How about a thread on Cleveland taxi cabs?

 

Post news about taxis, business changes, service changes and any stories (especially if they're funny!), praises and rants here!

Over time, I will share plenty of stories.

I drove a cab for almost four years.

 

 

Over time, I will share plenty of stories.

I drove a cab for almost four years.

I bet you do have "taxi cab confessions"! 

 

Taxi drivers and Bartenders are therapists in the making!

Two bucks to get in, and then another 2 bucks per mile?  It makes our goofy zone system seem downright appealing.

 

I have a couple gripes about cabs in Cleveland.  First, it's never really been clear to me whether or not you're allowed to hail a cab on the street.  Most cabbies look completely perplexed when I try to flag down a cab downtown.  What's the rule on this?

 

Second, I would say there aren't nearly enough cabs in Cleveland.  If you've ever tried to get a cab on Public Square or the Warehouse District, you know what I mean.  It takes forever--most times I end up catching an RTA bus while waiting for a cab to show.  How do they determine the number of cabs allowed on the street?  By guessing?

 

If anyone can shed some light on this, I'd be extremely gratified. 

 

 

I would bet that there would be more cabs if there was more demand. 

"If you've ever tried to get a cab on Public Square"

 

Yeah, I have - on numerous occasions, and succeeded with little (if any) effort. Here's a little tip - go to the lineups at either the Renaissance Hotel or the Marriott at Key Center and walk right up to the first cab in line. No, it's not the same thing as hailing from the street but it works.

 

As far as the Warehouse District, I've never had a problem on West 6th - granted it's been a while since I've gone out there. I know there was an issue a while back about whether cabs could pick up passengers. When I used to go out, there was a designated spot near Johnson Court where they'd line up.

Mayday,

 

How much would a taxi cost from the WHD to W.38th and Detroit? Can you give me an estimate?

^I would guess around $5-6ish plus tip. That's just a ballpark guess and a highball at that.

 

FWIW, I've taken cabs from WHD to West 104th and Lake, and the total was about $9 or $10 plus tip.

The cab stands at the hotels aren't really that hopping at 2 or 3 AM, though!

 

Another question:  what area are cabs required to travel in?  In other words, are Cleveland cabbies required to take you anywhere in Cuyahoga County, or just the city limits?  Any suburbanites ever have a hard time getting a cab home from downtown (or nearby)?

^i know they hate it when you call them from somewhere on the east side to be taken to a rapid station. (i.e. train to airport, cutting into his profits) and quite frequently they refuse.

When arriving back from Boston on the Amtrak a driver refused to take my Grandparents back to their home on E.113th and Union, but he would've taken us back to North Cleveland Heights (Noble/Monticello). We also occasionally took cabs from Cleveland Heights to other suburbs with no problems, but this was all over 10 years ago.

I hate on new years when you are a victim of distance discrimination. I was going from one area of downtown to home on E4. I was told no so that the drivers could get someone heading to the suburbs for more money.

I have nothing but bad stories. I have had a cabbie add on a $2.00 "downtown" fee to go to Stonebridge.  we polietly questioned him he got crazy mad . the sad thing is we still tipped him. We should have complained but when you are jet lagged and exhausted it is hard to put up a fight. Another time, the guy never helped us load the bags into the van. the side door would not close- funky latch. He started yelling at my husband from the front seat. he ended up smashing his finger in the door, blood started gushing and the guy never apologized and had to be begged to give him my husband paper towel to mop up the blood.  Without a doubt, and I travel a lot, Cleveland cabbies are hands down the worst I have ever experienced from US big cities to internationally. filthy cabs, rude drivers, and they actually try and rip locals off. I cannot imagine what the tourists think

i think the rule in cleveland is that cabs can not wait for passengers unless it is a designated zone (hotels and some office buildings) and cabs can not drive around looking for passengers.  however, you CAN hail one on the street if it stops, is empty, etc.  (presumably, the cabbie is driving to get a bag of chips or to one of the drop off zones to wait for the next fare).

 

I have had consistency problems with all cabs in cleveland except for zone/yellow.  they seem very consistent and professional and get all of my business now.

