kfarr » radio

Driving April 22

kfarr — Sat, 24 Apr 2010 01:27:37 +0000

It’s time to try this blogging thing again.

Yesterday I drove a normal “extra” day shift from 7a-5p. Some notes:

I drove my favorite taxicab: the Toyota Camry Hybrid. Ample space, great handling, adequate (but not stellar) gas mileage, smooth ride, good stereo and accessories, nice pickup.
I thought I would tire of cab driving after a year, but I still enjoy it. Approaching my third year. Scary! Admittedly, it is much more fun to drive just 1 or 2 days a week. When I drove 3+ per week it felt like a job.
Thursday was a very busy day, owing in part to a fatal Muni accident which shut down all inbound/outbound Muni Metro service for a significant portion of the day.
However, both as a dispatch order taker and as a driver I notice a significant improvement in demand for taxicabs (and thus earnings) compared to last year. Last winter was the toughest I ever experienced driving a cab, when $150 take-home seemed like an amazing accomplishment. (My all-time average prior was $170 per shift, so a peak of $150 per shift is extremely scary.)

In the mornings in the dispatch office we notice significantly higher numbers of airport advances and generally higher numbers of inbound calls. On the street I’m again finding hails in unpredictable areas, a fun sign of increased demand.

It is fascinating to directly experience fluctuation in demand for a service I provide that so closely parallels the greater economy.
I had an amazing nonstop pickup streak yesterday. As a day driver, it’s tough for me to encounter this regularly, but some night drivers (especially on weekends) are very familiar with this feeling: when you drop and have an immediate or near-immediate followup fare it’s like a drug.
Here’s mine:
- Picked up a radio call at the St Francis hospital. An older woman got in my cab and we headed out to her home in the Inner Sunset. We spoke at length about her ailment, apparently some sort of muscle related pain in her legs. She’s going through physical therapy at the St Francis.
  I love the drive from St Francis hospital to the Sunset district. That’s fortunate for me, as countless elderly ladies seem to regularly commute to and from the St Francis hospital and the Sunset. They should have just put the St Francis in the Sunset.
  
  Depending on the traffic I’ll head down Hyde, out Turk to Masonic, out Masonic to Lincoln to 7th Ave and left. As we passed by an elder home I saw an elderly couple desperately hailing. Noted.
  
  Dropped off my St Francis fare and returned. They were still there!
- Very short fare, from 7th Ave and Irving to the UC Hospital (near 3rd and Parnassus). Checked in via radio for an en route order at the UC Hospital. She was ready to go as soon as I arrived and heading toward Glen Park.
  When I first started driving I wouldn’t have been excited to go to Glen Park from the UC. The optimal route is difficult to determine given rush hour traffic and traffic signal priorities, and Diamond Heights/Glen Park is rather maze like. In my wiser years my ways have changed. I worked out a nice path and we flew down O’Shaughnessy with Toyota’s Hybrid drivetrain whining in pleasure as it gobbled up regenerative juice.
  
  After dropping checked in for an order nearby in Bernal Heights. Another case of “if I had just started driving I wouldn’t know where the f* those streets are.” But, now I know and it was close by.
- Picked up a middle-aged lady from the Bernal Heights Library. (Thanks for waiting, middle-aged lady.) She had just finished her weekly writing class which she enjoys immensely. Dropped at 23rd and Dolores.
  23rd and Dolores is rather residential and not a prime place for finding passengers or hailing cabs. I spent a minute filling out my waybill after my passenger had departed. To my surprise a man gave me the “eye” as he walked toward my freshly empty cab and I gladly welcomed him in. We headed downtown. Nice. $70 (revenue, not income) in about in hour. Keep up the good work, San Francisco economy.
Thursdays I work in the dispatch office for a few hours before driving. Normally I answer incoming telephone requests for taxi service. I kindly greet our callers and enter / confirm their address, destination and special needs. Dispatch operations at our company use an older but very effective computer solution from the 90s. The system automatically remembers past callers and matches their address. I simply send this to the dispatcher’s screen and s/he sees all the currently open orders. (I’ve written about the radio dispatch process once or twice before.)
Unfortunately this past Thursday our computers didn’t cooperate so we were forced to use the old fashioned system — paper and pen. I take orders (address and phone) on the left side of a pad of paper, the dispatcher finds cabs and writes the cab number on the right side of the paper.

