New App Lets Riders Hail a NYC Cab By Smartphone
Taxi driver Roland Sainristil displays the driver’s ZabKab app on his smartphone. (Source:AP Photo/Richard Drew)
NEW YORK (AP) - Hailing a taxi on a New York street is going high-tech - with a smartphone application.
Starting Wednesday, a passenger can send out a hailing signal to cabs with a matching app, within about a five-block area.
Martin Heikel, co-founder of the ZabKab app, says the venture started when business partner Ben Millspaugh felt frustrated "not being able to get a cab when and where he needed one."
So far, Heikel says about 1,000 of the city’s more than 13,000 yellow cab drivers have downloaded the app.
When a hailing icon pops up, the driver sees the passenger’s location.
Drivers will be charged $14.95 a month, or $9.95 on a six-month subscription - after several promotional, cost-free months.
The passenger app is free of charge.
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