How do you feel about car services here in Brooklyn? There are several things that I find irksome about the whole car service process ’round here, and these are all things that can be easily remedied:
1) I hate hailing a car in Brooklyn. All cars look the same to me so I can never tell whether they are cabs until they are within about 5 yards from where I’m standing. And then when I finally realize that it’s a cab, I have to duck down really quick just to see whether someone is in the back seat. It would be much easier if we had cabs that looked distinctive with lights on their hoods to indicate whether the car was available or off duty. Who will bring this modern practice alllllll the way from Manhattan to the good people of Brooklyn?
2) I really hate unnecessary honking. I’m annoyed by cabs that honk at me when I’m standing at the curb looking at my Blackberry waiting for the light to change so I can cross the street. Didn’t we all agree that we would raise our hands to hail a cab? If my hand is not up, then why are you honking?
3) I hate having to flirt with the driver just to get a reasonable fare. I would much prefer having a standard fare so that I can feel confident (or at least almost confident) that we all are being charged the same amount for our rides.
4) Have you ever called a car service at night only to find out when the Escalade arrived that it didn’t have a T&LC license and that the driver was just some dude who was friends with the dispatcher? Just some dude trying to make a couple of bucks to help cover his car payments on his enormous SUV? Have you ever? I have.
I don’t want the current car services removed, but I would love to have more choices, so when I received this email yesterday from the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission, I knew I needed to spread the word. Bloomberg has a proposal to create fleets of metered taxis for the boroughs. You can offer your opinions by taking the short online survey (it took me less that 5 minutes to complete). Here’s the information and the link:
Borough Taxis: Let the City Know What You Think!
You may have heard about the Mayor’s proposal to establish a new category of livery cars that can make on-street pickups outside of Manhattan – just like yellow cabs do. It will give New Yorkers in all five boroughs another safe, reliable and convenient option for getting around. The program aims to improve taxi availability while bringing yellow-taxi-like amenities (e.g., metered fares, credit/debit card payment, easier-to-spot cabs) to the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, and Staten Island. The City wants to hear from residents about your experiences with taxis and car services, and has a developed a short online survey where your voice can be heard. The survey, available in both English and Spanish, is available at www.nyc.gov/taxi. (El cuestionario está también disponible en español aquí: www.nyc.gov/taxi). Spread the word!
So how do you feel about car services that exist in our neighborhood? Do you love them or hate them?
how often do you flag down a livery cab? i’ve never had the guts to do that. In theory, I like the ability to call for a car, but in practice i have increasingly had issues with what happens after that. You end up waiting for 15 minutes, then you have to call back to find out where the car is. Then when you arrive at your destination, the amount of the bill seems based largely on how annoyed the driver is. Nobody is really enforcing whatever laws there are for car services, so they can get away with a lot. I have definitely been in that SUV driven by a nonprofessional driver, but to be fair, it was a pretty sweet ride for a trip to the vet!
I don’t live in Bed Stuy proper but I am there often at the Home Depot, I would love to know which car service is best to get me home from there, I feel like the places I usually call (New Bell, Myrtle) never seem to grasp where I am when I say “Home Depot parking lot!”
Hmmm, I think I flag down a livery cab a few of times per month during the colder months and only occasionally during the spring and summer. I had no idea that hailing one of these cabs was illegal until I took the survey. I usually call a car service when my mom comes to visit (which is several times a year), but that’s because I have to get her to Manhattan and I can’t be bothered with carrying heavy luggage up and down subway stairs.
I’ve usually called New Bell (whenever I’ve called Myrtle, their line was busy) and they’ve USUALLY been able to pick us up within about 5 minutes without my having to call them back, but that’s because I generally call them at a time when they’re not busy (e.g. 5 am in the morning). New Bell was the one who sent me that unauthorized driver, but I am still forced to use them in a pinch. I can’t believe they’ve given you trouble with an HD pick-up–their office is located walking distance from Home Depot.
I live near that Home Depot, so if New Bell isn’t doin’ ya right, then try New Brooklyn Car Service. I’ve noticed that a lot of New Brooklyn drivers hang out on Myrtle Avenue between Nostrand and Marcy. They park their cars and chat while they are waiting for a call from the dispatcher. I’ve often walked up to them and told them where I needed to go and they always say, “Get in.” Maybe they will be able to find their way to the Home Depot.
