Calgary taxi meter collection borne out of decades-old niche family business

A Calgary familybusiness that's been around since the 1970scontinues to be one of the top manufacturers of a rather niche product taxi meters.

Record Technologies says it's one of just three main makers in North America today, and itsmetersare used in cabs around the world.

"My father actually drove a cab back in the day," president MattCollinsontold the Calgary Eyeopener. "He started his own fleet from there and then moved into the supplier aspect."

Watch a working 1940s taxi meter in action

7 years ago

Duration 0:50

A Calgary family business that's been around since the 1970s continues to be one of the top manufacturers of a rather niche product taxi meters.

Meters through the ages

Over the decades, the family has amassed a bit of a personal"taxi meter museum," with models dating back more than seven decades.

"They're all big, chunky and metal and weigh like five pounds each," said Collinson, gesturing to the earliest models in his collection, which date back to the '40s and '60s.

The 1940s brick-sized model is a complex mechanical system of interlaced brass, steel, cogs, springs and gears.

"This is something I'd have to hire a clock worker to design, because if I took this apart piece by piece, I would neverbe able to put this back together," he said.

Having to lick your fingers

Record Technologies didn't enter the manufacturing scene until the '70s, but it was one of the first companies to utilize a rudimentary touch system with buttons, according to Collinson.

"It didn't work very well, because apparently there were stories of people having to lick their fingers to make it work properly," he laughed.

"If you had a dirty finger or something, you'd be sitting there bashing it."

In later models,they introduced a talking meter that would announce the fare in a monotone computerized voice.

Today, Collinson's models have built-in USB and Bluetooth compatibility, and they pair with an app that allows for wireless receipts and trip analytics.

Hesaid what differentiates his product from that ofhis competitorsin New York and Montreal is that his is "outrageously user friendly" and requires minimal setup.

"I can go into your vehicle, plug this inand bingo."

• MORE CALGARY NEWS|University of Calgary goes phishing to school staff on cyber security
• MORE CALGARY NEWS|Alberta students' portable pooper a much-needed amenity for ice fishing

With files from the Calgary Eyeopenerand Paul Karchut