Cabbing it in Jersey without cash
April 30, 2014 12:34 PM Subscribe
I have a business partner flying into Newark who wants to know if she needs cash for a cab.
hello mefites of the jersey persuasion.
i have a BP who needs to get from newark airport to bridgewater. i have the option to get her a car or have her take a cab to get there. she's not partial to carrying a lot of cash, and at the same time i know the cab would be the more cost-efficient option.
so i wondered if jersey cabs are required to have card readers. the google has been spotty with responses, and i know many of you are frequent travelers/are situated throughout jersey, so i trust you more than the google. i'm also accepting recommendations for cab companies, should you have any.
as always, thank you thank you thank you.
hello mefites of the jersey persuasion.
i have a BP who needs to get from newark airport to bridgewater. i have the option to get her a car or have her take a cab to get there. she's not partial to carrying a lot of cash, and at the same time i know the cab would be the more cost-efficient option.
so i wondered if jersey cabs are required to have card readers. the google has been spotty with responses, and i know many of you are frequent travelers/are situated throughout jersey, so i trust you more than the google. i'm also accepting recommendations for cab companies, should you have any.
as always, thank you thank you thank you.
Best answer: The way Newark cabs work is that if you want to pay with a card, you have to pre-pay at the airport, for $5 extra. Also the line sucks and the cabbies are, in my experience, much less professional than the NYC cabbies.
posted by So You're Saying These Are Pants? at 12:46 PM on April 30, 2014 [1 favorite]
posted by So You're Saying These Are Pants? at 12:46 PM on April 30, 2014 [1 favorite]
Best answer: I used to live in Bridgewater. Taking a train could be a viable option. It would make a cab fare much cheaper in theory. Bridgewater, Raritan, or Somerville would be the closest stations depending on the destination.
posted by lownote at 12:52 PM on April 30, 2014
posted by lownote at 12:52 PM on April 30, 2014
Best answer: the line sucks and the cabbies are, in my experience, much less professional than the NYC cabbies
Sample size of one, and maybe it had to do with my late evening arrival, but I walked right up to the taxi pay kiosk and was in a cab within a couple minutes. The driver took me to my hotel in Jersey City in what I would describe as a professional manner [he might have said a half-dozen words to me, and was a pleasant guy].
posted by chazlarson at 1:29 PM on April 30, 2014
Sample size of one, and maybe it had to do with my late evening arrival, but I walked right up to the taxi pay kiosk and was in a cab within a couple minutes. The driver took me to my hotel in Jersey City in what I would describe as a professional manner [he might have said a half-dozen words to me, and was a pleasant guy].
posted by chazlarson at 1:29 PM on April 30, 2014
Response by poster: i tried the train option with her before we started talking about car service and i got pushback. now that airport station is closed through the summer, she'll be even less interested.
posted by ovenmitt at 1:42 PM on April 30, 2014
posted by ovenmitt at 1:42 PM on April 30, 2014
Best answer: I live significantly closer to EWR than Bridgewater (14 vs. 30 miles). It will usually run me $35-40 for a cab.
Uber is quoting $65-75 one way for their smallest car from airport to Bridgwater. No cash needed there.
For that (and most likely less) you could rent a car if she drives.
posted by dancinglamb at 1:46 PM on April 30, 2014
Uber is quoting $65-75 one way for their smallest car from airport to Bridgwater. No cash needed there.
For that (and most likely less) you could rent a car if she drives.
posted by dancinglamb at 1:46 PM on April 30, 2014
Best answer: Just use a car service (Carmel or Dial 7). It will be less hassle and a nicer ride. In my experience they're comparable to the cost of a cab.
posted by melissasaurus at 1:47 PM on April 30, 2014 [2 favorites]
posted by melissasaurus at 1:47 PM on April 30, 2014 [2 favorites]
Best answer: I fly through EWR at least once a month.
What @So You're Saying ... wrote is right; there are kiosks by the cab stops at EWR where you can get a credit card slip (for a $5 surcharge). You then fill out that slip with the fare and tip amount at the end of your trip, and sign. The driver keeps part of it and you keep the other part.
The professionalism and language skills of the cab drivers is extremely variable, as is the state of repair of the vehicles. While I haven't kept a careful tally, I'm pretty sure that my experiences have been negative more often than not. Occasionally you get lucky and have a good experience, other times you get an obnoxious driver in a shit-pile of a car. To some extent you can decide not to get in the car at the airport and ask the cab station attendant for another, if you don't mind being assertive, but the problem is you often can't quickly tell whether the driver and the car are decent.
As much as possible, I've stopped taking cabs and have been using a car service, as @melissasaurus suggested. The service I use is airportroundtrip.com. For my trip, they are much cheaper than a cab ($35 plus tip vs $47 plus tip for a cab), but I don't know if they will take you all the way to Bridgewater. (They probably will, but I've never asked.) The car is almost brand new (and it's now a black Benz, not the white limo pictured on their website), the ride is quiet and comfortable, and the kicker is, they provide free wifi in the car. I highly recommend this service. (And no, I have no stake in the company – just a very satisfied repeat customer.)
posted by StrawberryPie at 2:12 PM on April 30, 2014 [1 favorite]
What @So You're Saying ... wrote is right; there are kiosks by the cab stops at EWR where you can get a credit card slip (for a $5 surcharge). You then fill out that slip with the fare and tip amount at the end of your trip, and sign. The driver keeps part of it and you keep the other part.
The professionalism and language skills of the cab drivers is extremely variable, as is the state of repair of the vehicles. While I haven't kept a careful tally, I'm pretty sure that my experiences have been negative more often than not. Occasionally you get lucky and have a good experience, other times you get an obnoxious driver in a shit-pile of a car. To some extent you can decide not to get in the car at the airport and ask the cab station attendant for another, if you don't mind being assertive, but the problem is you often can't quickly tell whether the driver and the car are decent.
As much as possible, I've stopped taking cabs and have been using a car service, as @melissasaurus suggested. The service I use is airportroundtrip.com. For my trip, they are much cheaper than a cab ($35 plus tip vs $47 plus tip for a cab), but I don't know if they will take you all the way to Bridgewater. (They probably will, but I've never asked.) The car is almost brand new (and it's now a black Benz, not the white limo pictured on their website), the ride is quiet and comfortable, and the kicker is, they provide free wifi in the car. I highly recommend this service. (And no, I have no stake in the company – just a very satisfied repeat customer.)
posted by StrawberryPie at 2:12 PM on April 30, 2014 [1 favorite]
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Also it might be hard to find a cab to take her back.
Memail me if you want more details.
posted by lyssabee at 12:41 PM on April 30, 2014 [2 favorites]