Sick of the look and feel of NYC’s taxi brigade, the Design Trust for Public Space has an antidote for improvement.

by Tamara Warren

You put more thought into color-coordinating ya hat to ya kicks on the daily, than NYC ever put into the beloved Yellow Chariot. Aside from the once-cool checkered paint jobs, a NYC taxi is usually a hacked Crown Vic with a divider wedged between the front and rear. But the Design Trust for Public Space is spinning the remix.

When the DTPS embarked on “Designing the Taxi: Rethinking New York City’s Moveable Public Space” they used an all-city perspective to address taxi headaches. Drivers, fleet owners, architects, designers, city officials and taxi regulators all met at Parsons the New School for Design last summer to brainstorm. Seventeen top design firms dreamed up solutions, ranging from cabbie rest stations to mini one-passenger taxis.

Fare Fact:
The required medallion to operate a NYC yellow cab costs $345,000.

Photos Captions (from top to bottom):

Hybrid Product Design + DEVELOPMENT
Compact and utilitarian, the MiniModal resembles a smaller-is-better European design. Fully wheelchair accessible with low curbside ramp and interior floor locks.

Citystreets
Driver hats recognize the diversity of New York’s hacks, while standardizing their look.

Antenna Design New York
Glass partition with credit card machine, a GPS map and a microphone. Larger roof light that actually states taxi status in highly visible LEDs. Rear safety display alerts drivers of exiting passengers. Motorized door that is activated by a touch panel.

Birsel+Seck
Wide open sliding door and high roof ease
passenger entry. The fold-down, rear-facing front passenger seat
can accommodate a child seat.

Pentagram
The “New Checker” with dual sliding doors, glass roof, and classic lines.

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