Abstract

This chapter reviews the history and evolution of the taxi industry – its current status, future challenges, and opportunities – with an emphasis on the United States as a case study, along with a sampling of comparisons worldwide. The socioeconomic impacts of the transportation technology disruption movement initiated by smartphone application on-demand dispatching is discussed, along with the new regulatory paradigm that has created a dichotomy between traditional incumbent taxicab and for-hire (limousine) services and transportation network companies (TNCs). The chapter also analyzes the future of the taxi industry in light of the dynamic multimodal environment and new emerging technologies, including accessible service, multimodal integration public transport (first-and-last-mile), congestion mitigation, driver income and classification, service to underserved and low income communities, connected and autonomous vehicles, data and privacy issues, regulatory governance, and Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS).