Cities with the highest, lowest taxi cab fares

Gary Stoller, USA TODAY | USATODAY

Arthur Debowy is one of many frequent business travelers who finds other means of transportation to avoid rising taxi fares.

"I either get in touch with a limo service or rent a car for my access to the city from the airport," says Debowy, an architect in Highland Mills, N.Y. "I choose a limo if I am not moving around in the city, and a car rental if I am."

Taxis may be taking an increasing slice of business travel budgets, but they're a necessary means of transportation for many travelers.

Fares, though, vary from city to city and, in some locales, can be a bargain.

At USA TODAY's request, TaxiFareFinder.com calculated estimated one-mile, five-mile and 10-mile fares in the 60 largest U.S. metropolitan areas.

Fares in Honolulu, San Jose and San Francisco are among the highest. Fares in Detroit, Dallas and Pittsburgh are among the lowest.

The most expensive one-mile estimated fares are $8.01 in San Jose and $7.78 in Honolulu and San Francisco.

The cheapest? It's $3.70 in Tulsa and $4.35 in Detroit.

Honolulu has the highest estimated five- and 10-mile fares — $24.92 and $41.61.

The least-expensive estimated five-mile fare is $12.55 in Tulsa; the cheapest estimated 10-mile fare — $19.97 — is in Detroit.

All fares estimated by TaxiFareFinder are based on real rates and a mathematical algorithm — not solely on trip distance and duration. They exclude tolls and additional fees.

Cabs in Chicago and Sacramento have the highest initial charge — $4 — followed by Cincinnati taxis, which charge $3.75.

The most expensive charge per-mile is Honolulu's $3.20. Cabs in five cities — San Jose, Sacramento, Buffalo, San Diego and Rochester, N.Y. — charge $3 a mile.

Taxi rates "have been steadily increasing" and "can certainly hit the wallets of avid business travelers," says Ippei Takahashi, the founder of TaxiFareFinder.

Other transportation costs also are rising, and "the door-to-door convenience and quickness of taxis" remain in "very high demand by business travelers," he says.

Taxi rates in big cities are regulated and "determined through collaboration of many parties," including taxi commissions, civil engineers, taxi companies and drivers' unions, Takahashi says.

The rates "are generally tied to local wage levels and cost of living, but other factors are also in play, such as cost of gasoline, supply and demand of taxicabs and availability of alternative modes of transportation," he says.

Taxi fares are generally higher in cities with higher costs of living and gasoline prices, and in cities that are popular tourist and business destinations, he says.

The perception of whether fares are expensive or reasonable may vary from city to city.

"If you asked a New Yorker, whose taxi rides tend to be short and frequent and whose cost of living is among the highest in the world, you would likely hear that taxi cost is very reasonable," Takahashi says.

"If you asked someone in Boston or Los Angeles, who often take longer trips from city centers to suburban areas — and in greater traffic — you may hear more complaints."

Takahashi says he wants "everyone to keep in mind that driving a taxi is a tough job," one of the most dangerous in the country."

Drivers, he says, "work very long hours while constantly fighting rising operating costs."

How much is too much?

Frequent business traveler Mickey David of Woodlands, Texas, says he understands rising cab fares, citing rising gasoline prices, tolls and fees to insure and license taxis.

Cab rides from airports to city centers "are expensive," but, considering a $50 charge one might face to park a car in Manhattan, "cab fares are competitive," says David, who works in the health care industry.

Frequent business traveler Murray Cook of Roanoke, Va., expresses annoyance at the inconsistency of fares from city to city.

Cook, president of a sports venue management company, says he pays $15 to $18 for a 10-mile cab ride from Puerto Rico's San Juan airport to downtown, but about double that amount for a ride of the same distance in San Antonio.

The rising cost of taxi rides hasn't deterred him, though.

"It's still cheaper than renting a car and paying for hotel parking," he says.

"You also avoid the hassle of driving in big cities and have the ability to text and call."

Ben Griffith, a lawyer in Cleveland, Miss., says taxis "are often my best option when deadlines, time constraints and speed are factors."

When competition is strong, fares "tend to be reasonable," he says.

Many big cities have placed taxis "at a competitive disadvantage," because the municipalities have established much cheaper public transportation options from airports to downtown, he says.

Rising cab fares haven't caused him to cut back his use of taxis within cities, Griffith says.

"But the increasingly efficient transit systems and light rail services are clearly reducing the frequency of my use of taxis for the airport-downtown runs," he says.