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Comment by lowboy | Hacker News Reader

When they first got started, booking a cab was:

1. Pick a cab company, look up phone number. 2. Phone, usually get a dispatcher but sometimes busy signal. 3. Tell them where you are. 4. Get very loose estimate on pickup time. 5. Wait with no updates. 6. Most of the time cab comes, if it doesn’t, GOTO step 1 by phoning back or trying another company.

Compared to 1. Open app. 2. Hit button. 3. “Real time” updates on car location and estimated time

I don’t like the gig economy model and I don’t use Uber and still use cabs, but I can see the appeal.

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Yeah, where I grew up it was even worse. The main nearby company constantly had multiple cabs parked and people idling for huge amounts of time, but they demanded at least 24 hour notice and a 3 hour pickup window regardless of the time. For trips taking ~10 minutes.

I'm honestly surprised they still exist. I have no idea whose money is keeping them in business.

if you're of certain minority groups, the cab experience was:

1. Go outside

2. Put your hand up

3. Never get a taxi

> Most of the time cab come

This got really bad in many cities because of a cycle: If the rate of dispatched cabs get low enough, people make multiple requests to the dispatchers, so more than one cab would go to the spot, and you take whichever cab gets there first and the rest are "dropped". So the other cabs can't service dispatch requests, the servicing rate drops, so that further incentivises multiple request...

I'm sure it's worse for minorities, but "cab supposedly dispatched but never shows" is definitely not a rare experience even with maximum privilege in play.

I didn't mean to suggest that the two phenomena were connected, sorry!

Not in NYC where the article takes place

Out of interest, which bit of the flow they described is different in NYC?

It was similar to that in London 10 years ago - the most 'fun' thing used to be booking a cab for an airport drop - would they turn up at 3am as planned? If not, what will you do - as their office may now be closed... I ended up nearly stuck at the airport one night after my booked cab (pre paid!) didn't turn up, so had to get a black cab at twice the cost, and only after I convinced him I had the cash at home, as I didn't have any on my and my card had been cancelled while I was on holiday (for using the card abroad). Fun

I'm not from new york, but I think you just hail the cab down in the street, no? The described flow is what I'd have to do in atlanta to go basically anywhere.

Yeah, anyway outside of the centre of London and even there outside of peak hours, and waiting in the street for a cab can be a long wait.

6. Most of the time cab comes

It does? That's not how I remember it.

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