Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Taxis Get Fare Setting Alerts
By
Jaya Saxena
Published Mar 18, 2010
Modified Mar 18, 2010
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Jaya Saxena
Published Mar 18, 2010
Modified Mar 18, 2010
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
After discovering that many taxi drivers scammed riders out of millions by charging them out-of-town rates, the Taxi and Limousine Commission has outfitted 5,000 cabs with a new system that alerts riders when the rate system has changed, with the rest of the city's cabs getting the new system installed in the next few days. The TLC is also working on an audio alert to notify riders of a fare hike. For reference, the standard city rate is $.40 for one-fifth of a mile, and the number on the left of the fare box should read "1." Out-of-town fare is $.80 for one-fifth of a mile, and the number should read "4." One passenger told NY1, "I'm wondering why it wasn't done before."
Many taxi drivers seem fine with the alert system, though some say that fare hikes can be an honest mistake. "Unfortunately sometimes you press the higher rate and it jumps straight to four," said one driver. "And there is no way you can reverse that." And then the driver just accidentally forgets to tell the passenger and they accidentally pay double and it's all just a big misunderstanding, right? The TLC seems eager to get the fare alerts working, as the scam has been going on for nearly two years. The NY Times reports that in 2008 city officials looked into two cases where cabbies had committed the same fraud. However, they never thought to check the GPS data from other cabs to see if the scam was more widespread.
The one group against the change seems to be the New York Taxi Workers Alliance. Executive Director Bhairavi Desai told NY1, "These problems started only with the new meters which were overloaded by the TV screens, credit card reader, text message box and GPS tracking software. Basically, it wasn't broke until they fixed it."
Tagged
cab
fare hike
scam
taxi
taxi meter
taxi scam
tlc
Jaya Saxena
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Early Addition: There's finally stuff inside the Times Square tower where the ball drops
Because it used to sit vacant for most of the year, here are your early links: Rangers goalie scored, "It's a Wonderful Life" coming to Broadway, there's dignity in scaffolding and more.
By
James Ramsay
Published Oct 2, 2026 at 9:20 a.m. ET
NYC subway dragging death highlights an old school MTA failsafe
The man dragged to death by a subway train in Brooklyn earlier this week put riders across the city on edge.
By
Ramsey Khalifeh
News
NYC subway dragging death highlights an old school MTA failsafe
The man dragged to death by a subway train in Brooklyn earlier this week put riders across the city on edge.
By
Ramsey Khalifeh
We were the victim': Brooklyn shelter's new CEO speaks after corruption scandal
By
Ryan Kost
Badly burned body found in a trashed and abandoned Jamaica Queens lot, NYPD says
By
Brittany Kriegstein
Brooklyn DA brings back warrant-clearing event as quality-of-life tickets surge
By
Ben Feuerherd
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .