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Checker Cab Closes Up Shop
By
Jen Carlson
Published Jan 15, 2010
Modified Jan 15, 2010
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By
Jen Carlson
Published Jan 15, 2010
Modified Jan 15, 2010
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Photo by Jen Carlson/Gothamist
While a new Checker cab hasn't rolled off the line for nearly 30 years, and the iconic NYC symbols haven't actually been a part of the taxi fleet for nearly 10... the company has still been operating. CityRoom notes that they transformed into a manufacturer of car parts for General Motors, but this week, Checker Motors has called it quits after going bankrupt. 78-year-old owner David Markin told them: “It’s finished. Our family is very distressed about the closing of the company. But it became inevitable." His father Morris, a Russian immigrant, started the company in 1922.
A collector of the cabs says there are likely 500 to 700 still in existence... and we've spotted at least one (pictured) in Brooklyn from time to time.
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Jen Carlson
Jen Carlson is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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