Cab Fares In Las Vegas Going Up, Up, Up For Grand Prix Weekend

Everything is going to cost a lot more for Las Vegas Grand Prix weekend. Rooms, food, parking -- and transportation.

The Taxicab Authority Board will roll out a temporary surcharge that goes into effect during Las Vegas Grand Prix weekend.

This will add $15 to all fares in the flat rate zones operating along the airport, and the resort corridor. The surcharges will go into effect beginning at noon on Wednesday, Nov. 15, and end at noon on Tuesday, Nov. 21. Ending just in time for Thanksgiving.

The Nevada Globe reports that during that time, flat fare pricing will be implemented along with the additional $15 dollars in these zones:  Zone 1- Sunset North to Tropicana: $37. Zone 2- Tropicana North to Flamingo: $41. Zone 3- Flaming North to The Strat: $45

The Taxicab Authority has a list of properties included in each of the zones. Surcharges will also be added to the metered rate for rides that start or end within one of the specific zones, or the airport.

In order to provide adequate service during the Formula One race, the Taxicab Authority Board says the premium is required to encourage full workforce participation.

Taxi companies will be required to submit data on the total number of rides they made during the surcharge period by December. A comparison of ride totals for the same period in 2022, and a breakdown of the zoned versus non-zoned fares must be included in the data.

It's not known for sure if Uber and Lyft will institute surge pricing, but hard to imagine they won't. The demand will be high for ride sharing services during this time, as NO ONE will be able to get anywhere near the race area without a hassle.

Welcome to Las Vegas - now pay up!

There are some very oddly named cities in The United States. Some are hard to spell, some hard to pronounce, and some are both. 

In our state of Nevada, there are some goofy city names. As a native of Nevada, I'm proud to say I've been to, or through, just about all of them. The strangest city names in Nevada are rich in history and our own state's story.

Winnemucca, Nevada. Where we have all spent a week there one night (old joke). The City of Winnemucca says it is "the cross-road linking the northern route on US Highway 95 from Oregon and Idaho to Interstate 80, which spans from East to West across northern Nevada, bridging the gap between central California and Utah."  It's a small town of about 8,500 with all of those things you'd expect from a small town.

We also have Beowawe, Puckerbrush (just outside of Winnemucca), and Adaven. Does that one look familiar? It's Nevada spelled backwards. Many are ghost towns now, but they're still out there.

Wendover (they've heard all the jokes, so don't even try), Weed, Jiggs, Carp, Pahrump and Bunkerville -- all in the great silver state of Nevada.

I have an old high school friend who lives in Jarbidge, Nevada. It's way up at the top of the state of Nevada, if you're looking at a map. Right near Wendover! It was booming at one time -- maybe nearly 1,500 people once settled there because of the mining boom in Nevada in the early 1900's in Nevada, according to the Western Mining History. Now, as of a recent census, Jarbidge boasts about 100 people. But might I add -- it's beautiful!

There are some hilariously named cities in the United States. And I commend those of you in Albuquerque, New Mexico; in Poughkeepsie, New York; and Meeteetse, Wyoming. I commend you for even learning how to spell the city you live in or came from.

But those are the least of it when it comes to oddly named and weirdly spelled cities in the U.S. Here are a few of the strangest city names.

You'll find Zzyzx between Las Vegas and Los Angeles just off off I-15. Nothing much there but a beautiful serene lake and a bit of a creepy abandoned mineral springs area. Some say it's haunted. You'll find some more interesting Zzxyx history in this video. Interesting, and a little creepy.

According to Grays Harbor, hundreds of thousands of tourists drive through Humptulips each year. Humptulips is a Salish word named by the Chehalis Tribe a few thousands years ago. The word and name Humptulips means “Hard to Pole.” This term refers to the difficulty in traveling the river by boat. 

Unless you are from there, go ahead and try to pronounce it. Quonochontaug, pronounced: KWAHN-ah-kahn-tawg. Yeah . . . still can't pronounce it. It means black fish. Which they probably could have named it originally but noooooo. It is known by the locals as "Quonnie." The Providence Journal says it is mainly a second-home, summer town.

Pronounced Tih-WAH-pih-tee. The name might be local slang for an “unkempt, ill-appearing person” or a Shawnee word meaning “place of no return.” It’s probably the latter. According to Toponymatic, the name might be local slang for an “unkempt, ill-appearing person” or a Shawnee word meaning “place of no return.” It’s probably the latter, but I like the first.

According to Bob Vila the town named for William Harrison Boring, a former Union soldier and farmer who settled the area. The locals say it's an exciting place to live. Humor -- I like it!

The Chicago Tribune reported that the city suggested the name Excelsior but were told the name was already taken in Missouri. They tried again and got the same answer. Frustrated, they asked the city to give them a “peculiar” name -- even writing the word "peculiar" in quotation marks. Well guess what? There's your name!

Last but not least -- Three Way! No, not what you think or wish. According to Babbel, Three Way was named after the three way split of the U.S. Route 45. Guys, that should have been your first and only guess on how this city was named.