1. It’s illegal for a car service car to pick up a street hail.
2. That’s how they do it where they come from. Nobody told them that it’s not how it’s done here, but maybe that’s how it’s done here. See #1.
3. Don’t you ask the fare before you get in? I’d never trust the driver to charge the right fare. Ask before you accept the ride.
4. Whether you accept the ride is up to you. Nobody is forcing you to get into an unmarked car. or are they?
thanks for the rec for New Brooklyn, I will try that. NB and Myrtle have flaked on me lately.
Once I get into a car, I gotta admit I’ll probably pay whatever so I never ask til we arrive. So maybe it’s my fault but being from Brooklyn you get conditioned to jump into the first car you see and get that door closed so they can’t refuse to take you
for the response to #2, where are they from? you mean the old italian guy who drove me home from ridgewood, queens? is honking a cultural norm in Middle Village?
New Bell is pretty good. Also Pratt Car Service, (718) 789-4900 – always here within a few minutes, cheapest prices I can find and the drivers are always very friendly. Even when I have a kitty that is angry and doesn’t want to go to the vet, they always help me get the carrier in the car and talk to the cat. All around good people.
Funny story, hailed down a car because I couldn’t find any yellow taxi cabs. Who did it turn out to be? Pratt Car Service, and it was the actual driver that drove me to the place that I was now returning from!
The whole honking thing I agree is weird and happens very often.
Chris
I ask the fare when I call up to order the car. They only send a car that will take me where I already told them I want to go. And I guess if that old Italian guy was honking at you, then I guess that is the cultural norm in Middle Village.
I haved used Black Pearl for years they come to you in a decent time and will give you the price on long trips or if you ask
What? No Freedom? I use them on occasion, (cabs are expensive, they add up) pretty quick to respond and prices are fair as I remember. Can’t recall them not knowing a place I was going to.
Will be filling out that form pronto.
When I call the base for a car, after the dispatcher asks for my destination my return question is price. When the car arrives I confirm the destination and price. I dislike inconsistency.
As for the women, be very careful. Do your best to avoid cars that do not have a T&LC plate. These unlicensed drivers have not been investigated by the T&LC. When a person applies for a TLC license there is a criminal background check (state and federal) and a Dept. of Motor Vehicles check. Believe it or not, people convicted of sex crimes, assaults, robberies, and narcotic offenses apply for TLC licenses. Some want to drive paratransit vans.
If a passenger has a problem with a car, call 311 and you will be transferred to a TLC operator. Passengers can file complaints over the telephone. All licensed drivers must have their license on display in the rear portion of the cab. As soon as you enter the cab record the name and license number. If you could record the TLC plate number that would be an extra plus.
If a passenger files a complaint that results with a hearing, if necessary the passenger can testify over the telephone.
I use Brown & Brown and Black Pearl. I’ve never really had problems with either. I have a couple of favorite drivers who work for B & B and I’ve learned to ask for them by number–the dispatcher will send out a call for you. That can make things a lot easier. If you are a regular they will take you places drivers don’t always like to go (like downtown in rush hour, or to Manhattan).
OTOH, any car service driver who’s breathing will jump on a call to the airport!
Biggest pet peeve for me is that regardless of the time, they sit outside and honk until you come out. Someone on my block calls for cars at 1am all the time and the dude jut sits outside wailing on the horn for like 20 minutes. Why can’t the service give you a call? Of course, it is what it is, so it wouldn’t hurt if the person on my block would keep an ear out or the car service.
Car services in Manhattan would always call you on the phone when they arrived. Don’t know why they have to do the horn thing here. It annoys me too, but it would really annoy me at 1 a.m.!
I’m still hopeful that we will one day have metered taxis driving around (at least on the main drags).
I like Black Pearl. These usually pick us up 3 minutes after we call. They are reasonably priced and the drivers are generally professional and friendly.
Thank you so much I am running to fill out that survey. I shudder to think about the amount I’ve been spending on cabs lately but in general take them a few times a month. Usually use Evelyn or Arrecibo. Sometimes United. The prices of livery cabs are getting outlandish in my opinion. Um $7.00 minimum? Excuse you! I usually haggle or flat out refuse to pay over a certain amount (“here’s $10 sir – work with it”). I’m not putting your kid thru college over a 12 block ride in your rickety Lincoln. Seriously need metered cabs in Bk. I do hail cabs (oops), had no idea this was illegal lol been doing it for years, comes in handy when that B26 bus starts taking its sweet ole time!
“your rickety Lincoln”
LOL!