The Price of a 'New York Minute'

The Associated Press reports that the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission voted on raising the price of a cab ride by $1 and double the time a taxi sits still in traffic to 40 cents per minute as opposed to 20 cents. The logic behind the vote blames the increase in gas prices and more traffic. According the TCL commissioner, Matthew Daus, the drivers must be “adequately compensated.” For example, a cab stuck in traffic for one hour will cost the rider a wait fee of $14 instead of the previous rate of $12. Also, the board agreed unanimously that a flat fee of $45 per taxi trip will be enforced on rides from Manhattan to the Kennedy Airport.

A New Yorker may throw-some-fists at this price increase, but what other substitutes, as opposed to taxis, are there for a person always on the move. The subway is an effective means of transportation, but its general routes do not take people to the door of their destination or contain the privacy of a cab ride. Personal cars are just as unreasonable due to the lack of space to park the car and, if need be, the $800 per month parking passes. Often referred to as the “New York Minute,” a New Yorker’s life is one based on tight schedules, obligations, and all-night social affairs. Time is a valuable asset to these people, so the increase in taxi fares may not be enough to have them strap on the ol’ tennis shoes and leave two hours early to get to work. The market for taxis is an inelastic one, but I wonder at one point (or price) would it cause a visible decrease in rides and what other means of transportation would best fit the lives of these New Yorkers?

-Nicolette Kynkor