Rather than packing their kids onto a crowded bus in the morning or having to take time out of their morning schedule to get those students to school (or just making them walk, which is what legs were invented for), some parents are looking to ridesharing service Uber to ferry their youngsters around — even though it’s against the company’s own rules. [More]
taxis
NYC Cabbie’s License Suspended After Video Appears To Show Him Pulling Pregnant Passenger From His Car
By 2.25.15
A New York City cab driver has had his license suspended after a pregnant woman accused him of pulling her from his vehicle during a payment dispute. She says the alleged incident caused her to go into labor five weeks early. [More]
If You’re Taking A Taxi To Or From A Robbery, You Might As Well Just Call The Cops Yourself
By 1.22.15
In this week’s hot new trend in bad consumers, two suspected robbers living in different states both made the decision to involve a taxi in their alleged nefarious deeds. Which isn’t a smart move for them, as calling in a law-abiding third-party is basically like calling the cops on yourself. [More]
Boston Taxi Drivers Sue City For Allowing Uber, Lyft To Operate
By 1.19.15
City authorities in places like Portland, San Francisco, and L.A., have each taken legal actions against ridesharing services like Uber, and taxi drivers around the country have accused these companies from sidestepping regulations. But a recently filed lawsuit by Boston taxi drivers points the blame-finger at the city for allowing Uber, et al, to operate. [More]
Passenger Tips Philly Cab Driver Almost $1,000 For A Two-Minute Trip
By 1.15.15
It’s a dream come true for anyone who depends largely the generosity of others to make a living — land a huge tip for a small or otherwise not difficult job, and walk away happy. But one Philadelphia cab driver was so shocked by an almost $1,000 tip for a two-minute that he was more worried the passenger had made a mistake than he was excited about his windfall, at first. [More]
Los Angeles Mulling Idea Of Uber-Like App To Make Taxi Industry More Competitive
By 12.23.14
Two weeks after Los Angeles and San Francisco sued Uber for an array of issues, one of the cities is mulling the idea of making their own taxi system more like the ride-sharing service with a mobile app that would allow customers to hail and pay their fare with the press of a button. [More]
The Future Of Amazon Same-Day Deliveries May Be In Taxis
By 11.5.14
The days when lumbering, hulking trucks ruled the world of package delivery might someday may come to an end, as the roads make way for smaller, lighter delivery vehicles. Amazon tested package delivery using licensed cabs in San Francisco and Los Angeles this fall, as it looks into using the vehicles to bring customers their goods. [More]
While City Arrests Uber Drivers, Philly Mayor Comes Out In Support Of Service
By 10.27.14
Here in Philadelphia, the dispute between cab regulators and the Uber ridesharing service has gotten ugly, with the city arresting and fining numerous drivers over the weekend. Given this response to Uber, you’d think Philly Mayor Michael Nutter would be calling for the service to exit the city. But instead he’s calling for a truce. [More]
Taxi App Hailo Hits The Road, Leaves U.S. Due To Expense Of Competing
By 10.15.14
Apparently taxi-hailing app Hailo was beyond even The Rent Is Too Damn High Guy’s help: After four years as a smartphone app for taxi divers, Hailo says it’s taking its act out of North America because it’s too expensive to compete with services like Uber and Lyft. [More]
Uber And Lyft Now Open For Business In Houston
By 8.7.14
When Uber and Lyft opened for business in Houston, the same thing happened that has happened in many cities with existing livery industries: taxi companies freaked out and sought help from the city government. Now both ride-sharing services are open for business in the city, with some additional rules in place that are intended to help traditional taxi companies compete with them. [More]
Taxi Drivers Muck Up Traffic In European Streets To Protest Uber
By 6.11.14
Traditional taxi cab drivers in Europe have apparently found a natural enemy in Uber, the seem to have found a natural enemy in Uber, the on-demand car service connected to a smartphone app. In protest against their rivals, hundreds of taxi drivers clogged up traffic in the streets of London, Paris, Berlin and more. [More]
Uber Driver With Battery Conviction Charged With Punching Passenger
By 6.4.14
Ride-sharing service Uber is already drawing fire from established taxi and livery services who allege that its drivers are not held to the same standards as professional drivers. So it’s not great news that one of its drivers has not only been arrested for allegedly punching a passenger, but that he has a criminal history that does not bode well for one in this line of work. [More]
Chicago Taxi Driver Charges Passenger $800 For Two-Mile Ride
By 3.19.14
Here’s an important lesson in why you should never let your credit card leave your hand when paying for a cab ride: A 20-year-old college student’s parents realized their daughter had been charged almost $800 for a two-mile cab ride in Chicago, unbeknownst to her, all because the driver claimed his machine wasn’t working. [More]
Louisiana, Where Killing A Cab Driver “May” Be Considered Murder
By 3.17.14
Usually when you see signs reminding people of penalties for crimes, it’s because a particular offense carries with it a harsher-than-usual penalty — “Fines Doubled In Work Zone,” “Assaulting a Transit Employee is a Felony,” “Failure to Follow Cabin Crew’s Instructions May Result in Arrest”… that kind of thing. But the wording on one sign in Louisiana makes us wonder how little the folks of that state value taxi drivers. [More]
Don’t Take A $1,000 Cab Ride From NYC To Boston If You Don’t Have The Money
By 2.7.14
There are many ways to travel from New York City to Boston. There are inexpensive buses and even trains. In theory, you can even take a taxi from the airport right to your front door, but that’s an expensive option. When you insist that you totally have the money in your house back in Boston, but don’t, you’re going to get in some trouble. [More]
Half Of All Taxis In NYC Will Have To Provide Access For Disabled Passengers
By 12.9.13
It might take a bit of finagling and figuring out how to equip half of New York City’s 13,006 yellow cabs with wheelchair-friendly access (in addition to the 231 that already have it), but it’s gonna happen: Officials there announced a legal settlement that says at least half of the city’s cabs must be wheelchair-accessible by 2020. [via the Associated Press] [More]
California Becomes The First State To Give The Okay To Ride-Sharing Regulations
By 9.20.13
California has become the first state in the nation to give an official thumbs up to ride-sharing companies, via a decision to let those businesses continue to put passengers in drivers’ cars if the companies comply with a set of regulations. This is not welcome news in the traditional taxi industry, which has been fighting the upward momentum of companies like Uber Technologies and Lyft. [More]
Ride-Share Service Accuses NYC Of Cooking Up Sting Operation To Discourage Legal Activity
By 5.1.13
In New York City, only licensed yellow cabs are allowed to make curbside pick-ups, though countless no-name cabs and rogue car service drivers regularly take the risk of being fined just to score a fare. But the folks at a ride-sharing service claim that NYC’s Taxi & Limousine Commission are unfairly attacking users of the service, which the company believes is perfectly legal. [More]
