Cab companies often charge a flat fee for picking someone up and then charge an additional fee per mile driven
The city of Charlotte, NC charges $2.50 fee and $2.50 per Mile for each cab ride
What does the y-intercept mean in the context of this problem? Hint: What do you pay when you step into the cab?
In the context of this problem, the y-intercept represents the initial cost of the cab ride, which is the flat fee charged when a passenger first enters the cab, before any distance is traveled. According to the information given, in Charlotte, NC, this flat fee is $2.50.
If we were to graph the total cost of a cab ride (y) against the distance traveled in miles (x), the y-intercept would be the point on the graph where the line representing the total cost intersects the y-axis (where x=0, meaning no miles have been traveled yet). The y-intercept occurs when you step into the cab and corresponds to the starting total cost, which in this case is $2.50.
The equation to represent this scenario would be:
y = 2.50 + 2.50x
where y is the total cost and x is the number of miles driven. The y-intercept (b) in the equation y = mx + b is 2.50, as that is what you pay immediately upon entering the cab, before traveling any distance.