Gas Shortage Underscores NYC's Move Away From Hybrid Cabs

On Thursday my brother and I arrived back into LaGuardia after four days stranded outside New York. We didn't feel particularly lucky, but our cab driver offered a comment that suggested we sort of were: he said if we'd arrived tomorrow — meaning today — there might not be any cabs at all. He said most taxis in the city were running out of fuel. He had just enough left to drop me off and park somewhere and wait.

I can't say that Driver No. 5392941 (via receipt) had conducted a fleet-wide study of the subject, but it looks like he knew his stuff. Thursday evening taxi commissioner David Yassky announced the post-Sandy fuel shortage "will definitely reduce" the number of cabs in the city. The Colonial Pipeline that brings the northeast most of its gasoline remains slow to recover. Lines at gas stations are starting to feel like "something you see in the movies."