Kid Car
Is This Your Business?Started in 2006, Kid Car is a New York City-based kid-friendly car service. It offers scheduled rides in the New York City area, including local airport transfers ($6–$19 plus tolls).
It offers scheduled and on-demand rides (30 minutes notice min) with three different vehicle options:
- Sedan — Max 3 passengers, including one car seat
- Minivan — Max 5 passengers, including 3 car seats
- SUV — Max 6 passengers, including four car seats
It offers local rides and airport transfers, which are billed a little differently. Airport transfers have fixed rates and local rides have a variable rate, with some charges, etc.
All rides can be scheduled from 30 minutes in advance to 30 days in advance. Schedule a ride as soon as possible. Customers are notified 12–24 hours before the pickup time that a driver has accepted a request.
Wait Time Policy
- First 15 min — No charge
- More than 15 min — Per-minute rate
- Sedans — $0.45 per min
- Minivans — $0.65 per min
- SUVs — $0.85 per min
- Airport arrivals — No charge
Cancellation Policy
- Reservations made with less than one hour notice
- Canceled within 5 minutes of the request — No charge
- Canceled after 5 minutes of booking —Charged vehicle’s minimum charge rate
- Reservations — Advance reservations must be canceled using the app at least one hour prior to your scheduled pickup time if you are travelling between 8 a.m. and 11 p.m., at least 10 hours prior to rides scheduled before 8 a.m., or one hour prior to your plane’s scheduled takeoff time if you are flying into New York City.
Local price quotes include the following:
- Taxes
- Fees
- 15% gratuity (can be adjusted)
- $20 surcharge for local weekday trips during rush hours of 6:45–8:30 a.m. and 2:15–4:00 p.m.
Local quotes don’t include the following:
- Traffic and round trip tolls
- $25 surcharge for trips that either start or end outside of New York City.
- $5 per additional stop
With a two hour minimum, you can also just get a ride for an hourly rate (+ taxes, tolls, and tip)
- Sedan — $55 per hour
- Minivan — $75 per hour
- SUV — $95 per hour
Keep reading for more about this family-focused ride service, including pros and cons.
Top Ranked Companies
The Good
- Pro Drivers
- Kid Safety = Car Seats
- Bringing Newborns Home
- Recurring Reservations
- Kid CarPool
Pro Drivers
This car service ensures that it has the right kind of drivers:
- Fingerprinting
- Complete criminal background checks with no criminal history
- No speeding or reckless driving tickets in the past 2 years
- Monitored Motor vehicle report
To participate in Kid Car training, drivers are required to have a valid Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC) license and the appropriate TLC plates. They even have to participate in in-person training before they are allowed to take rides.
Kid Safety = Car Seats
Most state laws require that children under 8 years or 4 ft 9 inches tall use a car or booster seat. The company states: “Using a properly installed, age-and-weight Appropriate Car Seat reduces the likelihood of permanent injury in a crash at low speeds.”
Kid Car uses convertible NCAP crash-tested car seats made to fit children newborns and babies from 5 lbs to booster seated kids at 120 pounds. You even get to specify how the car seats should be adjusted for your kids when you make a reservation. If you are bringing your own car seat, you need:
- Rear facing (5–15 lbs)
- Rear facing (14–40 lbs)
- Forward facing (<40 pounds)
- Forward facing (40–65 lbs)
- Booster seat (>40 lbs)
Drivers are also trained in the proper installation method of many car seats in less than five minutes. Kid Car takes vehicle safety very seriously. Its vehicles pass a DMV inspection every four months to assure that they are always in good working order.
Bringing Newborns Home
Kid Car even offers special services to help bring new babies home from the hospital, including special instructions for reservation. You can bring your own car seat or use the Kid Car provided car seat. It is rated for kids 5–41 lbs.
Recurring Reservations
If you need a reservation for more than three times per week for more than one month, you can make a recurring reservation. Recurring reservations will have consistent drivers.
Kid CarPool
If more than one family using the service together, there is a carpool option. The service recommends three families minimum, but will work with fewer.
Kid CarPool even offers school-year quotes can be provided and drivers are consistent because this is a ride service rather than a rideshare where drivers are selecting rides as they come.
The Bad
- Car Sickness
- Food and Pets
- App-Only Reservations
- New York City Only
- Spendy Prices
Car Sickness
If your child gets car sick, you have to pay for cleaning fees. Most car sharing and rideshare services have a cleaning fee policy. Kid Car suggests that you let your driver know if your child is prone to feeling car sick. The drivers can try to make the ride smoother.
Food and Pets
No food is allowed, except water. This is to help avoid any allergic reactions for future riders. Additionally, pets are only allowed in carrying cases.
App-Only Reservations
While parents can get a price estimate for the ride online, all reservations have to be made in the mobile app. This is a little tricky, especially when parents might want the convenience of using a desktop or laptop to schedule rides while working.
New York City Only
This service is only in the Big Apple. While it has established itself with much sought-after ride services, this car service hasn’t broadened its service area further than the city. There is an added surcharge for any rides that either start or end outside of the city.
Spendy Prices
This definitely isn’t going to be the cheapest option to get you and your kids around town, but its focus is really on safety and driver competence, rather than low costs.
The Bottom Line
Kid Car is not a new service. It has been around longer than Uber and Lyft. Where Kid Car makes itself indispensable is in its offers of drivers who are specially trained to help with car seats; the company’s largest cars can accommodate four.
This service offers families — solely in New York City — the ability to take rides with young children. No wonder it has specified special services like rides to the airport and rides home from the hospital. It's hard to see how families will solve such mobility problems safely, if they have multiple young kids.
Have you used Kid Car to help transport your kids to the airport or around town? Let us know about your experience with a quick review below. Any feedback is much appreciated.
