About Taxi Cab Drivers
Taxi cab drivers are fixtures on the streets of Chicago, New York City, Los Angeles and many other cities across the country. These drivers provide an invaluable service to shoppers, workers and visitors who need to get to their next destinations quickly. This line of work is ideal for city residents who know alternatives to main thoroughfares and can handle the stresses of traffic congestion. While taxi drivers seem to be fairly independent, these professionals have to go through various hoops and obstacles to stay in business.
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Features
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The basic feature of driving a taxi cab is taking the quickest route from departure to arrival unless a fare asks for a specific route. Cab drivers track the number of miles traveled for each fare on their meters, which calculate total fares based on tiered pricing for short and long trips. A driver can earn tips on top of each fare by helping passengers with their luggage at the end of the trip. Drivers are similar to waiters in their desire to earn high tips to augment relatively low wages. The Bureau of Labor Statistics indicates that the 229,000 cab drivers operating in 2006 earned an average of $9.78 per hour base.
Considerations
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Cab drivers need to know city streets as well as major attractions in their cities to cater to visitors unfamiliar with the area. This familiarity will lead to higher tips from grateful drivers as well as a higher number of fares due to more efficient driving. Taxi drivers should consider upgrading their meters to cover major credit cards and print detailed receipts to appease regular passengers. The final consideration for an aspiring taxi driver is to take advantage of company training sessions to improve driving, map-reading and customer service skills that are critical to making a living.
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Restrictions on Taxi Cab Drivers
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Aspiring cab drivers need more than driver's licenses to get jobs with local cab companies. Every major city requires cab drivers to acquire operating licenses to operating within city limits. These licenses are doled out in limited numbers to prevent thousands of drivers from flooding crowded streets during rush hour. A driver who wants to operate in business and airport districts needs to get clearance from district licensing bodies. Airports, transit stations and business districts typically work with a limited number of drivers to control street and foot traffic.
Function
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A taxi cab driver can help passengers save time and money when traveling through dense urban areas. The fare for a taxi cab is typically less expensive than parking in a public lot in a city like New York City or Chicago. Busy lawyers and engineers who need to make a meeting across town will find taxis a quicker option than hopping a train or a bus.
Challenges in Taxi Driving
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Taxi drivers confront bad drivers, horrible weather and stressful traffic patterns on a daily basis. These challenges are compounded over the long hours worked by taxi drivers who rely on consistent fares to stay in business. Drivers in mid-sized cities like Milwaukee and Kansas City face the challenge of finding enough fares to earn their desired wages and tips each day. Cab companies often schedule drivers with a mixture of busy days like Friday and Saturday nights to offset slower periods like weekdays and Sunday afternoons.
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Resources
- Photo Credit Photo by Mike Dumlao (Flickr)
