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Comment by ptaipale | Hacker News Reader

Do taxis actually disappear - which seems counter-intuitive; where would they go, and why would the drivers suddenly not want to take rides when it rains? - or is it just that all free taxis are grabbed immediately when it rains, thus there are no free taxis?

There we can answer that the seeming complete disappearance ox taxis when it rains will persist, because the ratio of customers per taxi shoots up when it starts to rain.

(Where I live (north Europe), you practically don't flag taxis on the street but order it on the phone; when I was living in Beijing, I think the rain phenomenon was simply that all taxis were taken as the first drops came down.)

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It's worse than that: taxi drivers count the amount of money they made in a day and stop when it's enough. Then if it rains they make their day quickly and go home, while they will cruise much longer during low demand days.

This is a classic example of short term view and the invisible hand going bad, found in Thinking fast and slow.

Citation needed. I would think most taxi drivers are smart enough to figure out that it is better to work a few more hours more on rainy days and sit in the park on sunny days than to work a few hours more on sunny days and sit in the park on rainy days.

You got one. 'Thinking Fast and Slow' by Daniel Kahneman. Sometimes people don't optimize long term and just prefer to get 'daily' rate and go back to their families. This might turn bad if sth happens and they can't ride for some time and could use the 'rain' money. Book is really good, highly recommended.

In NYC, I've heard that quite a few drivers have an agreement with the taxi owner that makes it barely-profitable for them to do more than a given number of rides - and with a rain, that number is achieved much earlier in the shift.

That would explain it, but I've heard this complaint about taxis disappearing when it rains in very many cities - it would be odd if they all had similarly broken incentives for the drivers.

During heavy rain, road conditions are not good and visibility is poor. Hence, the probability of getting into accidents is higher. (Think car and health insurance.) However, the fare price does not increase to compensate. In Singapore, where the demand of taxis regularly exceeds the supply, it makes more sense to go take your meal and wait out the downpour (typically over in one or two hours).

combination of (1) more riders (2) fewer taxis because (a) taxi companies cover damage on a limited basis i think (b) driver pays for repairs out of pocket and then goes through a lengthy and painful assessment and reimbursement process (c) out of work while the car is in the workshop

Click through to the article those words are linked to in the submission; the answer to your question is in its first two paragraphs.

Do you mean this:

Perhaps they’ll also help with the Singaporean phenomenon of the seeming complete disappearance of taxis when it rains—an almost daily occurrence in the tropical clime.

My question is whether the disappearance is real, or just perceived, as when it starts to rain, the available taxis are flagged to use immediately.

I'm pretty sure it's the latter - when it rains, people take all the taxis. This is what Singaporeans say, and locals in nearby Kuala Lumpur have said the same.

Click "phenomenon"

Thanks, I didn't spot that.

Looks like the pay structure (and possibly taxi pricing regulation) is silly for drivers.

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