I've taken it a few times and it is extremely high variance. Once I was the only person on the shuttle and was at my hotel within 10 minutes of buying the ticket. Another time my stop was last and took over an hour, including the shuttle dropping someone off in a residential area for some reason then going back to the airport before heading to the Strip.

Yeah, I think so. If I'm low on small bills and it works out that I get no tip because I don't have five singles to give you instead of a fiver, I'm not going to blame you for that.

But the real reason I would say you're ok here is because I'm sure some cabbies will tell you that they don't have any change when then do.

I know exactly what you're talking about. Making that right turn into the front of Bellagio can be very very bad sometimes. And that pedestrian crosswalk there makes it far worse.

Clearly this is a Dick move. And a dangerous one at that. And there are always cops right around there. But sometimes nobody will let you over. It's not a move you see a lot. I've maybe done it once or twice in a decade. I don't get mad when I see other guys do it because I see the whole situation. But I could certainly see how another driver might look at that and say "LOOK AT THAT CAB DRIVER!!!"

Not in mine no, haha. You'll recall the cabbie a couple years ago that found $225 in a bag. He turned it in and got $5K reward.

For the most part we're not supposed to enter parking garages with the cabs. Be it hotel or cab company policy.

You shouldn't have to. You absolutely shouldn't have to. But instead of my getting the entire system to change over night I'm trying to offer people ways of navigating it.



The company is always going to get their share of whatever is on that meter. It doesn't matter if I collect it from you or not. Even in the case of a "meter jump" where you accidentally hit the button and turn the meter on or the button sticks. Even though the loss only exists on paper you still have to pay it. It's like the scene in Goodfellas when he's like F you pay me. Also, any refunds issued to customers through a complaint through the cab company (GET THE CAB NUMBER!) will come directly out of the drivers pocket.


I mentioned the term "super long hauling" earlier and what I mean that is a longhaul that's just way off the radar. Something totally ridiculous that you in no way could justify in any manner. Some idiots tunnel and then go west all the way to Decatur to Flamingo to the Rio or something stupid. If you wish to put LAS to Harrahs into the Super Longhaul category I guess Im ok with that. I would'nt have previously because it's a normal tunnel route to the Strip otherwise it just happens to have a weird in and out that adds money at the end of it, it's one of the worst values on the streets/freeway reciprocal so it's especially egregious.

With regards to the clear coat example, I was really just trying to make my comparison to it being an upsell and I felt like making a Fargo reference. It probably isn't the best analogy. I think you get my point in chief though.

That's probably a joke or something but I don't know who those people are.

Right. I think your definition of longhauling is my definition of super long hauling. And everything else is sort of in a grey area.

Also, there's sorta 3 parts to how these things go. What the Law says, how the court is ruling on it and what actually makes sense to people like you and me. It's hard to have a conversation in text without getting some of those lines blurred.

I have been against every rate change that has occurred since I've been driving. I think it's happened 4 times plus one gas tax in the last decade. From my POV I don't like it because the higher the fare amount the lower my tip percentage is going to be, on average. Think of it this way. Previously if the ride was $8.50 you might give me ten bucks. But now it's $8.82 and I'm probably getting the same ten dollars. The idea originates with what I've said about long rides vs short rides. If it's a $5 ride across the street you might give me ten, if it's a $55 ride to summerlin you're probably give me sixty.

I thought more people would freak out about the weird denominations but so far not one person has. It adds credence to my previous theory that I wasn't the only one who didn't care about the coins. I don't carry coin change never have and have always rounded up or rounded down the fare to the nearest dollar. No one has ever had a problem with this. It's all about efficiency.

As a side not for you, I don't know your exact age or situation but it sounds like you might be eligible for the Taxi Assist Program. You'd be able to purchase taxi vouchers at a buy one get on rate through the Nevada Dept of Health & Human Services and in turn give the vouchers to cabbies as payment. It's like strip club cash for cabbies. But you could be saving 50% on all your cab rides. And don't worry cabbies won't give you any grief about taking them. You can look into that more here:

http://adsd.nv.gov/Programs/Seniors/TAP/TAP_Prog/

Wow. I must say that this is one of the rare times that I have received true value from posting on 2+2. I do qualify for this plan, and it will save me considerable $$$. Thank you very much for pointing this out.

I am curious though ... suppose my fare is $8.40. I give the driver $11 worth of these coupons. Is the driver realizing a $2.60 tip, or should I tip cash beyond the use of the coupons?

zomg

This was one of my all-time favourite blogs. Posting to sub so that I remember this thread for when I can actually think of a question, but thanks for all the free entertainment!

Taxi industry bears some responsibility for the monorail not going to the airport in the first place, and the monorail has been a financial disaster. I'd put the odds of this happening in the near term at zero and dropping.

If you drive for western- why don't you like showering? Desert- why do you longhaul when you're driving family members? Nellis- why turquoise? Frias- why don't you like money? A-cab - lol. Ycs- how can you still drive even though you're 100 years old?

Reverend Jim was played by Christopher Lloyd on the tv series, Taxi, while Travis Bickle was the main character in the movie, Taxi Driver.

Monorail to the airport would make so much sense. I don't understand how Casinos don't push for that - it would definitely increase tourism.

