And no, they're not driving Toyota Prius or Lexus RX400h cars, mostly more humble Fords.
Yep, the big Crown Victoria sedans are still the ubiquitous mainstay cars of the Big Apple's yellow cab fleets ... but the most visible other car is the Ford Escape hybrid.
The Escape is an SUV about the size of a Toyota RAV4. Sure, it gets just a tad cramped with three in the back (a fourth passenger is allowed up front), but the cars have another advantage in that they can nimbly slip across traffic to a hailing customer more easily than the flabby Crown Vics.
NYC taxis are much better equipped than their Dublin counterparts too. The Escapes have touch-screen maps in the back linked to GPS, so passengers can both see where they're being taken and where they've been. Also you can pay simply by putting your credit or debit card in a slot. They prefer their tips in cash, though.
They still don't have electronic translators, though. A bit of a pain when so many of the drivers are men whose primary, and sometimes only, language is other than English.
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