I was amazed at how well this worked. For the drivers and customers there was little difference between the two systems. We were able to dispatch drivers to hundreds of dollars worth of business with a phone, a pad of paper, and a motorola radio. Sometimes low tech is okay.
Sometimes high tech is okay too. Thursday I made an extra $70 during my shift using Cabulous, smart phone software that connects individual drivers with passengers via GPS maps. (Disclaimer: I am an advisor to the Cabulous team.)
So far the Cabulous team has been doing their best to balance the difficult equations of driver availability vs passenger demand on the Cabulous network. But, regardless of technology used, from hailing a cab with your hand to calling a company dispatch service, this is an impossible task.

I’ve helped test the Cabulous driver system on the iPhone on AT&T and my BlackBerry 8820 on T-Mobile. Over the past 6 months of testing and subsequent public release regular usage I haven’t earned much more than $20 per shift and not usually exceeding 2 successful hails per shift using Cabulous.

Yesterday was different. As usual, I used the J2ME CabulousLite app on my BlackBerry 8820 on T-Mobile. The “lite” app uses a very basic interface to let me login and then it simply periodically reports my GPS location to the Cabulous server. Twilio integration notifies me via telephone text to speech where people have hailed me, and if I accept then I can call the passenger directly.

I was amazed by how much extra it earned me — I earned just over $70 just from Cabulous yesterday. I was also impressed how well it integrated with my normal sources of fares: street hails and traditional radio dispatch.

Here are my Cabulous hails:
- After picking up a radio dispatch order in Marina/Cow Hollow I was headed toward the JCC with a very precocious 5 year old and her adoring mother. (When I had pulled up to their luxurious abode the 5-year old clearly raised her hand to hail my cab. A lifelong customer.)
  Approaching the JCC I received a Cabulous call. (Unfortunately, there isn’t a good way to distinguish a Cabulous call from a personal call, my only hint is whether or not the incoming call registers as an existing entry in my personal address book.) Clicked on the speakerphone to hear madame Twilio say it was relatively close — Golden Gate and Scott. (Another “unfortunately”, the Twilio robot only gives me the raw address. As a somewhat experienced driver I’m able to ballpark the intersection hearing an address, but many new drivers wouldn’t be able to determine the pickup point without a cross street.) The JCC is at California and Presidio. 10 minutes max, more like 5.
  
  The fascinating part about Cabulous is that technology alone does not make the system successful – it’s half technology and half driver initiative that makes a positive experience for both the driver and passenger. As I use the system more it becomes clear that significantly more onus is placed on the driver to provide a good experience for the passenger with Cabulous than with traditional dispatch (and even traditional computerized dispatch solutions like DDS).
  
  I now call all passengers as soon as I accept the hail. I call them to accomplish a few key goals:
  - Establish a personal relationship: I identify my name and taxi company affiliation and confirm that they hailed me using Cabulous.
  - Confirm pickup location: “Are you at 2238 Geary at Divisadero?”
  - Sometimes I’ll ask their destination if it’s a distant location.
  - Estimate arrival time and receive verbal commitment that party will wait for me. This is crucial. In this case, “I’m about 5-10 minutes away, are you willing to wait?”
  The amazing thing here is that humans are much more willing to wait if they are “in” the queue and have an accurate estimate of time. Humans get very angry when they are queueing for an indeterminate amount of time, worse if they’re queuing for a falsely reporting amount of time, and worst of all if they’re queuing for an unknown time and believe that the queuing/fulfillment system is flawed.
  
  In this case, the above phone call addresses all the above common queue concerns: yes, you’re “in the queue”; yes, there’s an accurate estimate of time; yes, there’s a fair and transparent queueing system (it’s simple: you’re next).
  
