Traffic in NYC, photo via joiseyshowaa on Flickr

As New York City’s failure-prone subway system continues to disappoint, some commuters are turning to ride-hailing services like Uber or Lyft to reach their destinations instead. While getting picked up by a car is easy, especially in the busiest areas of Manhattan, the bumper-to-bumper traffic makes getting anywhere actually more difficult. A report released by Bruce Schaller, a former deputy city transportation commissioner, found that one-third of ride-hailing cars and yellow cabs are often driving on the city’s most congested blocks without any passengers, creating unnecessary traffic (h/t New York Times). As a way to reduce car congestion, officials are considering a new fee on for-hire vehicles, possibly a way to raise money for the strapped-for-cash MTA.

Find out more

It’s official. Taxi TVs are no more. The Daily News reports that the Taxi and Limousine Commission voted unanimously to remove the screens in favor of a pilot payment system that will use tablets or smartphones. As 6sqft reported earlier this week, “officials have been ‘flooded’ for years with complaints about the TVs and they’ve also been a big reason that riders opting for Ubers as an alternative to the yellow cab, the agency admits.” But a previous Wall Street Journal poll found that, despite this widespread frustration, only 29% of taxi riders actually turned the television screens off. And now that they’ll soon be a thing of the past, we want to know what camp 6sqft readers fell into.

Taxi TV image via

Image via

Those annoying taxi TV screens that can turn a great night into one of frustration and fury as you fumble to hit the mute button may finally be silenced once and for all. According to the Post, the city’s Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC) will vote this Thursday night on whether or not the screens should be removed in favor of smartphone or tablet payment systems. As it stands, sources say that the the proposal will most likely pass. Apparently officials have been “flooded” for years with complaints about the TVs and they’ve also been a big reason that riders opting for Ubers as an alternative to the yellow cab, the agency admits.

Find out more here