Just last weekend, I heard of another scary taxi cab story. A gal in Chicago was attacked by her cab driver. He pulled into an alley and got in the back seat with her. Luckily, she escaped and was just fine.

I can't help but to remind you of the importance of looking out for yourself when traveling solo. Here are some tips to follow when getting in a cab.

1) GG Writer, Marisol, found this fabulous service, RideMagic, enabling you to book your cab ahead of time. I like this because there is a recorded history of the cab you used. (this service isn't available for all cities)

2) As SOON as you get in that car, do NOT let the cabbie pull away until you've located the number for the cab, and, if possible, the last name of the driver. If the cab driver refuses you doing this, get out of the cab.

3) Place the number of the taxi cab in your phone and also text this cab number to a close friend. This will ensure that there is a timestamp of your whereabouts, along with ID of the cab.

4) Always, always, always keep track of the route in which your cab driver is going. Many of us may think that being a bit tipsy allows for not keeping track of the road. Wrong.

5) Have your cash/credit card ready before the cab comes to a stop. This way, you can hand over your payment and not give the cabbie a chance to do something out of sorts.

Anything else anyone has to add from experience?