I have taken cabs only twice in Cleveland. Once when I was very young with my parents going from Erieview to Playhouse Square. The second time after being out on W.6th this past summer. There were no cabs at the W.6th taxi stand, but we hailed down one easily. I think the fare was $30 to Westlake (Crocker Road). The driver seemed very nice and happy to take us Westlake, but I think everyone seemed nice and happy to me that night. I think you can take the cab to outlying counties too, but there is an extra charge.

I was told by a cab driver in Clevland that they were not allowed to stop (when being flagged) downtown except at an area designated for it and you can get a ticket for doing so.  Also, most cabbies gave me thier card, and told me to call them when I was ready to go back to the hotel.  I generally find them nice, and I have had some lady cab drivers there which is rare.

 

The one thing I find strange are all the full size van/taxis.  What is with that?  It seems like everytime I take a cab there it is a giant van that is really junky.  Also, how do you even know they are empty, it seems like the light stays on no matter what.

Oh! I have a funny story I just remembered. I was in my car (underage and sober) heading north on W.6th at like 2AM on a friday night a couple years ago. Traffic was kind of standstill and in the line of traffic opposite direction, directly next to my car, a group of guys were trying to shove their drunk friend into a taxi van. They were having trouble doing so, and the driver began to just drive away with the sliding door open and everything. The drunk guy was half in it at the time so he fell out onto the street and was rolling around. The drunk guys friends began yelling and picked up a rock or something and threw it through the rear window of the taxi cab causing it to shatter.

^now I understand why my friend moved from West 6th to Bridge Ave. ;)

I have nothing but bad stories. I have had a cabbie add on a $2.00 "downtown" fee to go to Stonebridge.  we polietly questioned him he got crazy mad . the sad thing is we still tipped him. We should have complained but when you are jet lagged and exhausted it is hard to put up a fight. Another time, the guy never helped us load the bags into the van. the side door would not close- funky latch. He started yelling at my husband from the front seat. he ended up smashing his finger in the door, blood started gushing and the guy never apologized and had to be begged to give him my husband paper towel to mop up the blood.  Without a doubt, and I travel a lot, Cleveland cabbies are hands down the worst I have ever experienced from US big cities to internationally. filthy cabs, rude drivers, and they actually try and rip locals off. I cannot imagine what the tourists think

 

i can't agree more!

I hate on new years when you are a victim of distance discrimination. I was going from one area of downtown to home on E4. I was told no so that the drivers could get someone heading to the suburbs for more money.

 

Yeah at night sometimes it can be a bit much, as some drivers want to talk the long route.  I live on Shaker Blvd.  I want you to drive up Woodland, not Carneige!  I actually had a cab driver say to me, "can't you just get out on the Square?"  This is so he wouldn't have to go up to Coventry and do a U-Turn.  So I told him, "sure...but don't expect me to pay you since you didn't take me to the destination I want."

 

I hate on new years when you are a victim of distance discrimination. I was going from one area of downtown to home on E4. I was told no so that the drivers could get someone heading to the suburbs for more money.

 

That just sucks, since the driver could have picked up someone in the Gateway area who needed a ride.

At least you guys have meters....

At least you guys have meters....

 

yeah that DC Zone shit is for the birds.  I remember once my friends wanted to catch a cab from New Jersey & D NW to (IIRC) Constitution or Mass. on the NE side of the Capital and it was like $20.  Keep in mind they could have walked, right past Union Station and saved the money.  DC cabs are a total rip off!

here is the ordinance on cabs, found at

http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/clevelandcodes/cco_part4_443.html

 

i still think you can legally hail a cab, but the cab just can't be "cruising" for fares in a non-taxi stand zone.

 

443.281    Service to be Rendered on Demand

It shall be the duty of every driver of an unengaged taxicab, upon request, to transport any orderly person between any two points within the City. Should it be shown at any time to the satisfaction of the Commissioner that a driver has failed to comply with the requirements of this section, the Commissioner may, after hearing, revoke the license of such driver.

(Ord. No. 1828-77. Passed 6-8-78, eff. 6-12-78)

 

443.29    Cruising or Soliciting

No public hack, while soliciting employment, shall stand on any public street or place other than at or upon a public hack stand, designated or established in accordance with this chapter; nor shall any driver of such hack seek employment by repeatedly and persistently driving his hack to and fro in a short space before, or by otherwise interfering with the proper and orderly access to or egress from any theater, hall, hotel, public resort, railway or boat landings, or other place of public gatherings. No person shall solicit passengers for public hacks, except the driver of a public hack, when sitting upon the driver's seat of such vehicle, except that at special points designated by the Commissioner of Assessments and Licenses not more than two agents may be employed to solicit business on the street. No persons shall be permitted to ride in the front seat of a taxicab with the driver, unless the rear compartment is occupied, and any driver who shall permit this may be deprived of his license. All police officers and inspectors of licenses shall notify the Commissioner of any violation of this provision.

