| By :
Nick Messe
Taxi services have reportedly been utilized since ancient times to provide a means of transportation to individuals who desired to go from one destination to another. Romans had devices attached to the axles of vehicles that dispensed pebbles or balls. The fare was determined by how many objects had been dispensed. The first verifiable taxi cab service used horse drawn carriages or hackneys in the 17th century. Nicholas Sauvage developed a company in 1640 and named the vehicles fiacres, as the business was located across from a statue of St. Fiacre. The French continue to use the term, but in Germany, the cars are known as fiaker. Different company services were denoted by the color of the carriage and by the uniform worn by the driver. Wilhelm Bruhn invented the taximeter in 1891. Gottlieb Daimler introduced the first meter-equipped taxi in 1897. Gas powered cabs came into existence in Paris in the year 1899. London had them in 1903. Harry N. Allan imported the taxi from France, bringing them to New York in 1907. Mr. Allan was also the first to paint taxi cabs yellow. In 1960, New York passed a law that required all cabs to be painted yellow. The Checker Company also started manufacturing cabs at this time. Their cars continue to have the famous black and white checkerboard pattern on the vehicle. Orange County Florida cabs are painted orange, and Mexico City has green VW's with silver tops. The elite taxicabs in London are painted black while many regions have no special company paint style or logo. Two-way radios were employed in the 1940's as a means for dispatch offices and taxi drivers to communicate. By the 1980's, computer dispatching systems emerged. Europe started using diesel engines in taxis in the 1960's, as the diesels are more fuel efficient and reliable than typical gas powered engines. Basic models of the Mercedes-Benz and Peugeot automobiles were put into service and are still used in the present day. Packards and DeSotos were the taxicabs of the 1930's in the US. Havana Cuba has CoCo taxis that are bubble like in appearance with a place for the driver and a backseat for passengers. Taxi cab services are hired by calling a dispatch center or flagged on the street. Some areas only allow drivers to pick up passengers that have been dispatched from the office. Certain companies have specific locations where cabs are parked. Others park at public facilities where transportation is generally required, such as an airport taxi. Ferries to cross waterways are a form of taxi that has been in service for hundreds of years. Gondolas navigated by human and water power are traditional in Venice. New York has water taxi boats that are painted yellow and have a checkerboard pattern along the bottom. Stretch taxis or Ladas are common in Europe. Many destinations around the world have bicycle-powered cabs. India, Peru, Vietnam, Spain and Germany are a few of the countries that use human powered taxis. A bicycle or tricycle frame is elongated and a metal, fiberglass or similar material is used for the body. Canvas covers the sides and top. Styles in bike taxis vary greatly with some having primitive structure and others designed more elaborately.
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