  I picked up the fare at Scott and Golden Gate, and saw an empty taxicab drive by. My passenger didn’t even consider hailing him, he knew I was on the way. He paid me well. $20
- I had picked up another radio order, also from Cow Hollow, but this time heading downtown.
  I received the Cabulous hail just after the passenger entered the vehicle. I’m a good sport so I accepted to see where they were — maybe they’d be close to our destination. (Unfortunately, a driver must accept the order before the location is revealed.) To my surprise the order was downtown, perfect.
  
  I called the passenger to confirm his location and that he was indeed willing to wait for me to arrive. Again, this is essential for both parties to have comfort with the transaction. He was still in an office and would wait for me to get there before even going down. Nice, captive audiences are best. I didn’t ask destination.
  
  After dropping my fare off nearby I headed around the corner and stopped at the address given and gave him a quick call. He saw me (told me my cab number and color from his upstairs view) and said he’d be down in a few. 10 minutes later I wondered if I had made a mistake. Should I have taken him at his word? Did he just grab another cab? I called him back, “I’ll be down in 5. Going to SFO.” He knew the magic words. Nice trip to the airport, $40.
- Last fare was a pickup near Geary and Presidio. A bit challenging as the woman didn’t give me her actual address, just saying she was near the Best Buy. Not very helpful. We eventually came up with Geary and Presidio as a meeting point. Worked great. Another $12.
A total of just over $70 from Cabulous. Nice.

Station Manager of 91.7 KALW San Francisco reaches out to listeners.

kfarr — Thu, 29 May 2008 21:23:49 +0000

During my Tuesday shift I was pleasantly surprised to hear a radio station manager speaking directly to listeners for an extended period of time about the state of the station. In the past, I’ve heard station managers speak during pledge drives, but pledge drives offer a relatively small subject of conversation when compared to an open-ended manager report.

KALW’s Manager’s Report took place in the late morning, preempting an episode of a local call-in forum show.

Similar to Indiana University‘s arrangement with public radio station WFIU, the San Francisco Unified School District provides KALW with discounted real estate and other ancillary business support services such as telco, Internet access, payroll processing, basic utilities, etc. But, they must find revenue sources to pay for staff, production costs, and purchase programming from NPR and other sources.

I enjoy 91.7 KALW’s positioning as an ‘alternative’ public radio station — an antithesis to the standard NPR fare of 88.5 KQED.

Of course, as a public radio junky, I also enjoy KQED’s great standard NPR program offerings, but KALW provides a nice alternative view with a heavier focus on world news, especially BBC programs like World Have Your Say and the BBC World Service through the wee hours of the night. KALW is also my source on Sunday morning for unique radio programs like Working with Marty Nemko and Harry Shearer’s Le Show.

Keep up the good work, KALW!

MP3 direct link to KALW Manager’s Report

Driving

kfarr — Fri, 09 May 2008 19:38:22 +0000

Sunday was a busy day in the City, Monday was busy enough as usual, but Tuesday early morning was dead. It was very difficult to get orders and I was afraid I would go home with less than $100 take-home — something I haven’t done in a long time. I was preparing myself for a $60 Tuesday.
But, thanks to some great tipping, I eeked out $115 on Tuesday.
I picked up a radio call in the Marina late Tuesday morning. It was a nice midwestern family heading to the airport from one of the many Lombard Street hotels.
I like families in the cab. The vancabs are great too — plenty of room for their luggage in the back and room to stretch out so the kids don’t start hitting or yelling at each other for violations of the unwritten personal space rules.

This family was heading back to their Pennsylvanian home after a nice vacation in San Francisco.

We talked about the City. We talked about the busses — they really liked SF’s Muni system which is, I’ll admit, one of the better systems in the US. We talked about American’s flight to the suburbs and whether or not we’re going to see a flight back downtown. The dad and I had heard and enjoyed the same great Morning Edition stories a month back highlighting these issues.