(Ord. No. 1684-76. Passed 6-29-76, eff. 7-6-76)

 

I can answer many of those questions with the offical answers and the real answers.... but it will be later.

 

From Crain's:

 

Taxi prospects? Fair

Plan for a single cab company to serve Hopkins could improve service, but it may not be the revenue driver city envisions

 

By JAY MILLER

 

6:00 am, September 25, 2006

 

The kind of taxi service the Jackson administration is proposing for Cleveland Hopkins International Airport has improved customer service at the main airport in Columbus, though it hasn’t been the moneymaker the city of Cleveland is envisioning for its service.

 

I don't use cabbies in Cleveland but I observe them and hear other people talk.  I either drive or use the Rapid.  Cabs just aren't needed in my universe... but that's not to say I'm oblivious to them... Some are nutcase-predators that prowl the Warehouse Dist on a weekend night -- they'll just as soon cut you off and damage their/your fender rather than lose a prospective fare... but I have sympathy for Cleveand cabbies.  First, most of their work is limited to a) the airport to downtown (where they have to compete against the Red Line), or b) downtown Cleveland.  We like to grump how losy service is in the burbs, but why shouldn't it be?  How many suburbanites are going to opt for cabs when burb residents moved to their communities, often, to escape the very tools that make cities, cities.  You gonna hop a cab from your Solon home to Progressive in Mayfield?  I think not.  If cabs were more existent in the burbs, who would ride them?  Meanwhile, downtown is so compact that, unless they jack up fares, they're not going to earn much $ cause their trips are bound to be short.  And downtown, esp the Warehouse Dist, is becoming more of a 24-hour place, cabbies seem limited to the Friday/Sat night insanity, mainly in the Warehouse Dist (but more and more at Gateway as well.

 

Other times you see them lined up around Tower City and the Renaissance reading the paper or with bored looks on their faces... It's rather sad, actually.  Remember, the light traffic in or to our walking districts is rather light so that cabbies suffer a similar fate as to RTA -- and, yet, cabbies are perceived as more expensive-- in fact, they are. 

From today's PD:

 

Hopkins chief urges Ace Taxi for exclusive contract

Saturday, October 21, 2006

Susan Vinella

Plain Dealer Reporter

 

Ace Taxi of Cleveland should manage cab service at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport because it promises new cabs for passengers and millions of dollars for the airport, Hopkins chief Ricky Smith says.

 

 

Very interesting. Anybody I spoke with who currently, or used to work in the taxi business all assumed Yellow would get the contract. Yellow's refusal to upgrade their fleet with modern technology is their own fault though.

Yesterday at the Cleveland Planning Commission, they passed a resolution that would allow for the the airport to enter into a contract with one cab company. When Chairman Coyne asked if a company had been picked, the answer was no.

Why would anyone use a cab in Cleveland going to or coming from the airport the Red Line is so convienient.  It gets me from the Airport to University Circle in what feels like no time.

I don't think people know about the rapid link to the airport. Inside the airport you see the signs for RTA, but that doesn't really say anything. If there were signs like "Train to Downtown and University Circle," I bet you'd see a lot less people taking cabs

A-freaking-greed!!!!!! :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap:

I don't think people know about the rapid link to the airport. Inside the airport you see the signs for RTA, but that doesn't really say anything. If there were signs like "Train to Downtown and University Circle," I bet you'd see a lot less people taking cabs

 

Not necessarily.  Not everyone who gets into a cab at Hopkins is headed downtown or to University Circle.  I'm sure there are a couple other possible destinations.  Pinky's, perhaps.

 

Even at National Airport, which has the highest percentage of travelers arriving by transit of any airport in the U.S., there are still a ton of people who take cabs.  This despite the Metro station being plain-as-day in front of the terminal, and the cabs invoking the ridiculous "Interstate Airport Surcharge" to cross 14th Street Bridge into the District.  I think the number who ride Metro to DCA is still something fairly low like 15%. 

