But if it’s raining, if it’s a weekend night, or if you’re outside Manhattan,
catching a cab can seem like a fantasy. It’s unlikely that you’ll get the
O.T.E., at least not in the usual fashion. For those armed with one of two
smartphone apps, there might be another way.
Last year, App City discussed the taxi-hailing apps available to New Yorkers. There was Taxi Magic, convenient but exorbitantly expensive, and the crowd-favorite Uber, which for all its popularity was also high-priced. And then, out on the horizon, there was Hailo, an app from London that would allow a user to hail a yellow cab and pay yellow-cab rates.
Services like Hailo were stalled for months as operators filed suit against the city, saying the apps were equivalent to prearranged rides, which are banned by city rules. But in April, a State Supreme Court justice dismissed the lawsuit, opening the way for passengers and drivers to use the apps.
That can be more of a struggle than you might think. Hailo’s interface is easy to use, but actually getting a cab with your phone is often difficult. The experience feels especially ludicrous when you are standing on the street on a sunny day being told by the app that no taxis are available while dozens of empty cabs zip by.
The app is more convenient when cabs are less readily available. I was grateful for it when I was leaving my Midtown office after working a late night, dead tired and unwilling to spend the 45 minutes or more that my subway trip home frequently takes. The streets were empty of cabs, but I was able to get a ride within two or three minutes after requesting one using Hailo.
The driver who picked me up, Heshan Nouh, had been using the app ever since it became available and was a fan. He told me that he likes to turn the app on during slow nights, or when he’s driving into Manhattan from Brooklyn or Queens. “There’s really no need to use it in Manhattan on a Saturday night,” he said. “But if it’s slow, I can get an e-hail and I get the fare for taking a guy to J.F.K.”
Uber Taxi, which allows users to hail yellow cabs through the standard Uber app, has similar pros and cons to Hailo. The battle between the services mainly comes down to design, and can be compared to the dominant tech brand war of our time. Hailo is like Microsoft: chunky and devoid of flash. Uber has the minimalism and sexiness of a Mac, but it lacks a certain New York grit.
Neither app will replace the old-fashioned street hail, but both provide a complementary service, a digital two-fingered whistle to summon a ride when the prospects seem hopeless.
Last year, App City discussed the taxi-hailing apps available to New Yorkers. There was Taxi Magic, convenient but exorbitantly expensive, and the crowd-favorite Uber, which for all its popularity was also high-priced. And then, out on the horizon, there was Hailo, an app from London that would allow a user to hail a yellow cab and pay yellow-cab rates.
Services like Hailo were stalled for months as operators filed suit against the city, saying the apps were equivalent to prearranged rides, which are banned by city rules. But in April, a State Supreme Court justice dismissed the lawsuit, opening the way for passengers and drivers to use the apps.
That can be more of a struggle than you might think. Hailo’s interface is easy to use, but actually getting a cab with your phone is often difficult. The experience feels especially ludicrous when you are standing on the street on a sunny day being told by the app that no taxis are available while dozens of empty cabs zip by.
The app is more convenient when cabs are less readily available. I was grateful for it when I was leaving my Midtown office after working a late night, dead tired and unwilling to spend the 45 minutes or more that my subway trip home frequently takes. The streets were empty of cabs, but I was able to get a ride within two or three minutes after requesting one using Hailo.
The driver who picked me up, Heshan Nouh, had been using the app ever since it became available and was a fan. He told me that he likes to turn the app on during slow nights, or when he’s driving into Manhattan from Brooklyn or Queens. “There’s really no need to use it in Manhattan on a Saturday night,” he said. “But if it’s slow, I can get an e-hail and I get the fare for taking a guy to J.F.K.”
Uber Taxi, which allows users to hail yellow cabs through the standard Uber app, has similar pros and cons to Hailo. The battle between the services mainly comes down to design, and can be compared to the dominant tech brand war of our time. Hailo is like Microsoft: chunky and devoid of flash. Uber has the minimalism and sexiness of a Mac, but it lacks a certain New York grit.
Neither app will replace the old-fashioned street hail, but both provide a complementary service, a digital two-fingered whistle to summon a ride when the prospects seem hopeless.
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