We talked about Philadelphia’s downtown resurgence. We talked about life goals, career tracks, the pleasures of not having a boss, my work on a website and past and future travels.

They were a fun crew. The dad gave me $60 for the $40 fare and I thanked him profusely. That is a very nice tip.
I picked up frequently from the St. Francis Hospital at Pine and Hyde, as they use our cab company as their primary taxi vendor.
I picked up an older lady returning home to the Marina. She was a bit hard of hearing, but that didn’t stop us from chatting about what life was like as a cab driver. She was very frustrated to have had a number of cab drivers that didn’t speak adequate English, at least per her standards. We discussed why this may be the case — for example, potential income from cab driving is decreasing. Keep in mind, income is decreasing not just in real terms (as many jobs do from inflation) but in nominal terms: not only are my dollars earned worth less because of inflation, but I increasingly earn less dollars in the first place because of the increase in gas and gate fees. Unless cab driving pays better, it won’t be able to keep as many native English or native San Franciscans in the profession as they’ll be able to get higher paying jobs elsewhere.

She tipped me very well – $15 on an $8 fare. She said she wanted to “keep me in business.”

Thanks lady, you and the airport family went a long way to making my Tuesday income bearable.
I am actively working to practice safer driving.
I picked up a mom and her kid Monday from a swanky North Beach preschool. I took them back to their home across town near Duboce Park. I stopped at the first hint of yellow lights and maintained the average road speed (instead of above average as usual). The difference in reaching our destination would have been 1 or 2 minutes at most. Her tip was as great.

Clearly, the risk of fast cab driving is not worth the reward. But, it’s still difficult to fight that instinct to go as fast as possible. Dear readers, tip safe-driving cabbies well and complement them verbally on safe driving to encourage this behavior.
On breaks and eating during my shift: a lot of friends ask me how I go to the bathroom, where I eat, and how I manage to take breaks.
Since I only drive 3 shift per week, I try to maximize my driving during those 33 hours. I take brief combined breaks for bathroom and eating.

I seek out places with clean restrooms, parking and fast food service. In the City where parking is limited, Starbucks, McDonalds and the CalTrain station are shining stars. At each of these places I can park, order, go pee and come out with a small snack and tea or coffee.

I don’t eat much during the shifts, usually one medium meal (a McDonald’s breakfast) and one snack (a muffin or bagel). I’ll have at most one coffee but lately I’ve been sticking to a black tea or two. I’ll relax and eat a large meal after my shift. It’s a good feeling to pig out after a long day.
I picked up a French mother and son pair from their SOMA hotel and took them toward Haight and Ashbury. They weren’t really sure what to see in the City, so we chatted a bit about the Haight and Golden Gate Park.
Even though my French is laughable, the Frenchies always seem to enjoy my meager efforts. Whether out of pity or graciousness they tip well when I bust out the French. I’ll keep doing so.
Most cab companies in the City use a rather old fashioned technology to dispatch call-in orders from customers — a two-way radio.
For the cab drivers, the radios operate half-duplex. Cab drivers can either listen or receive, but not both at the same time. Dispatchers can send and receive simultaneously.

As far as I understand, this means there are 2 distinct channels – a high-power broadcast channel from the cab dispatch garage and a second channel used by each cab to broadcast back, usually at a lower-power, to the garage.

These technological considerations are important as it greatly affects cab dispatch workflow.

The overall flow and operation of the dispatch radio varies considerably from shift to shift and dispatcher to dispatcher. Dispatching is a complex and challenging task, perhaps akin to the difficulties of being an air traffic control operator with considerably less pay.

‘Normal’ operation consists of the dispatcher reading out intersections of calls ‘on the board’, that is, orders called-in (pre-arranged or recently called) waiting to be picked up. “Polk and Green, Lombard and Van Ness, Pine Hyde, St. Marys, 1st and Market, 6th and Brannan van cab.” These are read very quickly and repeated until a cabbie checks in for an order.

