NYC Wants Ideas For "Taxi Technology 2.0" 302
An anonymous reader writes "New York City is soliciting ideas from the public about possible technology improvements for its 13,000+ fleet of taxis. TLC (the city agency in charge of cabs) is 'seek[ing] input and information on ways to enhance the technology systems in each taxicab for the benefit of passengers, drivers and owners alike.'"
Ask Brad Templeton, Chairman of EFF (Score:2, Interesting)
I think NYC taxicabs would be a marvelous test case for driverless technology - it would solve a lot of issues.
Re:Electric Cabs (Score:5, Interesting)
Big city Taxis are perfect for compressed air technology:
http://www.google.com/search?q=compressed+air+cars [google.com]
How about a method for electronically hailing cabs (Score:5, Interesting)
How about a method for electronically hailing a cab?
Part of the inefficiency taxis is that they drive around looking for fares, while interested riders may be waiting nearby but out of visual range.
Some method of being able to hail a cab from a cel phone with built in GPS would improve the ability of cabs and customers to find each other. The technology should be fairly easy to set up, simply requiring smartphones on both the passenger and driver end and at least a couple of servers to manage the information. Costs could be paid for with advertisements or very small fees from participants.
The biggest barrier to such a system is critical mass, which would be easy to obtain if the city simply picked an official provider of such a system.
Pay with your person device (Score:5, Interesting)
Stop taking cash.
Pay them more and remove tipping
In Cab Wi-Fi
Clean cabs that don't stink
Online in Cab ratings of the Cab, company and driver.
Free umbrellas. Big ugly orange things that get picked up and returned to the cab.
No Radio
Re:Electric Cabs (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Electric Cabs (Score:2, Interesting)
As a former cab driver i can attest to that fact, electric simply will not work, and neither will natural gas. When i used to drive i would put in an average of 400-450 miles in a 24 hour shift. now with gas that means i had to fill up 2-3 times a day because you never want to be below half a tank (in case you get a long fare) When i switched to natural gas i had to fill up 5-6 times a day which was extremely annoying because in my area (orange county, CA) there are only about 6 natural gas pumps
I don't know about New York, but if its the same as my area, the single best thing that they could do to improve just about everything is charge a reasonable rate to lease a cab (to the driver) for a time period under 24 hours. Do you realize how F-ing crazy you go when you drive for 24 hours straight? and believe me if you do not drive for 24 hours straight then you will make less than minimum wage. It is absolutely rediculus. The taxi cab industry may not be run by a mafia, but it might as well be.
Side note (to the management of Yellow Cab of Orange county), BURN IN H*LL!! i will never EVER come back to your company, (as you insisted i would) i learned how to do something (IT/web) and now i make literally 5 times as much as i used to so screw off!
Re:Electric Cabs (Score:3, Interesting)
"Make all new taxis run on 100% electric"
That's what I call a "politician's idea": it sounds good on paper, but would be a failure. Here are the problems:
* Electrical cars cost a lot. Someone will pay for them, potentially the cab drivers themselves because NYC fixes cab prices.
* Batteries have a limited number of charge cycles, and after a few 100 charges the capacity will be noticeably less. In hybrids this is OK because the gas engine will just work a bit more, but in cabs this will require more frequent charges, and ultimately costly replacements (a new Tesla battery is estimated to be between 10-15,000 dollars). Battery replacements will have an environmental impact.
* A battery charge takes several hours (in the best case scenario: there is a charging station that can provide at least 75 watts throughput). If a cab driver exceeds the electrical range early (let's say 200 miles of hauling passengers), he's done for the day.
* Batteries take up a lot of trunk space because they have a significantly lower energy density than gasoline. Cabs that go to the airport won't be able to fit much luggage.
London Cabs (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:So make Taxi 2.0 a rickshaw (Score:3, Interesting)
Ah, grasshopper, with a rickshaw, you won't have to worry about rolling down the windows ... and this way, everyone else can "share the fragrance."
Okay, instead of a rickshaw, how about an electric-assist pedal-cab? Still open, so the smell doesn't concentrate, and the operator won't sweat quite as much.
Re:jkhsad ass7e bcadjh (Score:5, Interesting)
I heard a FOAF story about a taxi driver who installed a GPS in his taxi. He'd always say to new fares: "You can have the GPS route, or you can have the route I think is best. Which do you want?"
Many, perhaps most, people would pick the GPS ... and promptly get stuck in traffic, because it doesn't know when to avoid main roads, all the shortcuts available, etc. It paid itself off in a few weeks..
Re:jkhsad ass7e bcadjh (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:Electric Cabs (Score:3, Interesting)
In fact recharging the batteries at night, when electricity is only 50% the cost as during the day, is a big plus for this app, and practically all garages would do it.
NYC's grid is taxed only in a few areas, and then only when super humid days make air conditioners crank hard in super hot days. That peak is so huge that the rest of the days, anywhere from 350-365 a year, have a lot of excess capacity without the peak air conditioner demand.
And possibly the best way to recharge electric car batteries is with onsite natural gas to electric fuelcells. 12,00 NYC cabs would be a great market to boost demand to drive that segment of the industry forward.
But we're going to have to increase the grid anyway, as more and more cars and other equipment will use electric here. This is a good way to start, a known quantity in known locations already regulated by the City.
Re:Electric Cabs (Score:5, Interesting)
We had a huge blackout in 2005, but no riots. Instead, the whole city turned into a huge block party. People sharing barbecues on their porches with neighbors, rather than watch their refrigerators full of food go to waste. Stores gave away food towards the end of the night. The parks had bonfires and acoustic music.
NYC has changed a lot since 1977 (though that blackout didn't really riot much, either). Several generations growing up with a social welfare system has seen us become a lot less antisocial. We'll still kick your out of towner ass for badmouthing us, but especially since 9/11/2001 we look to help each other through tough times.
Re:Electric Cabs (Score:3, Interesting)
No big deal. It's been too long since they had a good blackout riot there, anyway.
I actually quite liked the 2003 blackout. Stargazing in Central Park was incredible.
Re:Electric Cabs (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:jkhsad ass7e bcadjh (Score:3, Interesting)