Taxi, Limousine, Car Hire, Chauffeur Services Industry Terminology

ADA/Accessibility Compliance

Meeting legal and ethical requirements to accommodate riders with disabilities (e.g., wheelchair-accessible vehicles, service animal policies, ramps/lifts, driver training).

Is this run ADA-compliant with a WAV?; Include service-animal language in the SOP to meet accessibility rules.; Allocate two ADA vans for the conference shuttle.

Airport Concession Fee

Per-trip or percentage fee paid to an airport authority for the right to operate pickups/drop-offs on airport property.

Add the $5 airport concession fee to the fare.; Our RFP price excludes ACFs and tolls.; We reconciled last month’s airport fees by base and vehicle class.

API Integration

Connecting booking, dispatch, billing, and partner systems via an Application Programming Interface so data flows automatically.

Push trip confirmations to the client’s system via API.; Our affiliate portal exposes a rates API.; The app hooks into maps and payments through APIs.

Base (For-Hire Base)

The licensed operating entity that dispatches trips and under which vehicles/drivers are affiliated.

Which base will dispatch the job?; NYC FHVs must accept work through their base.; He’s switching affiliation from Base A to Base B.

Black Car

Premium livery class offering pre-arranged service in late-model sedans/SUVs, often with stricter dress and service standards.

Book a black car for the VP.; Corporate policy limits rides to black car, not economy.; Maintain black car presentation: suit, water, immaculate vehicle.

Broker (Ground Transportation)

An intermediary that sells/coordinates trips and fulfills them through affiliates or subcontractors.

We’ll broker the Denver leg to our certified partner.; The contract allows brokering with prior approval.; Broker margin is 18% after affiliate cost.

Chauffeur

A professional driver trained in etiquette, safety, route planning, and client service, typically for premium or corporate rides.

All chauffeurs must pass background checks.; Chauffeur to meet the client curbside with a sign.; Schedule chauffeur training on defensive driving.

Charter Service

Hourly/as-directed service (vs. point-to-point), common for events, tours, or multi-stop itineraries.

Minimum charter is 3 hours.; Quote a 6-hour charter with 2 SUVs.; Charter includes 20 free miles per hour, then overage.

Commercial Auto Insurance

Coverage for for-hire operations (liability, collision, comprehensive; may include hired/non-owned autos and umbrella).

Provide $1.5M CSL on the COI.; Our livery policy excludes 15+ passengers.; Renewals will increase due to loss history.

Corporate Account

A business customer with negotiated rates, billing terms, SLAs, and reporting requirements.

Acme’s corporate account has a 10% discount.; Monthly invoicing with PO required for the corporate account.; SLA penalties apply on their account.

Cross-Dispatch

Assigning a trip to an affiliate or driver operating under another base/license, subject to local rules.

Cross-dispatch is allowed only between approved bases.; We’ll cross-dispatch overflow to our partner fleet.; Ensure waybill shows the correct base on cross-dispatch.

Deadhead

Unpaid time/miles when a vehicle travels empty between jobs or to reposition.

Optimize routing to reduce deadhead.; Back-to-back jobs cut deadhead by 20%.; We charge a transfer fee to cover long deadheads.

Dispatch

The real-time assignment and coordination of trips to drivers or affiliates using radio, phone, or software.

Dispatch pushed the job to the nearest chauffeur.; Add an SLA alert to the dispatch screen.; Overnight dispatch covers international arrivals.

Duty of Care

The operator’s legal and ethical responsibility to ensure passenger safety and compliance (vetting, training, maintenance, insurance).

Our client audits duty-of-care documentation annually.; Duty of care requires incident reporting within 24 hours.; Pre-trip inspections are part of duty of care.

E-Hail

Requesting a taxi or for-hire vehicle via mobile app rather than street hail or phone.

Airport rules restrict e-hail pickups to the garage.; E-hail volume spikes after events.; Enable e-hail toggle for approved zones.

ETA (Estimated Time of Arrival)

Predicted arrival time of the driver to pickup or destination, often computed dynamically via GPS/traffic.

