New York Cabbies Rip Off Passengers

In the past two years, thousands of New York City taxi drivers have overcharged passengers a combined $8 million by flicking the meter to a double rate. The Taxi and Limousine Commission utilized GPS technologies installed in cabs to find data on the more than 1.8 million trips where passengers were charged extra. The total came out to an astounding $8,330,155, or an average of $4.45 per trip. The overzealous drivers would switch their meters from 40 cents per fifth of a mile to 80 cents, which is the legal rate in Westchester and Nassau counties, but not in New York City. A single cabbie was accused of overcharging passengers a total of $40,000.