NEW YORK, N.Y. - Every New Yorker knows how to hail a yellow cab.

The next step for some might be to "e-hail" a cab using a smartphone.

Members of the city's Taxi & Limousine Commission are to vote Thursday on whether to allow people to nab a ride electronically. Downloaded apps would link customers with drivers.

If the vote is yes, companies offering the high-tech hailing method can compete for business.

TLC Commissioner David Yassky says the city would lay down some ground rules to accommodate people raising their arm to stop a cab the old-fashioned way. But the commissioner says that as long as the technology exists, it should be available to customers and drivers.

Till now, the city has banned yellow taxis from prearranging rides.

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