Current ETA is 7 minutes.; Escalate if ETA exceeds the SLA threshold.; Text ETA updates to the passenger.

FIFO Queue

First-In, First-Out system governing driver order for dispatch or taxi ranks, common at airports.

The FIFO queue resets during ground holds.; Drivers must enter the lot to join FIFO.; Breaking FIFO can lead to penalties.

Fleet Utilization

Percentage of the fleet in revenue service over time; often measured as hours or trips per vehicle/day.

Night shift utilization is at 38%.; Optimize maintenance to improve utilization.; Utilization dropped due to weather cancellations.

For-Hire Vehicle (FHV)

A regulatory category for pre-arranged, non-street-hail vehicles (licenses vary by city).

He holds an FHV license, not a medallion.; FHV trip records must be submitted weekly.; Base must be authorized to dispatch FHVs.

Geofencing

Using virtual geographic boundaries to control pricing, pickups, or alerts within defined areas.

Apply airport surcharges inside the geofence.; Block street pickups outside the service geofence.; Trigger SMS when entering the venue geofence.

Hackney Carriage

UK term for a taxi licensed to accept street hails and use taxi ranks; distinct from PHV.

Only hackney carriages can use this rank.; Fares follow the metered hackney tariff.; PHVs can’t ply for hire like hackneys.

Holding Lot/Staging Area

Designated waiting area for drivers, often at airports or venues, to manage supply/demand and queue order.

Proceed to the staging lot after drop-off.; Dispatch pings jobs to vehicles in the holding lot.; Lot occupancy is near capacity.

Insurance Certificate (COI)

Proof of insurance listing coverages, limits, and named additional insureds for venues or corporate clients.

Send a COI naming the hotel as additional insured.; COI must reflect $5M umbrella coverage.; Update the COI after policy renewal.

KPI (Key Performance Indicator)

Quantifiable metrics used to track performance (e.g., OTP, acceptance rate, incident rate, CSAT).

Our KPI target for OTP is 95%.; Driver acceptance rate is a core KPI.; Publish weekly KPI dashboards to ops.

Livery

General term for for-hire chauffeur services and vehicles; in some areas, the licensing class for such vehicles.

Our livery plates are due for renewal.; Marketing focuses on premium livery services.; Livery insurance costs rose this year.

Local Authority Licensing (TLC/PHV)

Permits and regulations imposed by city/regional bodies (e.g., NYC TLC, UK PHV operator/driver/vehicle licenses).

All PHV operators must retain trip records.; TLC requires vehicle inspections twice a year.; Non-compliance can suspend the operator license.

Manifest

A compiled list of passengers, flights, or trips for an event or shuttle run, used to coordinate pickups.

Load the VIP manifest into dispatch.; Greeters check names against the manifest.; Update the manifest for late arrivals.

Medallion

A taxi license (e.g., in NYC) that grants the right to accept street hails; often tradable and heavily regulated.

That cab operates under Medallion 2A23.; Medallion valuations fluctuate with demand.; Street hails require a medallion, not FHV.

Meet-and-Greet

Service where the driver or greeter meets passengers with signage at arrivals or lobby and escorts them.

Add meet-and-greet to the airport pickup.; Greeter will hold an iPad sign at Door B.; Meet-and-greet incurs extra parking/wait charges.

NEMT (Non-Emergency Medical Transportation)

Transportation for patients who need scheduled, non-urgent medical rides (ambulatory or wheelchair), with payer-specific rules.

Confirm NEMT eligibility and prior auth.; Assign a WAV for the NEMT dialysis trip.; Document pickup attempts per NEMT policy.

No-Show

When a passenger fails to appear within the grace period; may trigger fees if documented properly.

After 15 minutes, mark as no-show with a photo.; No-show fee applies per the rate card.; Notify the travel manager of repeated no-shows.

On-Time Performance (OTP)

Share of trips picked up at or before the scheduled time; a key reliability metric.

OTP dropped during the storm.; Set alerts when OTP falls below 92%.; OTP is a contractual KPI for this client.

