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Most Popular Papers and Reports

CITYinFLUX: Understanding and Untangling Traffic and Transportation in New York City (pdf file)

In the Bloomberg Administration's sustainability plan for 2030, PlaNYC, released in April 2207, traffic and transportation were central elements. This report, issued in anticipation of PlaNYC, presents key facts about traffic and transportation in the New York City, the problems that confront the city in these areas, and discusses the types of policies that should be pursued. (2007)

Free Parking, Congested Streets: The Skewed Economic Incentives to Drive in Manhattan (pdf file)

Why do commuters drive to work when most could be taking transit? The study shows that it's all about the free parking. Results from a survey of over 1,600 motorists in Manhattan show how many have parked in Manhattan, how much parking costs, and who pays. Summary (2007)

Battling Traffic: What New Yorkers Think About Road Pricing

Congestion pricing and other fees to use the public street space have provided traffic relief in cities as diverse as London and Los Angeles. Does road pricing make sense in New York? What type of road pricing would win support from the public and be feasible and effective? A report commissioned by the Manhattan Institute, an op-ed column in the New York Times and a Gotham Gazette column addresses these questions, proposes a road pricing plan for New York, and addresses the arguments of congestion pricing opponents. Summary (2006)

Necessity or Choice? Why People Drive in Manhattan (pdf file)

With space at a premium in New York City, what would happen if auto use were restricted in favor of buses, pedestrians and bicyclists? Do auto users have realistic transit options? How would they get to work, shopping or the theatre without their cars? What would be the economic and traffic impacts? This report is intended to help New Yorkers evaluate how much space should be devoted to personal auto travel based on the facts about auto use in the Manhattan central business district. (2006)

The Changing Face of Taxi and Limousine Drivers:
U.S., Large States and Metro Areas and New York City

Twelve percent of Americans used a taxi or limousine service in the previous month. Who are the men and occasionally women who deliver taxi and limousine services? What are their backgrounds, how much do they work, how much do they earn?

Based on U.S. Census data, this report shows the increase in immigrant drivers and the predominance of men (although the number of female drivers is growing) in a wide ranging profile of taxi and limo drivers. (2004)

The Taxi Vehicle in the Ideal Taxi System

The cab fleet is not just 13,000 individual vehicles -- it also forms a spatial, economic, environmental and social system. This essay, written as part of the Design Trust for Public Space's 2005 Designing the Taxi project and exhibition, assesses the current taxi system and proposes possible systemic changes to improve service.

2006 Taxicab Fact Book
(pdf file)

Revised in March 2006, this is the "indispensable" guide to the New York City taxicab industry, says the Financial Times of London. Information on taxi ridership, trip purposes, fares, customer satisfaction, service availability, industry finances, driver earnings, medallion prices, cars, accidents, driver quality, driver background and nationality, and history and development of the NYC taxi industry.

Issues in Taxi Regulation

Who drives taxicabs and why? What are their major problems? How do their problems affect the industry and passengers? How is the taxi industry organized? Is the famous (or infamous) taxi medallion system good or bad? What is leasing? Why do drivers hate it? Are their complaints merited? How has leasing affected the industry? And what can be done about the "taxi mess"?

This 3-part series of papers examines these questions and evaluates a range of policy solutions. Published in the journal Transportation Quarterly, Fall 1995, Winter 1996 and Spring 1996.

• Brief Summary and table of contents for each paper
• "Factors of Production in a Regulated Industry: Improving the Proficiency of NYC Taxicab Drivers" shows how service problems in the taxi industry stem from inadequate driver wages and difficult working conditions.
• "Villain or Bogeyman? New York's Taxi Medallion System" evaluates the widespread notion that the medallion system is the root of service problems, and finds that the growth of taxicab leasing over the last 15 years has had a far more pernicious effect on service quality than has the medallion system.
• "Fixing New York City Taxi Service" looks to the future, analyzing nine strategies for improving service, evaluating the likely efficacy of recent city regulations and the potential of market-based policies.

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