last night and Alex had a nice apartment in NY and he was wearing nice clothes. Do taxi drivers really make good money like that even in NY?

I'm not sure how much they make (or made back then) but seeing as he only had to support himself and he was apparently a very good driver, I'd think he'd make out alright. It might be exaggerated a little bit though. Then again, I'm sure by being a good cabbie he made a lot in tips.

Yes they do. I drove Taxi in New York near Syracuse and did as much as $800 to a $1000 a week on winter months, and average about $45,000 a year. I worked with former Taxi drivers that worked in Manhattan and was told that they can make as much as $200,000 a year. I have been in Manhattan many times and I believe it because many people are hailing a cab almost all the time, and the price of a ride is very expensive. NY City has the best paying Taxi jobs in the country.