Hacker News Reader

Comment by pinaceae | Hacker News Reader

I guess it depends on where in NYC.

Currently staying in Manhattan - why wait for an Uber if you can simply flag down a cab?

And all of them have the CC terminals in them now, when did you last get one without?

My last Uber experience here was shit btw, the location near the WTC memorial was slightly off, the driver would not drive over where I told him to - I had my whole family incl. a toddler in a stroller. Fuck him then, flagged down a cab and off we went.

YMMV

View on HN

Definitely YMMV. I've had mostly good experiences with taxis in NYC, but I've had some extremely bad Taxi experiences in San Francisco, Chicago, LA, and D.C. The major difference is that in your situation, you could easily report your driver for failing to meet at the pickup location--If them not agreeing to meet a specific location is a problem their rating will eventually filter them out. With Taxi's there is no accountability for bad drivers so they continue in the Taxi system.

The point isn't that taxis don't have credit card terminals. It is that people often state that the terminal is nonfunctional, defeating the purpose. In Baltimore, this was the norm; I suspect Manhattan is better.

In New York, taxis are required to have functioning credit card machines.

http://www.nyc.gov/html/tlc/html/passenger/passenger_creditc...

The issue of taxi drivers lying and saying their machine is broken when it isn't is so rampant they even cover it in the FAQ you linked to!

>What if a driver says the system is not working? The passenger should note the medallion number and go to 311 Online. Drivers are permitted to work with a broken system for up to 48 hours as long as they have reported the problem and are awaiting repair. Almost all (90%) system repairs must be completed within six hours.

And there isn't much you can do about it except threaten to complain and hope the taxi driver relents and lets you use it.

You can also just get out of the cab. I usually throw em any cash if I have it on me but not my fault you just drove me to the airport and forgot to mention your card machine doesn't work.

If you call 311, TLC will slap a $300 fine on them, so taking out your phone and doing that will instantly fix the machine.

They are required in lots of places, but people don't always follow the law. It's not surprising to hear the old "the machine is broken, need cash" excuse.

Not sure about the law in other places, but in Boston that's too bad for them. You can just get out of the cab without paying if their machine doesn't work.

I never really understood that. A cab driver told me that once, so I told him that I was leaving without paying. Even if he wasn't lying, I accept no responsibility for their broken equipment.

It's really not an issue in New York. 311/TLC doesn't mess around with this.

>why wait for an Uber if you can simply flag down a cab?

This is a big factor. I can cite an example in India. Mumbai has loads of taxis that don't try to scam you (generally), always go by the standard meter rate and are reasonably well-maintained. If you are on a street you will definitely have at least one in sight and ready to go. I do not feel like calling an Uber and waiting.

On the other hand, Bangalore has almost zero taxis. What it does have are auto-rickshaws who will try to scam you at every opportunity, overcharge by at least 2x and generally fight and harass you. They also refuse to take you if they feel like it. The result is that I always call an Uber in Bangalore, even if I have to wait 15 minutes (worst case).

I think Uber definitely has an edge but I think it can be easily wiped out if the city has good taxi drivers.

Uber & co are good for tourists who don't want to get scammed. Locals might not be scammed, but it's very common for the tourists to get scammed. Also helps that you can enter addresses without having to know the native language. It's not %100 but it's better than nothing!

Yes in Bangalore, having the option to use Uber is a bargaining chip.

Also in some parts of the city it is hard to find any non-Uber form of taxi very late at night.

Not sure why you're being downvoted, you make a good point. The reasons Uber is popular in San Francisco and other cities (hard to hail a cab, pay by CC, etc.) are moot in NYC. Uber advertises that they are 15% cheaper, but that's without surge pricing.

I guess it can go either way depending on the situation. A good deal of my experience with this is actually in the Philly area. In NYC, if there are a bunch of cabs around already and you're looking to leave asap then it might not be a bad choice.

Even in Chicago it's often easier to flag a cab. And I've found that taxis drive significantly more confidently in traffic (esp along the more well-worn routes), usually getting me to my destination more quickly.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com