some jurisdictions of the United States during civil emergencies. In less precise usage, the term can also be used to refer to profits obtained by practices inconsistent with a competitive free market, or to windfall profits. Price gouging is considered by some to be exploitative and unethical.

Connecticut General Assembly

Connecticut General Assembly

The Connecticut General Assembly (CGA) is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is a bicameral body composed of the 151-member House of Representatives and the 36-member Senate. It meets in the state capital, Hartford. There are no term limits for either chamber.

Japan

Japan

Japan is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north toward the East China Sea, Philippine Sea, and Taiwan in the south. Japan is a part of the Ring of Fire, and spans an archipelago of 14,125 islands covering 377,975 square kilometers (145,937 sq mi); the five main islands are Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, Kyushu, and Okinawa. Tokyo is the nation's capital and largest city, followed by Yokohama, Osaka, Nagoya, Sapporo, Fukuoka, Kobe, and Kyoto.

Kansai University

Kansai University

Kansai University , abbreviated as Kandai (関大) or Kansaidai (関西大), is a private non-sectarian and coeducational university with its main campus in Suita, Osaka, Japan and two sub-campuses in Sakai and Takatsuki, Osaka. Founded as Kansai Law School in 1886, It has been recognized as one of the four leading private universities in western Japan: Kan-Kan-Do-Ritsu , along with Kwansei Gakuin University, Doshisha University, and Ritsumeikan University.

Netherlands

Netherlands

The Netherlands, informally Holland, is a country located in northwestern Europe with overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The Netherlands consists of twelve provinces; it borders Germany to the east, and Belgium to the south, with a North Sea coastline to the north and west. It shares maritime borders with the United Kingdom, Germany and Belgium in the North Sea. The country's official language is Dutch, with West Frisian as a secondary official language in the province of Friesland. Dutch, English and Papiamento are official in the Caribbean territories.

South Africa

South Africa

South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by 2,798 kilometres (1,739 mi) of coastline that stretches along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countries of Namibia, Botswana, and Zimbabwe; and to the east and northeast by Mozambique and Eswatini. It also completely enclaves the country Lesotho. It is the southernmost country on the mainland of the Old World, and the second-most populous country located entirely south of the equator, after Tanzania. South Africa is a biodiversity hotspot, with unique biomes, plant and animal life. With over 60 million people, the country is the world's 24th-most populous nation and covers an area of 1,221,037 square kilometres. South Africa has three capital cities, with the executive, judicial and legislative branches of government based in Pretoria, Bloemfontein, and Cape Town respectively. The largest city is Johannesburg.

New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island and the South Island —and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island country by area, covering 268,021 square kilometres (103,500 sq mi). New Zealand is about 2,000 kilometres (1,200 mi) east of Australia across the Tasman Sea and 1,000 kilometres (600 mi) south of the islands of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga. The country's varied topography and sharp mountain peaks, including the Southern Alps, owe much to tectonic uplift and volcanic eruptions. New Zealand's capital city is Wellington, and its most populous city is Auckland.

Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the second-largest island of the British Isles, the third-largest in Europe, and the twentieth-largest in the world.

Finland

Finland

Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, across from Estonia. Finland covers an area of 338,455 square kilometres (130,678 sq mi) with a population of 5.6 million. Helsinki is the capital and largest city. The vast majority of the population are ethnic Finns. Finnish and Swedish are the official languages, Swedish is the native language of 5.2% of the population. Finland's climate varies from humid continental in the south to the boreal in the north. The land cover is primarily a boreal forest biome, with more than 180,000 recorded lakes.