If a driver is in range, he or she will pick up the mic and broadcast back their intersection by saying, “Cab 730 at Bush and Leavenworth.” The dispatcher will respond with, “730 check, and who else?” giving the others a few seconds to check-in for the order as well. The closest driver is given the address, “730, you have 900 Hyde for Susan.”

Significant complexity is introduced as there is no specifically defined range for an appropriate check-in distance. It requires a learned fine-tuning by cab drivers and dispatchers depending primarily on the number of empty company cabs listening for orders. When the City is very busy, most cabs are full and are not monitoring the radio. The dispatcher’s board fills up quickly with orders and it’s acceptable to check-in within a half mile or so of an order. It is fun and easy to be a cab driver at these times.

But, in the wee hours of the morning most cabs are empty and no orders are on the board. The instant an order is read aloud there are 10-15 (or more) drivers checking in for the order. Competition is tough — you can be only a few blocks away from an order to have a chance of picking it up.

I’m most amazed at the effectiveness of this system despite its use of rather antiquated technology. Sure, there are occasional frustrating moments of waiting, such as when a cabbie needs a call-out (if an address is incorrect or nobody answers when after ringing a bell) when the dispatcher is busy assigning other orders. But, the majority of the time the system works well. Often it is just as quick and efficient (or more so) compared to computer-based GPS dispatching systems.

I also enjoy how the personality of each dispatcher in our company is expressed in their manner of dispatching. Some dispatchers give out orders very quickly. Others want drivers to be much closer to orders. Some are more like robots — repeating orders on the board quickly and monotonously. Others make it more like an auction, complete with an auctioneer’s trademark closing, “Going once, going twice, cab 730 has it.”

Radio dispatch adds a fun spice in the mix of the already exciting cab driving world.
I’m still trying to find the best balance between being openly accepting of whatever comes my way, but still feeling my emotions as I drive the cab.
I don’t want to let a slow day and low earnings get me down. But, I also don’t want to be completely emotionally disconnected from the outside world’s goings on. It’s a delicate balance to fully feel and recognize my emotions without letting them consume me to direct my mood.

Perhaps I’m attempting the impossible? I wish to feel sad without feeling sad?

You’re richer than you think.

kfarr — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 23:57:29 +0000

While sitting in the queue to pay the toll for the Bay Bridge Monday, I heard two great counterintuitive pieces on KQED.

The first was a thoughtful comparison between our quality of life now compared to the distant past. It is a true and important comparison and a nice reminder of how great our lives really are in modern times.

“A Very Rich Man” KQED Perspective:

The second was a nice piece by NPR’s Morning Edition which sought to answer the question of why Americans have built up so much personal debt in the past 20 years. I liked this part: for some, debt it good. Debt is not always an evil thing.

In my case, I know that my income will be considerably higher in a few years than it is now. As exemplified by the example in the story, it would make little sense for me to save money now given my limited income.

“Why Do We Borrow So Much?” Morning Edition Story:

Segment Page

Radiolab: another great radio show

kfarr — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 16:33:12 +0000

I recently stumbled upon another great radio show: Radiolab.

Radiolab tries to explain things. Big things. Philosophy and science things.

Radiolab features a simple theme for each episode such as Love, Pop Music, or Deception. My initial frustration while listening was that they didn’t always get to the bottom of the theme. Why do we fall in love? How has pop music evolved? You won’t get an absolute answer. (Will we ever?)

But, that’s okay. Let go of the need for a perfect, direct explanation of the theme and embrace the unique experience of Radiolab and you’ll enjoy it just fine. Each episode features at least one nugget of unique radio that keeps me coming back for more.

And, the host’s name is Jad. How cool is that?

Links

Harry Shearer’s “Le Show” is yet another great radio program.

kfarr — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 02:17:02 +0000

Who says the golden age of radio is dead? I’m amazed at the depth and breadth of radio these days and I’m blessed to have cabbing force me to explore these depths during long shifts.

My latest find is a wacky but great show from Simpsons voice actor Harry Shearer. You’ll recognize his voice instantly.

