New big apple taxi fleet can be quite a pain

It’s ironic that the New York International Auto Show is held in a 19th century city, one most inhospitable for cars, as anyone who has driven there can attest.

Parking a car easily costs $40 a day. Want to park at the auto show venue, the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center? Fork over $65 – more if it’s an SUV, less if it’s a Smart car.

That’s why, while covering the show a couple of weeks back, I opted to take taxicabs.

As a passenger, it’s best to tie a blindfold  over your eyes ; it seems any car trip in this burg is for the brave. One crosstown trip was a terrifying dash of abrupt stops and starts. I swear I lost my stomach somewhere near Radio City Music Hall. 

But that’s old news. What’s new? The cabs. Since December 1998, when the last Checker taxicab plied the streets of Manhattan,  the Ford Crown Victoria has held sway over the Gotham cab market.

In a bid to improve the fleet’s fuel economy and reduce pollution, the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission  now allows hybrids to be used for ferrying passengers. Models include the Ford Escape; Mercury Mariner; Toyota Camry, Highlander and Prius; Lexus RX 400h; and the Honda Accord and Civic.

Theoretically, fuel is being saved. But knowing the way most cabbies drive, I doubt it. Even a hybrid  gobbles fuel when piloted by an asphalt Andretti. Still, the intention is good. 

But the space isn’t always. Imagine riding as a back-seat passenger in a Honda Civic with a thick partition behind the front seats to separate you from the cab driver.  Now, imagine lurching across Manhattan as if escaping from law enforcement.

Excuse me , but I can’t feel my legs.  

Next time, I’m walking.