The Topeka state journal., 1922-04-29

Every normal day in the taxi-cab
business in Topeka. means nine diff
ferent peaks, or periods during which
the demand for taxi-cabs is unusually
heavy, according to Roy Payne, of the
| Yellow Cab company There are five
in length from thirty minutes to more
than an hour, in the normal days
business.
Each peak in calls is caused by the
arrival and departure of railroad
trains. The big one" occurs between
1O:45 o'clock and 11:15 o'clock in the
/ morning. In the space of thirty
minutes. passengers are handled to
and from two Union Pacific. two Rock
Island, and three Santa Fe trains.
The five minor peaks occur as fol-
lows: from 4;30 a m to a. M,
! caused by the arrival of three Rock
Island and two Santa Fe trains; from
6:45 a. m to 7:15 a. m, caused by
the arrival OF one Rock Island and
one Union Pacific train; from 9:15
/ a m. to 1900 a. m, caused by the
arrival Of one Rock Island, one Santa
Fe and one Union Pacific train; from
1890 p. m. to 100 D. m, caused by
the arrival of one Union Pacific, one
Rock Island and two Santa Fe trains:
/ from 1880 D. m. to 5:15 .. m, caused
| by the arrival of one Union Pacific,
cific train.
-Four ''NIajor'' Peaks.
/ Tho four major peaks occur as fol-
lows: from 1O:45 a. m. to 1915 a. m,
caused by the arrival of two Union Pa
cific. two Rock Island, and three
| santa Fe trains; from $3.50 D. m. to
$3.50 D. m, caused by the arrival of
| three Rock Island, one Union Pacific
and one Santa Fe trains; from $50
/ D. m. TO S:15 D. m, caused by the ar
Union Pacific trains and three Rock
Island trains; from 1880 p. m. to
1890 a. m, caused by the arrival of
two Rock Island trains. two Santa Fe
trains and the stopping OF the street
cars at midnight
These are the normal daily peaks
Of the business. There are others, of
course. which are dictated by abnor-
NAL circumstances. such as storms A
sudden storm occurring Just at >
O'Clock in the evening, or just about
theater time will make the most
abrupt possible peak.
That's when last minute shoppers,
homebound office workers. business
men whose business doesn't run TO
motor cars. and the others, discover
that they can't walk home: when the
street cars are jammed to capacity,
ana service is possibly crippled.
Or. if it's about time for the theater
or the dance, the dated swain discov-
ers that his sweetie's get-up and
makeup won't stand for stroll thru
the showers. and that If he is going
anywhere with her, he'n have to pro-
vide transportation.
When Taxicabs Get Lost.
or course, everybody wants to go
home or to the theater at the same
time. and It is at these peaks that
the dispatchers of the Yellow Cabs
sometimes don't know where half Of
their cabs are. "Pick-ups'' have alb
sorbed the whole force on the streets.
1t is at these severe peaks that -he
extra board meA are put into cabs.
r iftt rent of @1p HTln nrdf-
narily drive baggabe trucks are quail
tied to drive taxicabs, and they are
put on duty. Roy Papne himself
sometimes takes the dispatchinC
wheel OF a cab.
The peaks by weeks and months are
as regular and normal as are the peaks |
in the hours of each day Midnight
Saturday night the busiest hour of
the week commences. The crowds
down town are larger, and, as a nat
ural consequence. those who miss the
last street car are more numerous. !
People stay down town later on Sat |
urday night than on a week day. be- |
cause as a rule they are not planning /
to get up early in the morning.
From Saturday night the number of
until Thursday, when it touches bot /
tom" and the graphic curve repre- |
senting taxi-cab business would COM /
mence to climb again, until 1t reaches |
the peak of business the following
Saturday.
Travelling Men Leave On Sunday.
Payne was at a loss to account for |
the weekly curve. except in that Sat
urday night is the night for travelling I
men to go to Kansas City, and that all /
day Saturday Topeka students from 1
K L. are returning to spend Sunday /
or part of it, at home.
Sunday, which might be guessed as
dull day. ranks second in the week, /
altho the churches. the main industries /
OF the day, are very poor producers
OF taxicab business, Payne says. There I
are some calls early Sunday morning 4
when Catholics so to early mass and
Episcopalians to early communion
services. A very respectable peak is
established early on Easter morning
When the business Of the entire
year is considered the Christmas holf-
days furnish the annual peak
Cur biggest day is twenty-six hours
long, Payne says. Tt begins on New
Years Eve and ends with New Years
Day-an hour before New Years Day
and an hour after.
"On New Years eve, from 1880 D.
m. till $3.50 on the morning of New
Fears day, there is a mad rush for
cabs, faster than We can possibly an
swer the calls
More Business in Winter.
In winter there is more taxicab
business than in summer, and in sum-
mer there is more business with the
trucks, Payne says. Snowy winter
weather means the biggest volume of
business
The peak loads in the taxicab busi-
ness OF the Yellow Cab company are
met by a complicated ARRANGEMENT
OF the shifts in which the men work.
so that two, three or even four shifts
OF men "dovetailn at the time the big
peaks occur. Emergencies. E5 as
storms coming down suddenly. are
met by the calling in of the reserve
drivers from the trucks. the extra
board men, who show up at stated
hours. and emergency drivers recruit