page_title: Taxicab
section_title: Hiring
hierarchical_section_title: Taxicab / Hiring
caption_attribution_description: Español: Fila de taxis junto al International Commerce Centre, Kowloon, Hong Kong English: Row of taxis at the International Commerce Centre, Kowloon, Hong Kong Français&#160;: File de taxis à l'International Commerce Centre, Kowloon, Hong Kong Deutsch: Eine Reihe von Taxis am International Commerce Centre, Kowloon, Hong Kong
context_page_description: A taxicab, also known as a taxi or a cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of their choice. This differs from public transport where the pick-up and drop-off locations are decided by the service provider, not by the customers, although demand responsive transport and share taxis provide a hybrid bus/taxi mode.
  There are four distinct forms of taxicab, which can be identified by slightly differing terms in different countries:
  Hackney carriages, also known as public hire, hailed or street taxis, licensed for hailing throughout communities
  Private hire vehicles, also known as minicabs or private hire taxis, licensed for pre-booking only
  Taxibuses, also come in many variations throughout the developing countries as jitneys or jeepney, operating on pre-set routes typified by multiple stops and multiple independent passengers
  Limousines, specialized vehicle licensed for operation by pre-booking
context_section_description: Most places allow a taxi to be "hailed" or "flagged" on the side of the street as it is approaching. Another option is a taxi stand (sometimes also called a "cab stand," "hack stand," "taxi rank," or "cab rank"). Taxi stands are usually located at airports, railway stations, major retail areas (malls), hotels and other places where a large number of passengers are likely to be found. In some places —Japan, for example— taxi stands are arranged according to the size of the taxis, so that large- and small-capacity cabs line up separately. The taxi at the front of the line is due (barring unusual circumstances) for the next fare.
  Passengers also commonly call a central dispatch office for taxis. In some jurisdictions, private hire vehicles can only be hired from the dispatch office, and must be assigned each fare by the office by radio or phone. Picking up passengers off the street in these areas can lead to suspension or revocation of the driver's taxi license, or even prosecution.
  Other areas may have a mix of the two systems, where drivers may respond to radio calls and also pick up street fares.
  Passengers may also hire taxicabs via mobile apps. While not directly involving the call center, the taxis are still monitored by the dispatcher through GPS tracking. Many taxicab companies, including Gett, Easy Taxi, and GrabTaxi provide mobile apps.
caption: Toyota Crown Comfort taxicabs lined up in front of Kowloon Waterfront in Hong Kong
exif: {"Image Make": "Canon", "Image Model": "Canon EOS 5D Mark II", "Image XResolution": "300", "Image YResolution": "300", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 4.4 (Windows)", "Image DateTime": "2013:09:07 12:16:19", "Image Artist": "Diego Delso", "Image Copyright": "CC-BY-SA 3.0", "Image ExifOffset": "264", "EXIF ExposureTime": "1/80", "EXIF FNumber": "13", "EXIF ExposureProgram": "Manual", "EXIF ISOSpeedRatings": "100", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0230", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2013:08:09 17:21:01", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2013:08:09 17:21:01", "EXIF ShutterSpeedValue": "790241/125000", "EXIF ApertureValue": "7400879/1000000", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "0", "EXIF MaxApertureValue": "4", "EXIF MeteringMode": "Pattern", "EXIF Flash": "Flash did not fire, compulsory flash mode", "EXIF FocalLength": "40", "EXIF SubSecTimeOriginal": "77", "EXIF SubSecTimeDigitized": "77", "EXIF FocalPlaneXResolution": "5616000/1459", "EXIF FocalPlaneYResolution": "1872000/479", "EXIF FocalPlaneResolutionUnit": "2", "EXIF CustomRendered": "Normal", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Manual Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard", "EXIF BodySerialNumber": "4262104084", "EXIF LensSpecification": "[17, 40, 0/0, 0/0]", "EXIF LensModel": "EF17-40mm f/4L USM"}