Choose Your Russian Taxi Carefully!

by Justin Glow on


I’m not sure I ever had much of an interest in visiting Russia before I started reading EnglishRussia.com. I mean sure, I’d go if the opportunity presented itself, but once my favorite Russian blog hit the scene and they started covering all sorts of “largest country in the world” oddities did I realize this was truly a place I wanted to go.

Take this video for instance, simply titled Moscow Taxi. “When you travel to Russia, choose your taxi carefully!” EnglishRussia.com reads. “Or you might get a ride with anybody like this Moscow taxi cab…” How could I watch this video and not want to visit Russia someday?

The embedded version above is actually an edited version. For the full video, head to EnglishRussia.com.

The Truth About Taxi Drivers in Prague

by Iva Skoch on

The cab drivers in Prague really are that bad. The problem has gotten slightly better after the Prague mayor dressed up as an Italian tourist and saw for himself how much they rip off foreigners. But it is still not nearly good enough.

The thing is, they don’t only overcharge foreigners. It occasionally happens to locals, too, if they don’t pay attention to the hyperactive meters. Sadly, a lot of them prefer making an extra $10 today than get return customers tomorrow.

It is necessary to stress here, however, that this ONLY happens with cabs you hail on the street. If you call (or have your hotel/restaurant call) one of the established taxi services, such as AAA or City Taxi it will not happen.

The official airport taxis all charge the same, about $25-30. There is also a bus that takes you right to the subway for less than a $1. Public transportation is definitely the way to travel in Prague.

NYC’s Taxis go Hybrid: Yellow Can be Green

by Iva Skoch on

NYC’s Mayor Bloomberg announced a plan to have the entire NYC fleet of taxicabs change to hybrids within five years. With 13,000 cabs, this is a tall order.

There are about 400 hybrid taxis currently in use now, and they’ve had good reviews from riders and drivers. Taxi models include the Toyota Prius, the Toyota Highlander Hybrid, the Lexus RX 400h, and the Ford Escape. Expect the number to double next year, and increase until the whole fleet is hybrid in 2012.

The fuel savings will be enormous. The current standard taxicab, a Ford Crown Victoria (at right), averages 14 miles to the gallon (mpg), while a hybrid Ford Escape can average 36 mpg. This can translate into savings of $10,000 in gasoline! And that’s not to mention the reduced carbon emissions footprint.

This is all part of Bloomberg’s greening efforts, which might include congestion charges as well. And this is coming from the city that already is one of the greenest in America.

Garden in Transit: New York City in Full Bloom

by Justin Glow on

New York City, get ready for some color.

Garden in Transit is a city art project organized to paint colorful flowers on weatherproof panels that will be placed on tops of approximately 12,000 taxis in the New York City area.

Non-profit organization Portraits for Hope are organizing this “groundbreaking motivational art, education, and creative therapy project” which will use the artistic talents of kids in the pediatrics department at America’s oldest hospital, Bellevue. “Beginning in September 2007 and until year’s end, New York City will be visually transformed, as the ubiquitous yellow icon becomes a mobile artistic canvas.”

This is all being done in conjunction with Taxi ’07, celebrating 100 years of metered taxi service in New York City, which Gadling covered last month. More photos after the jump.