Which city has the world's best taxis?

For the sixth year in a row, the city's iconic black cabs were voted best in the world in a survey by Hotels.com.

More than 2,500 voters from 30 countries took part in the annual global taxi survey, giving London 22% of the votes -- well ahead of runners up New York City (10%) and Tokyo (9%).

Rounding out the top five, Berlin came in fourth place with 5% of the vote, while Madrid, Mexico City and Amsterdam came in joint fifth with 4%.

"Of the 30 countries surveyed, London topped the list across five of the seven categories, including cleanliness (23%), knowledge of the area (27%) and quality of driving (30%)," said Hotels.com.

Almost a quarter of respondents (23%) voted safety as their number one taxi priority, which London's cabs also ranked highest on.

New York's yellow taxis grabbed the top spot for availability (23%).

New York and Bangkok taxis tied for first in terms of value for money (20%). Despite this recognition, Thailand's capital failed to crack the top five this year.

Survey categories ranked in order of preference by voters: safety (23%); value (20%); knowledge of area (17%); availability (14%); quality of driving (11%); cleanliness (8%); and friendliness (7%.)

If any cabbies are reading, that suggests most travelers would prefer their drivers keep their mouths shut during the ride.

The world's best taxis

1. London (22%)

Mexico City retired its (in)famous VW Beetle taxis last year, marking the end of a pollution-belting era for the city. Hotels.com voters don't seem to mind. Bugs or no bugs, Mexico City's taxis tied for fifth spot on the website's survey of the "world's best taxis."

Madrid's taxis, easily recognizable by the bright red stripe that cuts across the front doors, also scored high marks among Hotels.com voters. The Spanish capital tied for fifth with Mexico City and Amsterdam.

Though Amsterdam is most famous for its bicycles and canal cruises, its taxis are no slouch in the transportation department either. Four percent of the Hotels.com respondents gave the Dutch city their vote, putting it into a three-way tie with Madrid and Mexico City.

Rows of taxis wait to pick up passengers from the main terminal of Berlin's Tegel (Otto Lilienthal) airport. Berlin reclaimed it's position in the top five list, earning fourth place with 5% of the vote.

Though Tokyo's taxis are considered the most expensive in the world, it seems you get what you pay for: a nice ride. Japan's capital came in third on the survey, earning 9% of votes. Bonus fact: Japanese taxi drivers never accept tips -- they'll likely return any gratuity, assuming you've made a mistake with the fare.

Though New York lost out to London in the world's best taxi rankings, it grabbed the top spot when it came to availability (23%) and tied with Bangkok for first in terms of value for money (20%).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2. New York (10%)

 

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3. Tokyo (9%)

 

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4. Berlin (5%)

 

 

Mexico City retired its (in)famous VW Beetle taxis last year, marking the end of a pollution-belting era for the city. Hotels.com voters don't seem to mind. Bugs or no bugs, Mexico City's taxis tied for fifth spot on the website's survey of the "world's best taxis."

Madrid's taxis, easily recognizable by the bright red stripe that cuts across the front doors, also scored high marks among Hotels.com voters. The Spanish capital tied for fifth with Mexico City and Amsterdam.

Though Amsterdam is most famous for its bicycles and canal cruises, its taxis are no slouch in the transportation department either. Four percent of the Hotels.com respondents gave the Dutch city their vote, putting it into a three-way tie with Madrid and Mexico City.

 

Mexico City retired its (in)famous VW Beetle taxis last year, marking the end of a pollution-belting era for the city. Hotels.com voters don't seem to mind. Bugs or no bugs, Mexico City's taxis tied for fifth spot on the website's survey of the "world's best t

Madrid's taxis, easily recognizable by the bright red stripe that cuts across the front doors, also scored high marks among Hotels.com voters. The Spanish capital tied for fifth with Mexico City and Amsterdam.

Though Amsterdam is most famous for its bicycles and canal cruises, its taxis are no slouch in the transportation department either. Four percent of the Hotels.com respondents gave the Dutch city their vote, putting it into a three-way tie with Madrid and Me

5. Amsterdam (4%)

 

Mexico City retired its (in)famous VW Beetle taxis last year, marking the end of a pollution-belting era for the city. Hotels.com voters don't seem to mind. Bugs or no bugs, Mexico City's taxis tied for fifth spot on the website's survey of the "world's best taxis."

Madrid's taxis, easily recognizable by the bright red stripe that cuts across the front doors, also scored high marks among Hotels.com voters. The Spanish capital tied for fifth with Mexico City and Amsterdam.

 

 

6. Madrid (4%)

Mexico City retired its (in)famous VW Beetle taxis last year, marking the end of a pollution-belting era for the city. Hotels.com voters don't seem to mind. Bugs or no bugs, Mexico City's taxis tied for fifth spot on the website's survey of the "world's best taxis."

 

7. Mexico City (4%)

 

 

The Hotels.com taxi survey also found that people tend to text or email while in cab (19%), while sleeping was the second most popular activity (15%), followed by eating (10%) and kissing (9%).

When asked which nation was the most amorous in the back of a cab Brits came out on top, with 14% admitting to displaying passionate behavior -- 10% higher than the global average of 4%.

 

culled from cnn business