Taxi in Your City

A 1970s taxi you never steer, in a real city.

The streets come from OpenStreetMap. The first city is Kherson. You do not turn the wheel: you have a gas lever, a brake, the turn signal, the horn and a paper map.

Early prototype · PC · working title

The centre of Kherson from the air at sunset: blocks of low buildings, straight streets and the wide river behind them.

In motion

Waiting for a gap to merge, a right turn onto Druzhby St, a queue at the red light, then a stop for a man crossing the road.

Gameplay captured from the current build. No sound.

Gas, signal, horn

The cab keeps its lane, its distance and its place in the queue on its own. It stops at a red light and gives way. You decide when to push and where to turn.

Gas lever

Four levels. A sharp jump to a high level means a sharp start. Gas on a red light means you run it.

Brake

Drops the lever to zero and brakes as long as you hold it. You cannot drive around a problem, only stop.

Turn signal

Your intent: change lane or take the next turn. The cab does it when there is a gap.

Horn and lights

Ask to get through. Some drivers move over, some do not, and some brake on purpose.

From the cab at a red light: a green pickup ahead, a street sign reads Druzhby St, the fare meter shows 2.22 and the hint says Right turn in 10 m onto Druzhby St.

A real city

The map is the real centre of Kherson, 4 by 4 km, imported from OpenStreetMap: streets, lanes, traffic lights, buildings, parks and the river. Street names are in Latin script. The skyline and hills around the city follow the heights of its own buildings.

Kherson from the air on a clear day: grey blocks of buildings, green parks and the river with islands.
A wet street in the evening rain: an old car with round headlights comes toward you, street lights and long low buildings.

The import runs offline, from OpenStreetMap to a finished game map. For tests the game can also build its own city: wide avenues, narrow old quarters, a tunnel under the river and three villages linked by highways.

Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.

Traffic that answers back

Traffic runs on the game's own simulation. People cross the road, and the cab brakes for them. Other cars use their turn signals too.

From the cab: a man in a red jacket crosses in front of the taxi, the hint reads PEDESTRIAN, braking.
The yellow taxi from behind in a queue of 70s cars at a red light on a wide street. The yellow taxi with a checker stripe drives along an empty road past a park.
The cab: a wooden dashboard with a TAXI badge on the wheel, the fare meter on top, a pine air freshener on the mirror.

Find the way yourself

There is no satnav. You have a paper map and the radio. Traffic reports come with a delay, and other cab drivers talk on the air. Fares go point to point on the meter, with an out-of-town rate.

  • Normal
  • Navigator
  • Hardcore
A paper map of Kherson held up in the cab: streets, green parks and the river, with a red cross on the pickup address.
A street at night: a car with its headlights on comes toward you, red tail lights on a car to the right. Evening rain on a wide street: lit shop windows on the right, street lights and cars far down the road.

Early prototype

This taxi is one week old. Right now it tests one thing: how it feels to drive in dense traffic when you only choose speed and direction. Day, evening, night and rain are in. Taxi in Your City is a solo project.