P&L (Profit and Loss)

Financial statement summarizing revenues, costs, and profit over a period.

Fleet costs improved the monthly P&L.; Brokered work shows lower P&L margins.; Review P&L by market and vehicle class.

PAX

Industry shorthand for passenger(s).

3 PAX, 4 bags to JFK.; Confirm PAX count for the shuttle.; Max PAX for a sedan is three.

PCI DSS

Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard; rules for securely handling card data.

Never store card PANs—PCI compliance.; The gateway is PCI Level 1 certified.; Pass the annual PCI self-assessment.

PUDO (Pick-Up and Drop-Off)

Designated locations and procedures for passenger pickups and drop-offs, often regulated at airports/venues.

Use the rideshare PUDO on Level 3.; Map PUDO points in the app.; Security changed the PUDO zone for tonight.

Rate Card

Published pricing by vehicle class, zone, or time (flat rates, hourly, wait time, surcharges).

See the rate card for airport flats.; Update the rate card for peak pricing.; Rate card includes a gratuity policy.

Repositioning

Moving a vehicle to a different area to capture demand or to reach the next job efficiently.

Reposition to Midtown after the drop.; Smart repositioning reduces deadhead.; Dispatch suggested a southbound reposition.

Service Level Agreement (SLA)

Contracted service commitments (e.g., response times, OTP, vehicle standards, escalation).

OTP and complaint rate are SLA metrics.; Penalties apply if we miss the SLA.; Include SLA reporting in the quarterly review.

Short-Trip Rule

Airport policy allowing drivers who receive very short fares to re-enter the queue or receive priority on the next job.

Short-trip ticket valid for 2 hours.; Driver qualified for a short-trip exception.; Explain the short-trip process to new drivers.

Standard Operating Procedure (SOP)

Documented, repeatable steps for operations (dispatch, safety, incident response, customer service).

Follow the SOP for flight delays.; Update the SOP for cashless tips.; Audit SOP adherence quarterly.

Surge Pricing

Temporary price increases during high demand or low supply, often by multiplier or surcharge.

Surge at 1.5x in the stadium zone.; Disable surge for corporate accounts.; Publish surge rules in the rate card.

Taxi & Limousine Commission (TLC)

New York City regulator that licenses drivers, vehicles, and bases; sets operating rules and reporting.

Submit trip records to TLC weekly.; TLC inspection due next month.; TLC rules govern FHV dispatch practices.

Transportation Network Company (TNC)

App-based marketplace that matches riders and drivers (e.g., regulated category for Uber/Lyft-like services).

Airport has a separate TNC pickup area.; TNC trips show dynamic pricing.; Local caps limit TNC surge at events.

Trip Sheet

Record of trip details (passenger, times, route, fares) required for compliance, billing, and audits.

Driver must complete the trip sheet before EOD.; Digital trip sheets feed invoicing.; Auditors sampled trip sheets for accuracy.

Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT)

Total miles driven over a period; used for cost, utilization, and emissions analysis.

VMT increased but revenue per VMT fell.; Reduce empty VMT via better matching.; Track VMT by vehicle to plan replacements.

Wait Time

Chargeable minutes after a grace period when a driver waits at pickup or intermediate stops.

10 minutes free, then wait time applies.; Add wait time due to baggage delays.; Grace period differs by vehicle class.

Waybill

Trip authorization/record showing pre-arrangement details; required for PHV/FHV compliance in many areas.

Show the waybill at airport enforcement.; Waybill must list passenger and base.; Keep digital waybills for two years.

Yield Management

Adjusting prices and inventory (vehicle classes, time slots) to maximize revenue and utilization.

Introduce peak yields on Friday nights.; Apply yield rules to SUV inventory.; Yield improved after zone repricing.

Zone Pricing

Fares based on predefined geographic zones rather than distance/time, common for airport and city-pair flats.

JFK to Midtown is a Zone 2 flat.; Publish zone maps with the rate card.; Event nights use special zone pricing.