Tuesday, July 1, 2014

NYC: Take a Yellow Taxi instead of a Green Taxi

In early 2014, NYC introduced green taxis to provide service above 96th street and in the non-Manhattan boroughs.  In practice, green cabs pick people up all over the place, and if you're anywhere near 96th street, you'll see plenty of green cabs.

I've now taken green taxis a number of times, and I want to share a couple quick thoughts on the difference, based solely on the experiences I've had in the last couple months:

Green Taxis...

  • Think Sixth Avenue extends above central park South. (It does not.  Also, I know it's called Avenue of the Americas, but I refuse to use that name.)
  • Have never heard of Citi Field and don't know how to get there.
  • Don't know how to operate the meter.
  • Ask whether Tribeca is in Manhattan or Brooklyn.  (!!!)
  • Thinks it's OK to interject in a backseat conversation when they have something to add.
Yellow Taxis...
  • Know the city like the back of their hand
  • Know the outer boroughs well enough to get damn near anywhere efficiently
  • Never EVER make a mistake with the meter
  • Mind their own business - until you engage them.  And then they're more than happy to chat.
  • Will return a lost wallet found in the back of their cab and will REFUSE any cash offered as reward.  This happened last week, and I was blown away.
I don't always take taxis, but when I do, I prefer yellow cabs.  You should too.