New York Taxi

[Chips401]

We decided to stay in Brooklyn as we just want to catch the ship at the Brooklyn terminal and are not interested in sightseeing in New York.  My question:  Anyone with experience with New York taxis?  Do they charge a flat rate? Is it credit card only?  Is the tip added on or do you need cash? Are there a company more reliable than another? Sorry for the silly questions but it had been a long time since we were in a big city like New York. Everything has changed so much since Covid.

[GTJ]

No, it is not a flat rate (except for the singular exception of service to and from JFK airport). The fare varies primarily with distance. No, it is not credit card only. You determine if, and how much, to tip. There are no distinguishable yellow taxi companies. While some taxis are part of a fleet, one yellow taxi is indistinguishable from another. The green taxis are marked with a company name, it is largely meaningless. You simply hail a taxi, or board whichever taxi is next at a stand. All of this has remained the same since before COVID-19.

[George C]

Agree fare by distance but also by time you pay if it gets stuck in traffic, I prefer Uber or Lyft where price is predetermined. 

[njhorseman]

3 hours ago, GTJ said:

No, it is not a flat rate (except for the singular exception of service to and from JFK airport).

As you surely know taxi service to and from JFK is a flat rate only when the origin or destination of the trip is Manhattan. So if the OP, who is staying in Brooklyn, were to take a taxi from JFK to their hotel in Brooklyn it would be a metered rate, not a flat rate. 

I realize that the OP asked specifically about taxi fare from their hotel in Brooklyn to the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal, not between JFK and their hotel in Brooklyn, but I don't want someone else to read your answer and mistakenly conclude that taxi service between JFK and anywhere in NYC is a flat rate fare.

[GTJ]

2 minutes ago, njhorseman said:

As you surely know taxi service to and from JFK is a flat rate only when the origin or destination of the trip is Manhattan.

Yes, indeed. Where I remain a bit uncertain is whether a flat fare remains in effect from certain taxi stands on York Avenue, in Yorkville, to Pearl Street and the World Financial Center in lower Manhattan, on weekdays between 7:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m. This was established as a $6.00 per-person flat fare, for what was essentially a fixed-route yellow taxi service, replacing the former x90 express bus route. Another flat fare applied from Port Authority Bus Terminal to 59th Street and Sixth Avenue, weekdays between 6:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m., for $3.00 per person as a flat fare. I do not know the current status of these flat fare exceptions. http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/group-ride-taxi-stands-manhattan-big-flops-city-tlc-czar-david-yassky-article-1.188801 So there are certain exceptions (with myriad rules for the application of those exceptions), though the number of exceptions has been limited. But what I think was being asked is whether taxi fares, generally, are fixed or variable, and in New York City the general rule is that taxi fares are variable with very few exceptions.

[Nitemare]

Tip rate is usually 20% or so.  More if the driver helps with alot of luggage.  A bit less if they drive wrecklessly or are rude or have the radio loud.