Advent of the Motor Cab; Its Rapid Development

Arthur N. Jervis (Locomotive.)
The New York Times
October 18, 1908

A new appetite for cab riding has been developed with a year among the people of the several biggest cities in the United States; it is an appetite for the motorcab distinctly, and it is growing with what it feeds upon.

The advent of the motorcab has been and is making the big cities of this country more nearly resemble those of Europe and England with respect to the efficiency of the cab service and general use of public hacks. In a few months the motor-driven hack has revolutionized the conditions in New York City, and it does not require keen observation and deep study to learn that the horse-drawn hacks and hansom cabs are already diminishing in number. Some of the less obstinate hackmen have become chauffeurs for the new motor propelled cabs, while some of the more provident of them have purchased motor cars to replace their old slow coaches.

That the motorcab has come to stay is quite certain, even if those who provide the service do not wax wealthy quite as rapidly as they did before—for it is yet a question whether the motorcabs will prove to be as profitable to their operators as were the horse-drawn vehicles. The demand of the public will compel the continuation of the service. To be convinced of this, one needs only to note the insistence with which persons will often refuse to take a horse-drawn cab that is at hand and wait, in the rain, perhaps, for a motorcab.

The reasons for the immediate favor which the motor-cab received from the public are several. Considered as a public hack, solely, it has two great advantages over the old style cab with its vulture-like jehu. The first of these superiorities was perhaps paramount, which was the assurance of a square deal at a uniform rate of tariff and no wrangling with the driver. The appearance of the taximeter was the pledge of one price only and for all alike. Persons who had experienced the rage induced by extortionate drivers, who could not be trusted even to keep a bargain, rejoiced over a cab for which the rate was known and a machine did the calculating. The second point of superiority was the great saving in time afforded by the motor-cab. To these great practical advantages must be added others that are more of sentimental character. The motor-cab not only travels more speedily, but it rides more comfortably; it has that smooth swiftness of motion to which automobiling owes its fascination. This last fact is one that induces considerable indulgence in motor-cab riding by certain classes who find it the most convenient and cheapest way to take a short automobile pleasure trip. In truth, the motor-cab has revealed to many persons who have not the means to attain it otherwise the peculiar delights of automobile riding.

Some very interesting problems of practical economy are presented by the motor-cab. From the point of view of the user it is a great convenience for a short haul and much cheaper than any former style of service, but for the long haul it is rather a ticklish proposition. If one wants to go for a bit of a pleasure ride in a motorcab and selects a good piece of road not overpoliced he will be rolled along at twenty miles an hour for 40 cents a mile, and he will find himself paying $8 an hour for his riding, which is not very economical. For such a trip it would be better to hire a touring car at $5 an hour, or to get one of the hotel cabs which have no taximeters, but charge fixed rates according to a system in which the city and suburbs are laid out in zones.

Concerning the problems at the operating end, there is still much to be learned before they can be solved. One who has made a close practical study of the subject is Mr. William Crompton, manager of the William H. Seaich Company in New York. The Seaich Company is a big livery concern that furnishes the service at the Waldorf-Astoria, Holland, and other prominent hotels. It has recently been replacing its horse cabs by motorcabs, beginning by purchasing 100 cabs of sixteen horse power from the American Locomotive Company and installing them at the Waldorf. Mr. Crompton has studied the subject of cab service here and abroad, and he has figured cost down to fractions of a cent.

He says it is yet too soon to declare positively how the motorcab at the present tariff rates will pay as conspired with the horse-drawn cab, because the amount of deterioration of the motorcabs year by year, and their length of life is uncertain; it is being estimated upon, but it is not known. According to Mr. Crompton, the great profit-making secret of motor-cab service is that of keeping them in motion most of the time and out of the repair shop. He says that for city cab service it is economy to get that which costs least to repair and wears longest, regardless of the initial price. This is the plan on which he proceeded when he bought 100 locomotive cabs for the Waldorf service, and yet he is figuring on selling the old ones and replacing them with new cabs in about four years. This, of course, is a matter of giving the highest grade of service, as the hotel cabs do no hacking.

In a broad way, it may be said that the gross daily receipts of a horse-cab, on the average, are about three times what it costs to operate it, while the motorcab brings in only about twice what it costs to operate it. As the figures for the motorcab are larger each way, the net returns are about the same from each style of vehicle. As the motorcab fever is growing, however, an increased business will mean fatter profits for the cab owners, as well as better service for the public. The motorcab is a striking example of a supply creating demand.