the Price of Taxis

The price was for a midnight ride from the airport to a hotel a couple miles away. Flag drop was $2.50, price per mile was $1.75, and price per hour was $24. The remainder of the $10 was tip.

The company also offers services in Phoenix, AZ (at higher rates, I'm told) and offers a variety of cars and vans, including airport transit.

They also have a free cab ride home program that provides free cab service to people who have been out drinking all night.

It was the middle of the night, I'd just flown in from San Diego, and needed to get to my hotel for some sleep before a 7am meeting. The rental place was closed until morning so I waved down a cab from the terminal curbside, the driver got out and helped me chuck my bags in the trunk, then we got in the cab and I gave the driver the name of my hotel. He put down the flag and drove.

Maybe he was too tired to chat the way cabbies everywhere seem to do, or maybe he noticed I was having trouble staying awake and was just being courteous. Either way, the silence was appreciated.

When I arrived at my hotel, the cabbie flagged a porter who carried my bags in while I paid the cabbie. The cabbie thanked me and left.

All told it was an entirely painless experience.

It's nice that I was able to get a cab at the airport curb was nice, but isn't guaranteed to happen all the time. Since public telephones and their accompanying phone books seem to have ceased to exist in Tucson, carrying a cell phone is pretty much mandatory for trips there these days. Use directory assistance and get them to connect you with a cab company. Or better yet, I've found out that some cab companies will send cabbies to meet specific flights at airports, so calling one before you leave to arrange pickup at arrival time isn't a bad idea either.