American Notes.
Page 42
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From Our New York Correspondent.
The motorcab boom which has struck Paris and London has not yet arrived in New York. When it does come, supposing of course that it brings with it the -taximeter, its success should be enormous. The London cabby is sometimes said to be extortionate; after a short acquaintance with his New York comrade, one can dub him a lamb. In this bustling city the jehu will take you for a 20 minutes' drive and ask for six dollars without the shadow of a blush. The clumsy electric cabs which New York possesses are free from wholesale robbery, say their owners, but there seems to be some difference of opinion as to the exact significance of this unpleasant word. Leaders of the automobile world with whom I have spoken on this subject lately are unanimous in declaring that there is a considerable amount of money to be made on a taximeter cab service in New York. The first firm to put a couple of hundred modern motorcabs on the streets will be certain to meet with a huge success. Up to the present nothing has been done. Renault machines were announced for this year, and a private comPany was to be formed to run them, but the difficulty has been to get de
livery. ' Negotiations are in hand for forming a company to operate the new Darracq machines, now being turned out in large quantities from the Suresnes factory, but, again, nothing definite has been done.
Some Americans have studied the situation, notable among them being Mr. C. W. Kelsey, of the Maxwell-Briscoe firm, who last year visited Europe and closely inspected the various motorcab services. It is his intention to enter largely into this business, confining himself not merely to cabs, but also giving attention to the problem of parcel deliveries for large business houses, by renting out vehicles somewhat on the lines of the firms supplying electrics for such stores as the " Samaritaine," in Paris.
The need, however, is a pressing one, and much time will he lost before the Maxwell-Briscoe people can have their factory in working order. There are certain difficulties in connection with a taximeter motorcab service in New York which do not apply to London or Paris. The city is long and narrow, with the business quarter at the lower end, and the residential section at the upper end of the town. Cabs would,
thus, often have to return long distances from the upper end of the town without a chance of picking up a fare. London and Paris, on the other hand, allow of the cabs working within a circle, with practically no loss from empty return journeys. The advantages are : that the city is level; and that a high rate of fare can be obtained, even after making a big reduction on the present horse-cab fares. Probably before many weeks are past, there will be a big rush to get into the business, and we shall suddenly find New York's streets filled with motorcabs. It is safe to predict a comfortable dividend for the capitalist putting forth the first well-managed company. It is to be hoped for the sake of the reputation of the city that there will not be a repetition of the Fifth Avenue farce. In this aristocratic quarter, the residence of the Vanderbilts, Astors, Goulds, Carnegies, and others, a dirty, ramshackle, antiquated, two-horse bus was the only public transport service until a single, London, De Dion omnibus was sent to join it a few weeks ago. The old and the new run up and down
alternately, one of each. And New York claims to be a go-ahead city I