Anyone who’s ever seen a movie taking place in New York knows that at least half the cars on the street at a given time are taxis. In a city where you can go from (practically) anywhere to (practically) anywhere else for $2, merely opening the door of a cab costs nearly $3, and a fare could be anywhere from $5-50. Nevertheless, there are plenty of reasons to take a cab:
-Business travel w/ reimbursement
-Coming home late at night safely
-Riding a moderate distance with 3-4 people could be cheaper than the subway
-Bringing something bulky home from a shop
etc.
My question: what type of people are the main customers of cabbies? Who uses them disproportionately often?
A cab is less stressful than the subway. It takes you from one door to another without being jostled by a bunch of people. You are guaranteed a seat.
A lot of people in New York are quite wealthy, and their time/comfort is more precious than their money. Getting cross town can sometimes be a PITA via any method other than a cab.
Based on on my non-scientific observations, I would say that NYC cabs are used disproportionately by wealthy white people. If you have $300k a year in household income, and a demanding professional job in advertising, law or banking, it might seem reasonable to spend an extra $20 a day to get around conveniently and get an extra half hour to spend in the gym.
Just from watching “Cash Cab”, it looks like just ordinary people going ordinary places. Every episode I’ve seen has been in Manhattan so that doesn’t address the other boroughs. FWIW, I think he says there are 13K cabs in “the city”, not sure if he means just Manhattan or what.
Yellow Cabs mainly frequent Manhattan, they go to the outer boroughs more now but it’s still next to impossible to get one anywhere but downtown Brooklyn outside of Manhattan. Outside of Manhattan there are Livery Cabs, which are usually Lincoln Towncars or some kind of Sedan, it is illegal to flag them down, but you can anyway because yellow cabs don’t come out here. I don’t know if the 13k is Yellow cabs or all cabs.
As Mr. Miskatonic points out, for many people (rich or poor) using cabs regularly for short trips is cheaper than owning a car, especially if you have to factor in the high costs of parking in Manhattan. So I’m sure that there are many non-car-owners who combine use of the subway and use of cabs: e.g., take a cab each week from the nearest supermarket back home, rather than carry lots of shopping bags in the subway.
It is ordinary people going ordinary places. Subways don’t reach everywhere, and switching from subway to bus can be a pain (sometimes, even switching subways is a pain). Knowing which bus to take for a one-off trip can also be a pain. Travel from Manhattan to the outer boroughs can be faster by cab, especially later at night when bus service dwindles. My wife and I often will decide as we pull into the 71st St / Continental Ave station (Forest Hills) to spend the extra $10 and switch to a taxi (there is a taxi stand there, usually no wait) for a 5-8 minute trip rather than wait 20+ minutes for the free-transfer bus at Union Turnpike (which, though closer, is still a 5-8 minute trip). To me, $10 is worth getting home 1/2 hour earlier. Others MMV.
Except that taking a cab is very frequently slower than taking the subway. During the morning and evening when these professionals would be taking cabs, the subway is almost always faster.
Don’t forget the tourists in your listing of who uses the cabs. As a tourist I have taken the subway, but figuring out how to use the subway to get from one place to another can be trickier than saying “Hey, taxi driver, take me XXXXXXXX”. Of course, this assumes that one can locate a taxi which is not in use–which can be tricky if one is a tourist.
There are few supermarkets, as you might think of them, in Manhattan. Many residents do their shopping in 2-3 day stints, not by the week or month, and are likely to hit a variety of stores. Nearly everyone has the collapsible carts (also useful for trips to/from the laundromat). Most markets deliver, many free of additional charge (other than tip). Lastly, there are lots of markets, so most don’t have to travel far away.
While some regularly use cabs for short trips, it would mostly be wealthier snobs* who are ‘too good’ for mass transit. Middle class will generally use them most often for areas not easily accessible by subway, especially in off-hours. Working poor will rarely use them, from my observations.
*Not all wealthy are snobs, and many well-to-do use the subways regularly, packed in with the likes of me.
True enough, though many seem to be busily typing away at them on the subway anyway (perhaps preparing messages to send?) I’ve no doubt that most cab-takers are professionals. I just doubt that it is done in order to save time-in-transit.
On the other hand, if you don’t know the city and you put yourself totally in the hands of the driver like that, you could find yourself going from Madison Square Garden to Carnegie Hall by way of Brooklyn.
Depends. From the financial district to the Upper East Side via the FDR is a quick hop, and often traffic on 1st avenue is pretty light, even at Rush Hour.
People getting rained on
People with a lot of stuff
People tired of walking and tired of trying to figure out how to get home or tired of waiting for the bus
People who need to get somewhere fast and know that a Taxi is the fastest way
I live on the upper east side and there’s an intersection where a taxi stand (for all practical purposes) operates. Three or four people going to work downtown will share a cab, so it’s an everyday thing for them.
When I lived in the City I took the train or bus, or walked to and from neighborhood groceries with my cart. When I visit I drive my own car. But I do take a cab if I have taken the bus down and am too tired to deal with the train. It’s easy, it’s not too high and I’m only paying a few times over the course of a weekend. So yeah, tourists.
Oh, and when I lived there without a car I took what we referred to as gypsy cabs (sorry) and you set your own price. Late night, $4, not bad. That’s of course not the yellow cabs you’re talking about.
I was in New York a few weeks back, and one afternoon a howling gale blew up, followed by a good half hour of drenching rain. Within minutes, there were dozens of people on the corners hailing cabs, and a few minutes later there wasn’t an empty cab in Manhattan, or so it seemed.