 

 

^I said you'd see "a lot less" people taking cabs. Obviously, people are going other places than downtown and there will and always should be cabs at the airport. But to be sure, there are a lot of people who are heading downtown and not taking the rapid because they don't know about it. I know this from personal experience and talking to people already staying downtown or people coming into town. "RTA" with the arrows is still too nondescript for visitors.

 

Another indicator that the rapid link between downtown and the airport is not fully maximized is the fact that there are numerous "airport" hotels with shuttle busses, as opposed to more hotels downtown or near rapid stations.

Another indicator that the rapid link between downtown and the airport is not fully maximized is the fact that there are numerous "airport" hotels with shuttle busses, as opposed to more hotels downtown or near rapid stations.

 

I think that's the case pretty much anywhere, though.  As far as hotels near Rapid stations, that's an issue for the good folks handling (or rather, not doing a damn thing about) TOD at RTA.

I would imagine that Hopkins has a lot of business travelers on expense accounts that don't care about the cost of the cab and just want door to door service to their hotel.  All of my friends that are or were in consulting with the big firms have all worked in Cleveland on projects.  It seems with most people I know, they have only been there on business, and never leisure if they have been.

^ None the less....the signage still needs to be more universal and LARGER...."Trains to downtown" would be great to see at more locations in the airport......that is not something that takes a brain bending effort to get done....so RTA.....GET IT DONE! (refuse to say git r dun)

^ i find that hard to believe national is tops for travelors arriving by transit. do you mean by rail? i would bet newark has more folks arriving via transit esp if you consider all forms of mass transit, but also as all the fairly new airtrain/amtrak/nj transit rail services have come online. jfk has a new airtrain service too, but i think that one is a major boondoogle waste of loot.

^ None the less....the signage still needs to be more universal and LARGER...."Trains to downtown" would be great to see at more locations in the airport......that is not something that takes a brain bending effort to get done....so RTA.....GET IT DONE! (refuse to say git r dun)

 

I just think RTA should be overtly blunt

 

Cab to Tower City: $15 (or whatever it is)

Train To Tower City: $1.75

You Aren't Stupid, are you?

I like that idea....pope for emperor of RTA

^ i find that hard to believe national is tops for travelors arriving by transit. do you mean by rail? i would bet newark has more folks arriving via transit esp if you consider all forms of mass transit, but also as all the fairly new airtrain/amtrak/nj transit rail services have come online. jfk has a new airtrain service too, but i think that one is a major boondoogle waste of loot.

 

Although, I hate to agree, I think National does have the largest number or rail (non cummuter) passengers arriving and departing from its airport rail station.

 

At EWR/JFK you have to get off of one type of rail service then transfer to the "airlink" train system to get to the terminals

He's talking in terms of rail's share of landside access to a particular airport. Here's the 2003 rankings for U.S. airports, based on rail's market share of landside access (I don't have more recent data)...

 

First, the direct rail access airports:

 

Washington National - 16%

Atlanta - 7.9%

Chicago Midway - 7.7%

Chicago O’Hare - 4.2%

St. Louis - 3.3%

Cleveland - 2.8%

Baltimore - 2.6%

Philadelphia - 2.0%

 

Next, airports having rail links via shuttle bus:

 

NY-Kennedy - 7.9%

Boston - 5.7%

Oakland - 4.1%

Miami - 1.2%

Los Angeles - 0.5%

 

Granted, this list was compiled before several airport stations/services were opened (Burbank Calif., San Francisco, Portland, Newark, etc).

 

 

I just think RTA should be overtly blunt

 

Cab to Tower City: $15 (or whatever it is)

Train To Tower City: $1.75

You Aren't Stupid, are you?

 

From the airport to TC will run about $22 (not including tip)

Depends on how many lane changes are made and the amount of air in the tires.

Also depends on what part of TC - Public Square will run a dollar or so more then the Huron Road entrance (it is further, after all... plus construction)

 

Most cabs from the airport to downtown are going to the Marriott, Holiday Inn, Garden Inn, etc. Most out-of-towners don't want to walk from TC one block to Key, so they will take the cab from the airport.

Once in a while a person will take the train downtown, then hop into a cab around public square and ask to be taken to one of the hotels. Boy you want to see some pissy cab drivers.