It’s difficult to summarize, but imagine a mix between the Daily Show, Colbert Report, SNL and the Onion with a cogent editorial voice similar to an anti-Rush Limbaugh. He tackles serious subjects like the inability of FEMA to sort out disasters and also the silly (but funny) with the ‘Apologies of the Week’ section featuring some great background music. It’s worth a listen.

I listen to it on 91.7 KALW Sundays at noon.

Links

When I get mad about employers screwing me over, I think of Robert Reich and then direct that anger at the government. You can too! Here’s how.

kfarr — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 01:31:03 +0000

When I drive an 11 hour shift and make only fifty or sixty bucks I feel pretty sour. This doesn’t happen often. But, it does happen a few times a month during this time of year when demand for cabs in the City is seasonally low.

My angry mind jumps first to the cab company. How can this evil cab company charge me so much for my taxi, gas and dispatch services when I’m just barely making money to pay rent? What sort of evil people must they be to squeeze pennies out of the pockets of immigrants and hard working laborers?

(I don’t usually feel these thoughts. In fact, I have a great deal of respect for the cab company I work for.) But, many cab drivers feel these thoughts often. Some of them have posted on this blog or others to express their frustration at high gate fees and poor treatment.

Many American workers have these same thoughts about their employers. Whole websites are dedicated to venting these thoughts about individual companies.

STOP! Take these angry thoughts elsewhere: Aim them at your government.

Robert Reich is former Secretary of Labor under Bill Clinton and a regular commentator on my favorite radio program, Marketplace. He has an hour full of extremely wise words on a past edition of the Commonwealth Club of California radio program. (Unfortunately, these wise words are only available in Real Audio format.)

Among many other thoughts he shares in this program, one I latched on to with the whole of my heart is that American citizens can never look toward corporations for true social change. A corporation is a machine. It is a machine with one relentless goal: to create value for its shareholders. Let’s not judge this as bad, good, or whatever. It just is.

Accepting the fact that corporations are value creating machines let’s revisit our anger from above. Let’s not blame Wal-Mart for bad wages. Let’s not blame the taxi company for a high gate fee. Let’s not blame health insurance companies for refusing to accept high risk subscribers. These corporate entities are nothing more than the result of an evolution of best practices to create value for shareholders.

The only true accountable way of making significant societal changes such as a minimum wage or universally available health insurance is ONLY through government regulation, not through the magic of an oxymoronic corporate conscience.

Links

Local media that shines: 92.7 KNGY

kfarr — Sat, 26 Jan 2008 03:07:06 +0000

I drive a taxi. I drive 11 hour shifts. That’s a lot of time in a car. I need something for my brain to do. Passengers only talk so much, and this time of year is quite slow. Often I don’t have a passenger to talk to anyway.

I listen to a lot of radio. A lot of radio — 44 hours per week. By default I’ve been given quite an introduction to the local radio market in San Francisco.

At first I was bullish about a lot of stations, but it has quickly whittled down to 4 primary channels: 88.5 KQED (NPR), 91.7 KALW (NPR), 92.7 KNGY (Dance), and 102.1 KDFC (Classical).

I’ve been very impressed with all of these, but I’ve been especially impressed with “Pure Dance” 92.7 KNGY. Regardless of your personal opinion of dance/electronica music, this station is a genre buster — it’s a one of a kind. It makes me happy to see unique genre radio stations thrive, especially as iPods and online music makes audio consumption much more personal and radio stations less relevant.

Others seem to like this format too — Wikipedia says KNGY is the most listened to dance/electronic station on the west coast. (Hmm, I wonder how many other dance/electronic stations even exist on the west coast?)

Streaming Audio Direct Link

Free Wi-Fi makes people happy.

kfarr — Thu, 10 Jan 2008 22:59:25 +0000

Two fun pieces on free Wi-Fi.

First, a nicely written commentary on Wired suggests that you should unlock your wireless router! It’s not as crazy as it sounds.

