Bostonia Rantida

Thursday, May 27, 2010

Cabs Hate Me, I Hate Cabs

I already won't take a cab anywhere unless I'm absolutely desperate (re: after the T stops running) or someone else is paying for it. Why? Too many extra special long rides.* In high heels one night walking from Washington Square to Brighton Center, I got sick of my sore feet and hailed a cab just before Comm Ave, asking to be dropped "just up at Washington and Cambridge." When the guy inexplicably took a right up Comm, putting the ride into "WTF" territory, I asked him what the hell he was doing (although I'm kind of a pushover so I said it nicer than that). He was going to take me to Government Center. Hey dude -- while that is where there is a Cambridge Street and a Washington Street also, they don't intersect, and I was WALKING UP WASHINGTON STREET IN BROOKLINE. I told him that his idea of a place wasn't real and had him turn around immediately, but the first place that happens is quite a ways down the road. Fuming, when we got to the ACTUAL CONVERGENCE of said streets, I gave him exact fare.**

There was a time when I got taken on a $20 ride going from Charles MGH to Broadway and Prospect. We were hammered and not paying attention (okay, making out) so I guess he thought it would be funny to take us for a ride!

I mean, these are just two of my stories, and everyone I know has tons of them -- the cab who takes you to South Boston when you wanted to go to the South End, the cab who takes Mass Ave from MIT to Davis. I mean, it's helpful if you know where you're going anyway, obviously, but a lot of people don't.

Anyway, cabs are my latest point of hate since, when I'm being a good little doobie and biking in the middle of the right lane -- being obvious so I don't get side swiped, plus also away from possible doorings. And this is on Boylston, the frigging widest street in Boston.*** This morning one taxi driver yells at me to stay to the right -- this keeps happening, and it's ALWAYS taxis (I should also like to mention the culpability of hotels in the enabling of cab craziness -- whipping across three lanes of traffic when you hear a whistle is not awesome either).

So here's what I propose: Mayor Menino, since you like biking so much, can you do something about the taxis that don't know I'm allowed to take up a whole lane? Distribute a memo, make it part of getting a commercial license, whatever. I don't know what you can do, but do something.

I'd also like to mention that I was right behind this very cab for the next two blocks, stopping behind him at two red lights. Clearly, he had somewhere to be and I should've gotten out of the way!

*Blah blah blah I'm sure some cabbies are nice but I never get those ones.

**Apparently there is technically another Cambridge and Washington intersection on the Charlestown-Somerville line (thanks Google Maps), but that wasn't where I was being taken, and anyway that's awfully obscure considering.

***Okay, probably not, but it's pretty damn wide for a one-way.

1 Comments:

Blogger Unknown said...

Well we could do all that or... you could stop being a wine bag give specific instructions to the drivers the minute you set foot in the car and keep the toy bikes in the yard where they belong.

Whata you say gonna grow up and get a car some day? You know a big boy form of transportation?

http://southiecab.com
http://southbostontaxi.com
http://southbostontaxicab.com

11:30 PM  

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