Heard this on WCPN this morning:

 

Bringing Order to Airport Taxi Services

 

Aired October 25, 2006

 

The first and last impression that many visitors have of Cleveland is the man or woman behind the wheel of a taxi cab at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport. In recent years, these unofficial city ambassadors have acquired a number of foreign accents, as new immigrants have found cab driving to be one of the more accessible ways they have to earn a living in their new country. Whether it will remain an easy path into the region's job market is unclear. This week, a measure was introduced in Cleveland City Council designed to bring order to an airport taxi service that some describe as chaotic. ideastream's David C. Barnett reports.

 

Frank has a nostalgic look on his face as he moves onto the exit ramp that leads into Cleveland Hopkins Airport. He hasn't been here for awhile.

 

    Frank: Working out at the airport used to be kinda fun. You could make some decent money on a Sunday night, or a Monday night. But, those days are over.

 

Frank, who prefers that we not use his last name, drives part time for Yellow Cab as a way to pick up some extra money in the evening and on weekends. He says, for years, local taxi service was dominated by Yellow and AmeriCab. But, in the past five years, the market has exploded, with smaller companies owned by immigrants from India, the Middle East, Eastern Europe, and Africa.

 

    Frank: Out of nowhere, it's like all of these cab companies are just cropping up! And it's like, how is the city allowing this? It's not needed. There's too many cabs on the road as it is.

 

Frank and a number of other drivers say that a wait in the airport taxi cue line can last upwards of an hour and a half. And if the passenger you pick-up only goes to nearby Lakewood, the driver will have to come back and face another long wait. Cleveland's new Director of Port Control, Ricky Smith, has responded with a plan that City Council is currently scrutinizing. It would put one company in charge of the entire taxi operation at Hopkins, and create uniform service standards.

 

    Ricky Smith: This new arrangement will limit the number of taxi operators that can operate at the airport. That drives revenue up. It will also have an effect on the morale of the taxi drivers and the quality of service.

 

When the airport asked for companies to bid on such a service, it limited the applicants to businesses with seven years of operating experience and a million dollars of annual gross revenue.

 

    Julius Ngnga: It is very, very unfair.

 

Julius Ngnga drives for the Somali-owned USA Taxi, which is less than five years old.

 

    Julius Ngnga: The very young companies - Airport Taxi, USA, ABC - they are technically knocked out of the list for bidding.

 

Ngnga is a native of Kenya, but of Somali heritage. He says he majored in business in college, and has dreams of starting up a private venture importing artificial fishing flies, hand-made in his homeland.

 

    Julius Ngnga: All that I learned in my Economics, I see it in play in this country. And I'm very excited to be part of it.

 

For now, he says, driving a cab has proven to be a lesson in entrepreneurship. Frank, the Yellow Cab driver, thinks some of the immigrant drivers could use a few more lessons.

 

    Frank: It seems like passengers are complaining, because they can't get proper service. A lot of the Somalian drivers will turn down passengers because it's a trip that's not long enough. But, in my book, it's like, 'Hey man, if you're gonna work the airport, the airport's a crap shoot.' You have to accept whatever you get.

 

Julius Ngnga admits that some drivers do reject low-fare passengers, but, he says, it's not just the immigrant cabbies.

 

    Julius Ngnga: I have seen it with everyone. All companies. Whether they are white Americans, white Polish, or white Romanians.

 

Port Director Ricky Smith wants to get his new system up and running before the holiday rush.

 

  Ricky Smith: What we expect you'll see, shortly before Thanksgiving, is a new taxicab service, where all the cabs will look like 'Cleveland Hopkins International Airport' taxi cabs. They will be white cabs with the airport's logo on them. They will all be equipped with GPS systems that allow the taxi cab drivers to take the passengers to their destination by the most efficient route.

 

Julius Ngnga examines his cell phone and clicks the caller into his voice mail, so that he can make one last point about his new country, and the promise of a free market economy.

 

    Julius Ngnga: If you want to be happy in business, you've got to be ready to compete. And people should not be wary, and they should not be afraid to compete. And so, I don't know why they should be afraid to compete with a small community called 'Somalis.' (chuckles)

 

Frank, the Yellow Cab driver, says he isn't afraid to compete. He's just frustrated by a system that's gotten way out of control.

 

    Frank: I'll never go back to the airport until some kind of change happens.

