Spotting An Undercover NYPD Taxi Cruiser

Seen in the video here, a pair of undercover officers with the NYPD stop a vehicle in the West Village earlier this month, letting the driver on his way shortly afterward.

As unnerving as it is to see blue lights flashing in your rear view, seeing the blue lights emanate from a yellow cab operating undercover as an NYPD cruiser seems less so.Some might even find it exciting to be pulled over by a cop car disguised as a taxi.  And obviously, if you see a taxi with lights flashing and a siren sound—two burly white men in the front seats—you can safely assume it is an undercover police car. But what other ways can you tell?

Real taxi cabs have a four digit medallion number, which are the same on the roof and the plate. That doesn't seem to be the case with undercover taxis, whose license plate number resembles one similar to those on civilian vehicles, as seen in this photo, and differs from the medallion number on the roof. The medallion numbers for undercover taxis are also alleged to always begin in 6Y or 2W, as seen here, here and here. Additionally, the plate numbers on every undercover taxi seen in the photos referenced here all begin with "T800."

So remember, if you ever get pulled over by a cab flashing their lights, it's not the Cash Cab. It's an NYPD officer about to pop a cap in your ass, or at least write you a ticket—though the chances of that happening are slim. Rumor has it there are only eight of these undercover taxis on the streets.

Previously: » Follow NYC The Blog on Facebook and Twitter. Video credit: Paolo Mastrangelo/NYC The Blog