Is Cab lobbyist that much stronger than Casino? Don't think so... Instead of spending millions on that ridiculous ferris wheel, the city/casinos should invest in monorail.

Think of less pollution, less traffic, less cost - it so sensible..

Not sure if you saw this.. curious about the monorail...


Last time I was there (nov 2013), there was some talk about the monorail being extended to the airport.

Is that still a possibility? How bad would that be for the cabs?

One of the eat threads on LVL in a long time. The blog is awesome too!

Heading out to LV on Monday and going to to my best to not get long hauled like it seems I do every year.

No, it reeks of voters voting to increase the tax to get public utility without having their pockets be dented. Almost every city has huge taxes on car rentals at the airport, Phoenix is no different.

Ok I've got a question....

I usually only come to LV once a year, sometimes two. We always stay at TI so we don't always get down to the other end of the Strip while on our trip but I do love to see the whole thing every time I'm there and take in all views and sights. So nearly every time I fly in I ask the cab driver to take me to TI and drive down the whole Strip because I want to see it. Almost without fail the driver immediately gets irritated and tries to talk me out of it or gets huffy. The last time the driver said "you realize that will take forever and cost you too much money!" I said I understood but I was willing to pay the fare and tip well so I could see the sights. He was still bent out of shape and huffed and puffed and mumbled to himself about how long it was going to take etc. I paid the fare and gave him $12 which was over a 30%+ tip and he was still mad.

Every trip it seems like when I ask for that route I turn the drivers world upside down and I'm made to feel like I'm asking him to drive in reverse the whole way, while only using his side mirrors and covering one eye with his right hand.lol Thoughts?

So am I breaking some protocol? Am I ruining his day or costing him money somehow?

Side question?

TI to LAS....cheapest/fastest route to request?

TI to downtown, same question?

For fares and routes try: http://www.taxifarefinder.com/

Thanks. It started with it not being about the money. Through Bishop's gospel I realized I was fighting for something bigger; the precedent for one, and also for all of the other cabbies who may not have a voice in that courtroom. I was speaking for them more than I was for myself by the end of it.

A note of fines for moving violations: The district isn't stupid. They make the fines just high enough so they can earn a lot of money and just low enough so it's more rational for you to pay it than to fight it. As you just suggested. This is why I fight every ticket, the more of their profits you erode the more inclined they will be to just dismiss it and move on to the next one. Metro officers hardly ever show up for the hearings and it's an instant dismissal, for example. They have to pay that officer an hour of work to go to court and testify. If you've got just one count, highly likely the officer will not show up. Especially, and this is a pro tip here, if you received your citation during graveyard shift, I've found. If you get a ticket from Metro for speeding 15 over at 12 midnight, go to courthouse plead not guilty and get your court date, come back a few months later for the hearing and I'll bet you a nickle the Officer won't be there. He works nights. Making early morning court hearings is tough for him and it's outside his normal shift hours so he will be making over time most likely, something the dept is not going to be interested in doing, especially for $150 speeding ticket. If the State has no witness they cannot proceed and your case will be dismissed.

No. I don't fear my fellow man.

I can count on one hand the number of times I have actually been spooked. And only two of those were justified. I got spooked 3 or 4 times my first week probably because I didn't know any better. I went into it reading all the same reports you did. The other two times were messed up. One time at a Carls Jr. drive thru my passenger out of the blue announces that he'd just bought a gun at the gun store (not where I had picked him up) and asks if I wanted to see it. Before I can even say no he pulls out his piece and holds I up and I see it in the mirror first then turn my head and he's pointing it at the ceiling while it's right near my shoulder, while we were in line for spicy chicken. I wasn't nearly as afraid as I should have been for some reason. It was more ridiculous and shocking more than it was fearful. That probably had a lot to do that I was already having a pleasant convo with the guy up to that point. The other occasion was the time I did almost get robbed at gun point, that was the only time I really was ****ting my pants. That story is on the blog.

I said somewhere in the pages of that blog that I never would have dreamed that driving a cab would restore my faith in humanity, but in many ways it has. Get your head off the TV and out of the newspapers and realize that 99.999% of us are good people just trying to do our business, and not every one is out to get you. If fact, no one is. This is what police officers need to realize most of all. Cab drivers die in the line of duty at twice the rate of police officers, and I don't get to carry a badge and a gun, I don't have body armor and a battalion of backup and k9 units and here I am not fearing my brothers. And here the officer is with all of these resources at his disposal, dying at half the rate I am, and he carrys on ****ting his pants all day. I don't get it. But people say "Cabbie, but the officer has to deal with the more seedy aspect of the community on a regular basis!" Right, and he's STILL dying at half the rate I am. Biggest killer of Police Officers in the line of duty? Anybody? Yeah, it's auto accidents.

TY

Those questions can be ignored, assuming the info on that website is correct.

I'd still like to know if I'm the worst customer ever by asking for the Strip route to TI?

It's all good and I knew what you meant, I was just giving you a hard time.

Easy with the tin foil hat. I think this has to do with every time the state is short on money somewhere the rental car tax and the room taxes are the first things to be put on the table. Let the tourists pay for it. That's the MO. The almighty cab companies aren't as powerful as they're made out to be. And imo didn't have hardly anything to do with an intervention with the monorail either.