 

Exactly what kind of change that will be, now rests in the hands of Cleveland City Council. The Aviation and Transportation Committee was due to hold hearings on the plan today, but pending some unanswered questions, those deliberations have been delayed. David C. Barnett, 90.3.

 

Listen to the mp3 here:

http://www.wcpn.org/mp3/2006/1025taxi.mp3

I've read good things here and bad things here about taking a cab in Cleveland. But very few mention company names.

^ good point. I do not remember the names. At the airport and many other places you are expected to take the next cab in line. like it or not. And yes I do take  a cab sometimes from the airport. :whip: No problem taking the red line, but walking home in the middle of the night or waiting for a connecting bus on w25th or tower city with baggage, no thanks

Another indicator that the rapid link between downtown and the airport is not fully maximized is the fact that there are numerous "airport" hotels with shuttle busses, as opposed to more hotels downtown or near rapid stations.

 

I agree with you about the signage, being I don’t recall seeing anything out of the ordinary to promote the rapid last time I was at CLE.

 

I think that you are mixing apples with oranges in reference to your indication though. Hotels near any airport are a matter of convenience. For instance, in the event of an unexpected stay, people simply don’t want to travel far from the terminal to get to a hotel. This is abundant in almost any city in the world.

 

Then again, most cities don’t have their best convention facilities adjacent to their airport. This contradicts why the airport to downtown rapid was built to begin with.

I've read good things here and bad things here about taking a cab in Cleveland. But very few mention company names.

 

Welcome to the forum.

 

Your name sounds/looks familiar.

Did you use to (or still do) drive a taxi?

^^ I did a short stint working at National. Part of the problem, in my observation, with that station is that it's elevated and outdoors. Being from 'ol C-land, a little cold, well what DC folks think is cold, never stopped me from using the station to go to and from work. I think alot of people don't use it because you have to wait outdoors for a train. They want to stay warm by just jumping in a cab. The station is almost dead if it gets colder than 40 outside or there is any type inclement weather, especially in off-peak hours when you might have to wait 10 or 15 minutes for a train.

Musky,

 

Thank for the welcome. No I do not nor have I driven a taxi.

But I do ride in them!

 

Stumbled on this forum looking up info on the airport deal.

 

My point in my response saying that nobody mentioned companies was because there are a number of people, and the newspaper article that was quoted here, saying cab service is slacking and it makes Cleveland look bad to visitors.

That being said the best way to invoke change is to let people know the good, bad and the ugly!

 

Good service deserves praise and bad service means get into another companies cabs!

If I knew that a company was known for bad service I wouldn't ride in one of their cabs!

If I knew who drove off with the door open as people were getting in, (read earlier in this list of postings) I would not ride with them!

^i've always believed there's such a variation between individual drivers.

 

with that being said, i've had bad experiences with every single company.

The same could be said about passengers.

 

I was only a part time driver (weekend warrior), but I quickly established a regular client base that supplemented my income greatly. Occasionally I would pick up random passengers in various parts of the city (including the airport) and you never knew which way it would go.

 

I was never robbed, but I did have people skip out on me three times... twice were pickups from the hospital. :?

From the PD - Out and About:

 

Q: Another rogue cab driver . . . When will the airport staff take into account the service for West Siders? I was treated like dirt, and he did not want to take us unless another far East Sider was sent with us when they found out I was only going to Parma Heights. - R.U.

 

A: Call the city of Cleve land's Division of Assessments and Licenses (216 664-2260), which regulates cabs, cab companies and cab drivers, or the Department of Port Control's Cleveland Hopkins International Airport Division (216 265-6000). The city is taking steps to fix the problem by narrowing down which drivers get to work the airport. Whether the reforms take place, it is still supposed to be a regulated industry. Note the driver's name, cab company, license-plate number, or any other identifying names or numbers on the car. If your problem happened recently, there should have been a city-appointed cab starter there to yell at the driver and note the infraction. The honest drivers complain that the city already has adequate rules and regulations and only needs to enforce them. Let us know if they don't.

 

 

 

I never had a proble mtaking people from the airport to places like Parma or Berea.

The way I saw it, it would let me get back to airport sooner. Plus, the customers were always greatful to have a driver who would not complain about the short ride.

I once had a fare to IX Jet Center from the airport. He was so surprised by my positive attitude, he gave me $35.

^and  its funny how you encounter the complete opposite downtown at 2am