Second, a well funded startup called Meraki claims it will create a free wireless network across San Francisco. A bit of digging reveals that Meraki manufactures inexpensive mesh networking devices. They usually charge for the devices, about 50 bucks each.

This time they’re giving them away for free in San Francisco if you live in an area where they need additional mesh coverage. All you have to do it plug it in or put it on your roof (it evidently works with solar power).

But here’s what I don’t understand:

Where is the backbone connection to the Internet? They’re building up a mesh network at no cost to the users, but who is willing to share their DSL or Cable Internet connection for free? Not nearly as many as are wiling to plug in a little box. But, maybe enough to get basic Internet coverage.
How will they make money? My guess: the basic Meraki service will be free. It is served by the backbone of volunteers that let people suckle on their DSL or Cable ISPs. But, Meraki will offer a higher-tier service with guaranteed faster throughput and greater reliability serviced directly by connections to a backbone that Meraki pays for. Just a guess.

UPDATE:

Here’s the answer to question 2. It looks like Meraki will monetize this free Internet access with a toolbar:

Hmm, I wonder how people will like that. I guess they’ll deal if it’s free.

Links

Wired Article about sharing your wireless.
Meraki SF Wireless Website
Daily Wireless Meraki Article
SF Gate Meraki Article

Driving the graveyard shift

kfarr — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 01:53:59 +0000

I switched my shifts around. I stopped working Saturdays so I could get my Friday nights back. I kept my Sunday (5am-3pm) shift and added Mondays and Tuesdays from midnight-11am. (That’s the only time they have available for newbs like me.) It’s exciting to drive a new shift.

During my shifts

It rained the entire morning of one of my 12a-11a shifts. It makes driving quite dangerous in the City, but the danger was offset by significantly increased business. I cruised the 1-California and 38-Geary lines when radio calls were slow — the rain makes people much more likely to hail a cab and I got a lot of pickups.
I am beginning to feel the City as a living entity. Despite the odd sleep schedule, I am blessed to get to see the City in its wee hours as it ‘sleeps’ and then comes alive in full force.
The midnight to 11am shift has unique identifiable chunks:
- Midnight till 3am is drunkies time. I transport a lot of drunkies coming home from (or going to other) bars. So far, I really enjoy the drunkies. They’ve behaved much better than I thought they would and make great conversation, although it’s not always coherent or of the highest calibre. They also enjoy pretty much whatever music I happen to be playing, and often they’ll ask me to turn it up. It can be a lot of fun if you get a good group in the cab.
- 3am-4am is very quiet. Occasionally I’ll pick up post-partiers or bar/restaurant staffers going home, but I usually just have a few fares during this time. While not very lucrative, it is a very relaxing time. I feel like I own the City. The thin traffic consists of mostly other cabs, police cars and trash trucks.
- 4am-6am is the radio dispatched ‘early’ commute rush. Many security traders work on east coast time and need to be at work an hour or two before markets open at 9:30am Eastern (6:30am Pacific). While it is year-round steady business, these passengers are frustrating because they’re quiet at best, rude or short tempered at worst. During this period, competition for radio calls is insane. The competitiveness is further magnified as most of the calls come in from the Marina, Pac Heights, Russian Hill, and Nob Hill. There are many cabs in a small area. I once ‘bingoed’ an order (I was at the intersection being announced) only to see FOUR other DeSoto cabs approach from all directions seconds later, hoping to get the order first.
- 6am-9am is the regular morning commute rush. Radio orders increase, as do the diversity of orders. No longer is it just traders going to work with dispatched orders, now people start going cross-town to a hospital, airport orders increase, and workers anxious of being late hail cabs on the street to escape MUNI purgatory. I focus most of my fare searching still in the Northern area of town (Marina/Heights/Hills), but I’ll start branching out some.
- 9am-11am slows down a bit, but diversity of rides continues to increase. Orders come from all over the City for all sorts of destinations. At this point, all neighborhoods of the City have equal chances of finding hails or radio calls. I wander all around the City.