Talk:Taxicab

Rooftop light operation

Nothing is mentioned about how the rooftop light reflects the availability of a particular taxi. Furthermore, there is some third light mode, apart from the On and Off modes, signaling some other availability stance. I've always wanted to know. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 193.150.245.77 (talk) 21:55, 8 November 2011 (UTC)

Mercedes-Benz cabs

In Europe Mercedes-Benz cars are generally less expensive the in US and are available with smaller engines and less luxury features. I don't think there use in Europe is because cab providers are willing to spend a more money; rather it's just differences in the local automobile market.

Regulation section

seems full of WP:POV and slanted viewpoints. LibStar (talk) 02:39, 14 July 2011 (UTC)

Those were my thoughts, too. Just to give an example from where I live: laws requiring liability insurance for the vehicles (and other related laws/regulations) tend to set the tone for the cost structure of the business. Without setting limits on the number of taxicabs, the business becomes all about the owners making money. Any regard for the drivers making money becomes purely incidental. If it weren't for drivers showing up and literally putting their asses on the line to haul people around, there would be no business. You then enter into the realm of social engineering and preying upon human desperation. OTOH, absent limits on the number of taxicabs, there is a tendency for things to even out by itself. The ability of owners to put cabs on the streets diminishes as drivers fall by the wayside, once you enter into a scenario where there's no possible way to continue to do this when your income level falls below the cost of living, because the pie has been cut into too many pieces to feed everyone.

I feel a "Regulation" section is necessary to the article. However, in keeping with WP:RS, there should be mentions of historical efforts made to regulate or deregulate taxicabs. When this has occurred, it typically has been enough of a media topic to where there should be no problems in finding reliably sourced information to include.

As a side issue, the photos in the article are beginning to overtake the text in quite a substantial portion of the article.RadioKAOS (talk) 13:43, 9 October 2011 (UTC)

I noticed that that section is biased, too. It is very pro-deregulation. I especially thought that the "Opposition to liberalization" section was biased, despite looking like a counter-bais at the surface:Jay8g ^{Hi!- I am... -What I do...} _{WASH- BRIDGE- WPWA - MFIC- WPIM} 18:05, 24 December 2011 (UTC)

Diesel / Diesel electric

Under the section "Alternative fuels and propulsion", no mention is made of Diesel powered taxis. Almost all of London's taxi fleet is diesel powered, and a large proportion of taxis in greater Europe are as well. Diesel - and biodiesel - are an important component of alternative fuels. Because of the fuel's greater energy density than gasonline and gaseous fuel, a given volume of diesel is inherently more energetic than its competitors. In addition, the diesel cycle - in which air is compressed two to three times higher than in the otto cycle, and then fuel is added - produces a much higher combustion temperature, and is therefore signifigantly more efficient. Diesel powered cars are typically 50 to 70% more efficient than gasoline equivalents. Thus an '02 Volkswagen Beetle gets 30 mpg. But the diesel powered variant gets 47 mpg. So, althogh diesels are only marginally less polluting per gallon burned than gasoline engines, and slightly more polluting in some categories such as particulates and nitrous oxide, the fact that a third less fuel is burned per mile driven makes them much less polluting than their gasoline powered counterparts, and slightly less polluting than hybrids. Let me reiterate that last point: diesels pollute less, and get better miles per gallon, than hybrids. Could we add them to this section, then? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.164.22.7 (talk) 11:43, 27 August 2011 (UTC)

Etymology of Taxi

I am trying to find the earliest use of the word taxi, but I think that the French derivation is not from the German through medeival latin taxa (charge) but from the house of Thurn und Taxis, which invented the first postal service. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thurn_und_Taxis — Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.224.196.196 (talk) 06:03, 23 October 2011 (UTC)