Manhattan TLC Rules: Hail Zones, Surcharges & OATH Office

In short: In Manhattan, where you pick someone up can matter as much as how you drive. One line, East 96th Street and West 110th Street, decides whether green cab and app drivers can take a street hail. A $500 first-time fine sits on the wrong side of it. Two more lines decide which surcharges and tolls go on a taxi fare. If you get a summons here, OATH's Manhattan office is at 66 John Street. Most TLC hearings still happen by phone or online.

This page covers the Manhattan rules TLC drivers most need to know. The rules are in TLC's Chapter 80 driver rules and Chapter 51 definitions. This is general information, not legal advice.

The three lines that matter in Manhattan

Notice that the hail line is not straight. On the East Side it runs at 96th Street. On the West Side it runs at 110th Street. TLC's definitions also call this whole area the "Pre-Arranged Exclusionary Zone" for green cabs. So a green cab can't start a pre-arranged base trip there either (Chapter 51). A green cab can drop off a passenger in that area.

Who can pick up where: a quick check

Use this before you stop for someone. It follows the rule text. It does not replace it. The same lines across all five boroughs are mapped in who can pick up where in NYC.

Green cabs: the costliest mistake

For a green cab (Street Hail Livery, or SHL) driver, a hail south of the line is not a small ticket. Rule 80-19(b)(1) carries $500 and a suspension for a first violation. A second within 24 months is $750 and a suspension. A third within 120 months means revocation. It is also marked appearance required, so you can't just plead and pay online. If a passenger flags you in Midtown, the safe answer is no. See our green cab driver page for the full SHL rule set.

App and black car drivers: pre-arranged only

Every FHV trip must come through a licensed base of the right class. This is rule 80-19(c)(1). In Manhattan's exclusionary zone and at the airports, the penalty jumps under 80-19(c)(2). Picking up someone who asks for a ride "off the app" at a hotel door in Midtown is the classic example. In some situations TLC may also charge unlicensed activity. Read street-hail and unlicensed activity summonses before you answer one.

Yellow taxis: stands and hotspots

Yellow cabs own the street hail, and the data shows how Manhattan-centred that business is. Of about 47.8 million yellow taxi pickups recorded in 2025, about 41.6 million (87%) were in Manhattan (NYC Open Data, c5iv-bn4s). Busy stands bring stand summonses. The rule to know is 80-19(d)(4): take the rear position and don't overcrowd the stand.

Fares: surcharges and the JFK flat fare

If you drive a taxi, a wrong charge can lead to an overcharge summons, and overcharging carries mandatory penalties (80-17(a)(1)). From TLC's fare page:

• Congestion surcharge: $2.50 (yellow) or $2.75 (green), or 75 cents on any shared ride. It applies when a trip begins, ends or passes through Manhattan south of 96th Street.
• MTA congestion pricing toll: 75 cents for yellow and green taxis. It covers Manhattan south of and including 60th Street, but not the FDR Drive, the West Side Highway/Route 9A or the Hugh L. Carey Tunnel connections to West Street. FHV amounts are different. TLC links to the MTA's own taxi and FHV toll page.
• JFK flat fare: trips between Manhattan and JFK are a flat $70, plus the MTA tax, tolls and applicable surcharges. A $5 rush-hour surcharge applies to trips that start on weekdays between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m., except legal holidays (Chapter 58, §58-26(b)). You must record the trip as a flat-fare trip (80-26(b)(4), $100). See the JFK page.

For how congestion pricing affects your earnings, see congestion pricing for TLC drivers; for exactly which streets are in and out of the zone, see Congestion Relief Zone boundaries.

Got a summons in Manhattan? Where it gets heard

Every TLC summons is heard by OATH, whether TLC inspectors, NYPD or Port Authority Police wrote it. The office near where it was written doesn't matter much. TLC says OATH hearings are generally held by phone or by an online written defense (TLC: Receive a Summons). To ask for a phone hearing, send the request at least 3 business days ahead. For an in-person hearing, email LiveHearings@oath.nyc.gov at least 5 business days before the hearing date. OATH replies with the office (OATH).

TLC also lists 33 Beaver Street as a Manhattan address, but it doesn't list driver services there. Licensing appointments, the cashier, settlement requests (8 a.m.–1 p.m.) and payment-plan requests are handled at the Long Island City office (TLC Locations). You can also ask for a settlement by email to Settlements@tlc.nyc.gov. See TLC settlement offers and our Queens page.

Before you decide whether to fight, read what to expect at an OATH hearing. Then put your dates into the summons deadline calculator. Missing the hearing date means a default, which is usually the worst result (missed hearing guide).

Other Manhattan situations

• Lincoln Center: taxi drivers may not solicit or cruise for passengers on its private streets (80-19(a)(4)(iii)).
• Bus and rail terminals: taxi stand rules also cover special stands and feed lines at air, rail, bus and ship terminals (80-19(e)(1)). Green cabs follow those rules only at terminals inside the Hail Zone. Manhattan's major terminals are south of the line.
• Tips to terminal staff: don't give any gift, tip or thing of value to Port Authority, LIRR or Metro-North staff who do dispatching, ground transportation information, security, traffic and parking control or baggage handling. Rule 80-12(a)(2) treats it like bribery: $10,000 and revocation, appearance required. A "thank you" to a starter at a terminal taxi line is not worth your license.